President Donald Trump awarded Elon Musk the National Medal of Science on Thursday, October 8, calling him “our modern-day Thomas Edison,” Newsweek reported. Forbes added that Trump called Musk an “industrial titan” and “one of the greatest technology founders to ever live.” The ceremony took place at the “Science: A New Golden Age” summit in Washington.
Who else was honored
Musk was one of six tech leaders honored. Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Alphabet co-founder Sergey Brin and AMD’s Lisa Su also received the National Medal of Science. Dell founder Michael Dell and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. Forbes noted it was the first time Trump has presented either medal in his two terms, and that the National Science Foundation calls the Medal of Science the highest recognition the government can give to scientists and engineers.
As of Thursday, Forbes puts Musk’s fortune at about $997 billion, well ahead of Dell at $279 billion, Brin at $262.5 billion and Huang at $199 billion. Trump also made it personal: Newsweek reports he received a framed National Medal of Science that had been awarded to his late uncle, John G. Trump, an MIT professor.
A different tone from last year
The medal is a sharp contrast with 2025, when Musk criticized Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the two fell out in public. CBS News reported in September that the relationship appeared to have thawed. In late September Musk attended a White House meeting with top tech executives and was named a co-lead of a Pentagon study of future warfare.
Our take: the praise is on the record, but a medal is a gesture, not a deal. Musk was honored alongside five other tech leaders, and SpaceX already holds large Pentagon contracts, so the relationship was repairing before this ceremony. What to watch is whether it lasts: the last time Musk and Trump were this close, they fell out within months.
