After crossing $800 billion, Elon Musk says ‘money can’t buy happiness,’ Internet reacts: ‘Send me 1 million dollars’

Taking to X, the Tesla and SpaceX chief revisited the familiar saying that “money can’t buy happiness,” suggesting there may be more truth to it than people assume. “Whoever said ‘money can’t buy happiness’ really knew what they were talking about,” Musk wrote, ending the post with a sad-face emoji. The line struck a chord and quickly went viral.

Check out the post:

Whoever said “money can’t buy happiness” really knew what they were talking about 😔

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 5, 2026

As expected, the Internet responded with a mix of thoughtful takes and sharp humour. Some social media users jokingly asked Musk to share his wealth so they could test the theory themselves. One quipped, “Send me 1 million dollars so I can understand you.” Another offered a more philosophical spin, writing, “Money doesn’t buy happiness. It buys freedom from the things that make you miserable. There’s a difference, and only people who’ve had both poverty and wealth understand it. The saying exists to console the poor, not to describe reality.”

Others leaned fully into sarcasm. “So true money doesnt matter at all you should give me $10million dollars,” one user wrote, while another twisted the quote, saying, “Whoever said ‘money can’t buy happiness’ really didn’t know where to shop.” A fifth comment summed up the cynicism bluntly: “I’d genuinely rather be miserable and a billionaire than miserable and not a billionaire.”

The timing of Musk’s post only added fuel to the conversation. According to Forbes, his net worth recently surged past the $800 billion-mark following a massive corporate development. SpaceX acquired Musk’s AI venture, xAI, in a deal valued at around $1.25 trillion, an agreement estimated to have boosted his personal wealth by roughly $84 billion, pushing it to about $852 billion.