Elon Musk just launched his biggest philanthropic investment to date. He tweeted Thursday that he’ll be donating a $100 million prize for best carbon capture technology. He will be providing details next week.
Musk is currently the richest man in the world. He surpassed Jeff Bezos on January 3rd — to later jump to second place when Tesla’s stock price plummeted. However, the “scientist billionaire” quickly regained the title of the wealthiest person on the planet a few days later.
Details next week
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 21, 2021
The donation idea was probably inspired by his followers’ responses on Twitter. On January 8, Musk asked his Twitter followers for advice on how to donate some money.
Btw, critical feedback is always super appreciated, as well as ways to donate money that really make a difference (way harder than it seems)
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 8, 2021
Carbon capture technology is an engineering process that traps waste carbon dioxide from the air or before it pours out of power plants and factories. Most of the captured carbon dioxide is stored underground. In the last century, carbon dioxide emissions were the leading cause of global warming and climate change.
