Tesla’s transformation from a company that lost large sums of money every year has been made possible in large part by rising sales in China and Europe.
The pandemic dampened sales for all automakers in the spring and summer, and Tesla’s plant in Fremont, Calif., was idled from late March until the middle of May.
Rivian, which has raised another $2.65 billion, plans to sell a pickup truck and S.U.V. it has worked on for more than a decade.
Traditional automakers have struggled to sell electric cars. That could change as Ford, Volkswagen and others introduce new models.
Mr. Musk’s net worth was $188.5 billion at 10:15 a.m. in New York on Thursday, $1.5 billion more than taht of Jeff Bezos.
The milestone seemed unreachable just three years ago and comes as Tesla has seen a string of profitable quarters and a buoyant stock.
As Tesla completes a factory in Berlin, Mercedes-Benz and Audi are introducing electric cars in bids to defend their dominance of the luxury market.
Investors are betting that small companies like Workhorse will help popularize electric commercial vehicles. And Tesla aims to extend its reach.
The electric-car maker will be the biggest addition in the history of the benchmark index. Will that settle down its swings?
The chairman of Ford Motor and the great-grandson of Henry Ford is an elder statesman in an industry where C.E.O.s come and go.