Elon Musk's companies directly employ roughly 160,000 people as of 2026. Tesla has about 135,000 employees and SpaceX around 22,000, with smaller teams at X, Neuralink, and The Boring Company. These roles span advanced manufacturing, engineering, software, and space operations—many created from near-zero when the companies started or scaled under his leadership.
The companies have also driven broader industry growth in EVs, reusable rockets, and related supply chains, supporting hundreds of thousands more indirect jobs.