Musk pledges SpaceX shares to every US child
Elon Musk (pictured) revealed plans to give a SpaceX share to every child in the US next year, making the pledge a day after AI company Anthropic outlined plans to dedicate part of its equity to public benefit initiatives.
“Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America,” Musk posted on social media platform X, adding: “This will be the first of many.”
He provided no details on how the shares would be distributed or how the plan would be funded. According to Census Bureau data, around 73 million children live in the US. This would put the potential value of the giveaway at approximately $10.7 billion based on SpaceX’s closing share price of $146.03 on 16 October.
A regulatory filing made in August showed the billionaire held a 48.4% stake in SpaceX as of 30 June. The company went public earlier this year, raising $75 billion in a record-breaking IPO which briefly made the tech mogul the world’s first trillionaire.
Public Benefit Fund
Separately, Anthropic announced on Sunday (18 October) that it would commit 5% of its shares to a new Public Benefit Fund, with the potential for the allocation to grow as the company’s valuation increases.
The AI player stated the fund could receive an additional 2% of its shares for every 50% increase in its valuation above a baseline yet to be disclosed. Additional allocations would be made at the board’s discretion.
Anthropic stated the fund would give it “increased flexibility and scale” to pursue its mission, including “large donations to traditional non-profits or direct distributions to specific populations”.
One potential focus is AI-driven disruption to employment. The company stated that, although the technology could generate “enormous economic value”, it could “cause instability for many workers”. It has already committed $200 million to research and initiatives addressing the issue, “but given the pace of AI progress, bolder approaches may be needed”.
“The Fund will have the versatility to pursue them.”
Anthropic, which has confidentially filed for an IPO, stated further details on the fund’s governance and valuation thresholds would follow in the coming months.
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