SpaceX Engineer, 35, Quits Job With Wife After IPO Wealth, Plans Year-Long World Trip
SingTao · 1 SOURCESabout 3 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
Brian Aggrey, a 35-year-old senior software engineer at SpaceX, and his wife Phoebe Novack, a former senior manager at Impossible Foods, have both quit their jobs following SpaceX's landmark initial public offering in June 2026. The couple is now on a year-long global adventure with a monthly budget of $25,000 (approximately HK$196,000), which they have dubbed the "Year of Freak." Aggrey joined SpaceX as a 21-year-old intern when the company was just a decade old, becoming one of its earliest employees, and spent 14 years accumulating stock options that have now transformed into substantial wealth following the IPO.
Key Points
- SpaceX completed its IPO on June 12, 2026, and briefly saw its market cap exceed $3 trillion, making it the world's most valuable company
- Approximately 4,400 of SpaceX's 22,000 employees became millionaires overnight, with around 400 individuals gaining over $100 million
- Brian Aggrey joined SpaceX at age 21 in 2012 as an intern, participating in the design of Falcon 9 rocket mechanical structures and spacecraft avionics over 14 years
- The couple set a budget of $25,000 per month (approximately HK$196,000) for their planned year-long journey, which ends on July 31, 2027
- They have traveled through Milan, the French Riviera, Fontainebleau, Chamonix in the Alps, Italy, Spain, and are heading to Mexico City
Why It Matters
The story illustrates how SpaceX's massive IPO created overnight wealth not only for its founder Elon Musk—who became the world's first trillionaire—but also for thousands of ordinary engineers and employees who took on significant financial risks by holding stock options in a private company. For Hong Kong professionals, this narrative underscores the potential rewards of long-term commitment to high-growth ventures, while also highlighting how achieving financial independence allows individuals to reimagine work-life balance on their own terms.
The story illustrates how SpaceX's massive IPO created overnight wealth not only for its founder Elon Musk—who became the world's first trillionaire—but also for thousands of ordinary engineers and employees who took on significant financial risks by holding stock options in a private company. For Hong Kong professionals, this narrative underscores the potential rewards of long-term commitment to high-growth ventures, while also highlighting how achieving financial independence allows individuals to reimagine work-life balance on their own terms.