Musk vs Dell

SpaceX and Dell Technologies.

The differences

Forbes puts Elon Musk about $632B ahead of Michael Dell.Forbes figures from 15 Oct 2026 and 6 Oct 2026.
Both started the company their money comes from.
Michael Dell is about 6 years older than Elon Musk.
Elon Musk has signed the Giving Pledge; Michael Dell has not.

Put someone else on either side

Musk

Dell

Net worth, Forbes: $913BForbes, 15 Oct 2026; $281BForbes, 6 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $921BBloomberg, 15 Oct 2026; $268BBloomberg, 9 Oct 2026
Forbes rank: No. 1Real-Time list, 15 Oct 2026; No. 5Real-Time list, 14 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: 2012Debuted on the Forbes World's Billionaires list in 2012 with an estimated $2 billion; 1996Bloomberg: his stake was worth more than $1 billion eight years after the 1988 IPO

How it started: Founded itFounded SpaceX in 2002; Tesla calls him a co-founder of Tesla, which Forbes says he first backed in 2004; Founded itFounded the company with $1,000 in 1984, at 19
Main source: SpaceX stock, then Tesla stockForbes: 'the bulk of his fortune is held in SpaceX and to a lesser extent Tesla'; Dell Technologies stockBloomberg: 'Much of Michael Dell's fortune is derived from his stake in Dell Technologies'
Companies: SpaceX, TeslaSpaceX: CEO, CTO and chairman; Tesla: CEO (since October 2008); Dell TechnologiesDell Technologies: Chairman and CEO
Biggest stake: SpaceX48.4% owned; Dell Technologies40.9% owned

Born: 28 Jun 1971South Africa; 23 Feb 1965Houston, Texas, United States
Country: United StatesLives in Austin, Texas, United States; United StatesLives in Austin, Texas, United States
Education: Bachelor's degreeBA in physics, University of Pennsylvania; BS in business, Wharton School; Left university without a degreeLeft the University of Texas at Austin
Parents: Not stated; His father was an orthodontist and his mother a financial consultant

Giving Pledge: Signed in 2012; Not a signer
Foundation: Musk Foundation; Michael & Susan Dell FoundationEstablished in 1999 with his wife, Susan Dell
Lifetime giving: $0.5BForbes, 20 Apr 2026. Forbes' estimate of giving actually disbursed; he has moved $8.5 billion of Tesla stock into his foundations, mostly not yet paid out; $10BMichael & Susan Dell Foundation, date not stated. Amount Michael and Susan Dell have committed to date, as the foundation reports it; a commitment, not money paid out. Includes the $6.25 billion pledged in 2025 for children's investment accounts

Role now: Runs the companyCEO of Tesla; CEO, CTO and chairman of SpaceX; Runs the companyChairman and CEO of Dell Technologies
Successor: None namedTesla's board says it has near-term and longer-term succession plans but names no one; brother Kimbal Musk is a Tesla director, not an executive; None namedThe 2026 10-K lists the executive officers without naming a successor; no other family member is among them
Public office: Senior advisor to the President (special government employee), leading the DOGE effort2025; Member, President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST); Member, President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST)2001; 2026-
Legal record: 2018: US SEC; 2026: US District Court for D.C. (SEC case)Settled SEC securities-fraud charges over his 2018 tweets about taking Tesla private, without admitting or denying them; paid a $20 million civil penalty and stepped down as Tesla chairman. In the SEC's case over late disclosure of his Twitter stake, a final judgment ordered his revocable trust, not him personally, to pay a $1.5 million civil penalty, without admitting or denying the allegations; the SEC said it would then dismiss the claims against him personally.; 2010: US SECSettled SEC disclosure charges over Dell Inc.'s reporting of payments from Intel, without admitting or denying the allegations; agreed to pay a $4 million civil penalty.