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1. He's been tasked with co-leading the Department of Government Efficiency

"Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle the Government Bureaucracy," Trump wrote in an announcement of Musk's new role, which he said Musk would carry out alongside the entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who briefly ran against Trump in the Republican race.

Trump added that the pair would work to "slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies."

He likened the DOGE — whose acronym is a seeming nod to Dogecoin, Musk's favorite cryptocurrency — to the Manhattan Project, the program during World War II to create the first nuclear weapons.

The unofficial government department "will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform," a statement announcing the creation of the office said.

It said the department would also seek to "create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before," though exactly how it will function remains unclear.

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2. The world's richest man is the CEO of Tesla

Musk is arguably best known as the CEO of Tesla, which he was an early investor in. He has since built Tesla into a major force in the auto industry.

Tesla is one of only a handful of American corporations that have reached a $1 trillion market cap, joining the likes of Apple and Nvidia.

As well as being CEO, Musk is often listed as Tesla's "Technoking," a role he created in 2021, and is a director of the company. He was chairman for around a decade until 2018.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk, the world's richest person, saw his wealth boosted to $335 billion on Monday after Tesla stock jumped 9%. Investors have poured into the automaker in the past week, expecting it to benefit from a Trump win after Musk established close ties with him.

Tesla produces and sells several electric-vehicle models — including Model S, Model 3, Model X, and Model Y — and solar-energy storage and generation products.

Tesla employed just over 140,000 people as of December 31, 2023, its most recent annual report said.

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3. He's the boss of SpaceX

The billionaire is the boss of SpaceX, the aerospace firm he founded in 2002, which has a valuation of about $210 billion, according to Forbes.

As well as being the CEO, Musk is also its chief technology officer and chair.

Musk and his company aim to build a rocket system that will make it possible to build a city on Mars. He's said he hopes 1 million people will inhabit the red planet by 2050.

A space-friendly Trump could simplify this dream. Space-industry experts previously told Business Insider it was highly probable that Musk would be able to influence space policy.

A lawsuit filed in late 2023 said SpaceX employs around 13,000 people, though the exact numbers are unknown.

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4. Musk acquired Twitter in 2022

In 2022, the business mogul acquired Twitter for $44 billion, later renaming the social-media platform X and scrapping the bird logo. While CEO Linda Yaccarino runs X's daily operations, Musk remains heavily involved.

"The reason I acquired Twitter is because it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square," he said in a note sent to Twitter advertisers.

Changes Musk has made to the service include reinstating accounts that were formerly banned, such as those of Donald Trump and Andrew Tate, extending verification to members that have an X Premium plan, and making likes private.

Prior to Musk's acquisition of Twitter, the company employed roughly 7,500 people. Upon buying the company, Musk launched sweeping job cuts, removing thousands of employees. Estimates from PitchBook say X now employs 4,000 staff.

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5. He's the cofounder and CEO of Neuralink

While Tesla and X are household names, Musk is also involved in less-known companies, such as Neuralink, which he cofounded. Tesla's website lists Musk as Neuralink's CEO.

The firm is developing two devices: A brain chip to help treat neurological conditions and a surgical robot that would insert the equipment into the patient.

In January, Musk said the brain implant had been tested for the first time on a human. In August, it was revealed that a second patient received the chip, which he used to play video games and create 3D objects.

Like many of Musk's companies, Neuralink is private, so exact staff numbers aren't known, but PitchBook estimates it has 491 staff.

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6. He leads the startup xAI

Another startup led by Musk is xAI, which, The Wall Street Journal reported, is in talks to raise funding to a $40 billion valuation. If successful, that could make its worth more than four times the value of X, per Fidelity filings.

In October, xAI was reported to have moved into OpenAI's old headquarters in San Francisco. Along with numerous others, Musk and Sam Altman cofounded OpenAI in 2015, where Altman is now boss. Musk stepped down from the board of directors three years later.

Now, the pair lead rival AI firms.

xAI has around 100 employees, according to PitchBook.

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