Elon Musk Spent $150 Million USD on Charity in the First Quarter of 2021

Having recently dethroned Jeff Bezos as the world’s richest person for a brief period in early January 2021, the months immediately following the announcement have seen Elon Musk transform into a high profile philanthropist.

In the first four months of the year, Musk has reportedly spent almost $150 million USD to various charities nationwide, including Texas schools, food banks and a recently announced climate-change prize. The XPrize competition for climate change is Musk’s single largest charitable commitment, seeing the Tesla owner donate $100 million USD. $30 million USD went to nonprofits in South Texas and smaller donations within the $1 million to $5 million USD range were distributed to Khan Academy, a platform for online courses, a pair of Boston-based coronavirus researchers and Feeding Texas.

According to Recode, Musk’s combined $150 million USD donation exceeds all of Musks’ previous charitable givings prior to 2021. Before the year began, Musk supposedly donated about $100 million USD in total. It appears that Musk has leaned into his philanthropy side, having recently reached out to fans on Twitter regarding where they think funds should be allocated, “Critical feedback is always super appreciated, as well as ways to donate money that really make a difference (way harder than it seems)”.

Through the Musk Foundation, the EV mogul is looking to continue his philanthropic endeavours, targetting local charities where SpaceX, Tesla and the Musk Foundation are based. It remains to be seen where else Musk plans to disperse his earnings over the course of the year.

Btw, critical feedback is always super appreciated, as well as ways to donate money that really make a difference (way harder than it seems)

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 8, 2021

In case you missed it, President Biden commits to slashing U.S. carbon emissions in half by 2030.