Trevor Hise grew up near Kennedy Space Center, where his father worked as a plumber and his mother was a furniture salesperson. Against their wishes, he joined “an unproven startup,” SpaceX after graduating with a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Florida.
Hise spent 12 years at SpaceX as a launch engineer. Today, his shares are worth millions — and he is not alone in this transformation.
SpaceX employs 22,000 people, but only a few hundred have left the company. The IPO generated over 4,400 millionaires from everyday workers, including cafeteria staff and maintenance custodians who held onto their stock awards.
However, not everyone retained their shares, and some now face regret.
At the top of the list is Elon Musk. With a 43% stake in SpaceX valued at more than $850 billion, he adds to his estimated $273 billion worth of holdings in Tesla, the largest U.S. electric vehicle manufacturer. Reportedly, Musk is now worth over $1.1 trillion — the world’s first trillionaire.
The news quickly drew criticism from several figures:
– Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) reiterated calls for a wealth tax.
– Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) described it as evidence of an “economy that is broken.”
– Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) declared, “nobody should be a trillionaire.”
Even Graham Platner, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in the 2026 midterms, said: “Elon Musk just became the world’s first trillionaire. Let’s make sure he’s also the last.”
The media highlighted the absurdity of the wealth creation — imagining 97 million miles if you stacked $1 bills or 200 round trips around the moon — and headlines such as “SpaceX IPO Could Make Musk a Trillionaire at Your Expense in ‘Massive Wealth Transfer’.”
Yet, the SpaceX IPO was a textbook example of wealth creation, not transfer or exploitation. It did not occur within a zero-sum game.
William Nordhaus, a Nobel Laureate and professor of economics at Yale, studied social returns from technological advances over the period 1948–2001. His research in NBER Working Paper 10433 (2004) showed that most benefits of technological change go to consumers rather than producers — only 2.2% historically went to innovation.
By Nordhaus’s calculations, Musk has created tens of trillions of dollars in social returns.
SpaceX transformed the space economy in two decades — a change so profound it is barely recognizable today. The company has repeatedly faced near-death situations and now handles over 80% of Western orbital payloads, launching one every three days. It slashed industry standards for payload costs and Starlink, its broadband service, connects over 12 million users across the globe.
Would this have been possible anywhere else? The answer is “no.”
Why did it happen? Technology played a role — but so did China’s efforts. People were critical; many SpaceX engineers are immigrants or immigrant-born. Access to capital was important, yet SpaceX competed for market funding rather than government subsidies. Institutional knowledge mattered too, but SpaceX upstaged the status quo by inventing much of the technology.
The answer is all of these factors, driven by American capitalism — the foundation of American Exceptionalism.
Elon Musk saw the vision, put his legacy on the line, and built an ecosystem of believers who turned this ambitious dream into reality. They are all risk-takers, as is Musk.
What made SpaceX possible was the genius of American Capitalism — a system that requires “animal spirit” to rise for the spoils.
We must celebrate these visible markers: over 4,000 new millionaires, hundreds of centi-millionaires, and the world’s first trillionaire. This achievement is a breathtaking showcase of what American capitalism can bestow.
It also serves as a beautiful tribute to U.S. Capitalism on America’s 250th anniversary — many happy returns.
