Elon Musk Is the Richest Man in the World. He Also Chooses to Live in a Trailer.

With a net worth of $930 billion and a place at the very top of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Elon Musk can live wherever he pleases. However, the world’s richest man currently chooses to live in a trailer, not a mansion. 

Musk said earlier this week that he is residing in an Airstream trailer as he supervises the latest SpaceX data center buildout in Memphis, Tennessee. Speaking at the All-In Summit event, Musk called the trailer his “palace,” eliciting laughter from attendees like SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell. 

“This is Elon, by the way, doing what people don’t believe he does,” Shotwell responded. “He sleeps on the factory floor. He’s in Memphis helping build buildings.”

Musk has spent time in Memphis recently as SpaceX expands its AI computing operations there. SpaceX absorbed Musk’s AI startup, xAI, earlier this year, putting the data center buildout at the center of its broader AI strategy. 

Living in an Airstream trailer is convenient for Musk, who prefers residing near the worksite rather than commuting. The trailer allows him to stay close to the servers and construction work — just steps away. 

Musk has previously gone as far as to sleep on the factory floor

Musk has repeatedly said that he slept at Tesla factories during periods of intense production pressure. The best-known example came in 2018 when Tesla struggled to increase output of its Model 3 sedan at its Fremont, California, plant.

Musk said then that he worked long hours on the production line, slept on the factory floor and sometimes used a couch or a desk as a bed because he did not have time to go home. He framed the practice of sleeping on the floor as a way to stay close to operational problems and to show employees that he was sharing the strain during Tesla’s push for production. 

Musk pledged to ‘own no house’

Musk has previously asserted that owning expensive homes can be a distraction from his work. 

In May 2020, Musk said in a post on X that he would sell “almost all physical possessions” and “own no house,” adding that he wanted to devote himself to “Mars and Earth.”

He subsequently sold all seven of the California homes he owned, including properties in Bel Air and the San Francisco Bay Area. Those sales, completed between June 2020 and November 2021, brought in about $127.9 million, according to property records cited by The Wall Street Journal in 2022. 

Musk later said he rented a modest home in Texas near SpaceX’s Starbase operation. Reports have also indicated that he has retained access to, or acquired, other residences, including a cluster of homes in Austin, Texas. 

Inside the Airstream trailer

Airstream is a recognizable name in American travel trailers. The company traces its start to 1931, when founder Wally Byam opened a small trailer factory in Culver City, California.

Airstream’s design has also earned recognition beyond the RV industry. The Museum of Modern Art’s collection includes an Airstream travel trailer made in 1963. The museum describes the trailer as a “cultural icon” that represents the “convenience and comfort of a home on wheels.”

Airstream trailers range from 16 to 33 feet in length.