The Consequences of SpaceXs Trillion-Dollar I.P.O.

ImageAndrew here.What does it mean to be a trillionaire? We’ll probably have our first on Friday when SpaceX goes public and Elon Musk’s paper fortune hits 13 digits.

But the truth is that nothing has fundamentally changed; Musk was effectively worth the same amount on Thursday.The milestone is less a measure of one man’s wealth than a marker of our age, in which innovation (and marketing) can create value at almost unimaginable scale and capital markets can concentrate it within a few individuals’ hands.Workers, investors and governments are left to argue over who deserves what.Two years ago, Warren Buffett wrote: “In no way did I, or anyone else, dream of the fortunes that have become attainable in America during the last few decades.

It has been mind-blowing — beyond the imaginations of Ford, Carnegie, Morgan or even Rockefeller.Billions became the new millions.” Now, the goal post is trillions.LiftoffFriday is the day: SpaceX will begin trading in public markets after raising about $75 billion (and perhaps more) in the world’s biggest I.P.O.

ever, valuing it at nearly $1.8 trillion.Elon Musk’s rocket and artificial intelligence company shattered norm after norm in the process of going public, and will mint a new class of millionaires — with Musk himself poised to become a trillionaire.The big question now is what Wall Street will look like when the dust settles.What to watch: SpaceX will probably begin trading around midday, after its underwriters set an opening price that best clears market demand....