On January 6 the Guinness World Records announced Tesla CEO and new Twitter owner Elon Musk set a world record.
On their website the 68-year-old recorder of all things remarkable wrote:
"Elon Musk (South Africa) has officially broken the world record for the largest loss of personal fortune in history."
"He has lost approximately $182 billion (£153B; €173B) since November 2021, as estimated by Forbes, although other sources suggest that it could actually be closer to $200 billion."
"Although the exact figure is almost impossible to ascertain, Musk’s total losses far surpass the previous record of $58.6 billion, set by Japanese tech investor Masayoshi Son in 2000."
"According to Forbes, Musk’s net worth dropped from a peak of $320 billion in 2021 to $138 billion as of 6 January 2023, largely due to the poor performance of Tesla’s stock."
\u201cElon Musk has lost $182 billion of personal wealth since 2021, the highest amount of anyone in history\u2026\n\nhttps://t.co/PcQY7FGB1W\u201d— Guinness World Records (@Guinness World Records) 1673007719
Musk didn't just set the record, but smashed it.
The prior record was set by Softbank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son in 2000 who lost $58.6 billion. Musk lost over three times that amount.
Musk's dubious distinction found him few sympathizers.
@TheUSASingers/Twitter
\u201c@jeffjarvis Congrats on Elon breaking another world record previously held by Trump! I see Presidential aspirations in his future\u2026 (best way to build that fortune back up through grifting for dollars)\u201d— Jeff Jarvis (@Jeff Jarvis) 1673542440
\u201c@kodiak149 @elonmusk I think the best Guinness World Record for Musk to set would be to go from a peak net worth of $340 billion to flat broke.\u201d— kodiak149 (@kodiak149) 1673703578
\u201c@Mike_Tweets_Too @EmmaKennedy The man is a Wally. He had things going his way and his ego and his dabbling in right winged conspiracies has led him to loose not only this huge amount of money, but shred his reputation. To be honest the valuations of his companies were overinflated.\u201d— Mike's Tweets \ud83d\udc3e\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc3e (@Mike's Tweets \ud83d\udc3e\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83c\udf3b\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc3e) 1673374650
\u201c@knugent4118 Just think - if he had donated it instead of ....???.... it could have ended homelessness in the US and Canada.\n\nBut he thinks - and Conservatives tell us - that he can manage his money better than government ever could.\n\nTax the max everyone over $100M. You have enough already\u201d— KNugent4118 \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 (@KNugent4118 \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6) 1673411665
\u201c@knugent4118 Congratulations @elonmusk . What a way to make new worldwide! When you could have made so many positive changes in the world that would have seen your companies thrive instead of taking a dive. Now you can join our own Qanielle Smith for making AB the laugh of the world.\u201d— KNugent4118 \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6 (@KNugent4118 \ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udde8\ud83c\udde6) 1673411665
\u201c@CBSNews\u201d— CBS News (@CBS News) 1673565300
\u201c@CBSNews Winner of the losers.\u201d— CBS News (@CBS News) 1673565300
\u201c@CBSNews And he took the rest of us Tesla stock owners down with him!\u201d— CBS News (@CBS News) 1673565300
The losses dropped Musk from the first position on Forbes' list of billionaires.
Whether Musk—and his companies—can regain the ground lost remains to be seen.