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Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX, Tesla, and X (formerly Twitter), has become the first person whose fortune is valued at $500 billion. This puts him halfway toward becoming the world’s first trillionaire, Forbes reported on Wednesday, October 1, citing data from its Real-Time Billionaires service, an index of billionaires updated in real time.At 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time, Musk’s estimated fortune rose by $9.3 billion amid a significant surge in Tesla shares, reaching the $500 billion mark, though it later dipped slightly. By the close of trading on October 1, Musk’s wealth was valued at $499.1 billion.Back in March 2020, Forbes estimated Elon Musk’s net worth at $24.6 billion. By August of that same year, thanks to the rapid rise in Tesla stock, he became the fifth person in history to hold $100 billion. In January 2021, he became the world’s richest person for the first time with nearly $190 billion. He crossed the $200 billion mark in September of that year, the $300 billion mark in November, and by December 2024, Musk became the first individual to reach $400 billion.Meanwhile, according to Bloomberg, which also maintains a ranking of the world’s wealthiest individuals, Musk’s fortune is somewhat lower—around $470 billion. In Bloomberg’s and Forbes’ rankings, the second-richest person is Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, whose wealth is $120 billion less (Bloomberg) or $150 billion less (Forbes) than Musk’s.Forbes estimates that Elon Musk could become the world’s first dollar trillionaire by March 2033. However, the analytics group Informa Connect Academy predicted a year ago that he might reach this milestone as early as 2027.

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The de facto leader of Sukhumi, Badrа Gunba, signed a “decree” on conscription into the so-called armed forces for October–December 2025, Apsadgl.info reports.At the same time, the discharge from military service will take place for those who had been serving under conscription.From October 1 to December 31, conscription into the so-called armed forces of occupied Abkhazia is planned for young men aged 18–27 who are currently in the reserve.Gunba instructed the so-called cabinet of ministers, as well as the de facto district administrations, to facilitate the implementation of measures related to conscription and the transfer of servicemen into the reserve.

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The company will operate flights on the Ankara–Tbilisi–Ankara route four times a week. AJet is a subsidiary of Turkey’s largest carrier, Turkish Airlines.On the inaugural flight to Tbilisi arrived the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to the Republic of Turkey, Archil Kalandia, and the CEO of AJet, Kerem Sarfi.To mark the occasion, a welcoming ceremony was held at Tbilisi International Airport, attended by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Aleksandre Khvtisiashvili, Director General of the United Airports of Georgia Levan Moseshvili, representatives of the Civil Aviation Agency, and the operator of Tbilisi and Batumi international airports, TAV Georgia.Information about the launch of direct Ankara–Tbilisi flights by AJet was first announced during the President of Georgia’s visit to Turkey. The issue was also discussed at a meeting of the Georgia–Turkey Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation, co-chaired by Georgia’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mariam Kvrivishvili, and Turkey’s Minister of Transport and Infrastructure. The start of direct flights between Ankara and Tbilisi was also a topic at Kvrivishvili’s meeting with representatives of Turkish Airlines’ top management.Among neighboring countries, Turkey remains Georgia’s most active air partner. According to last year’s data, more than 1.2 million passengers traveled between the two countries, accounting for 47% of Georgia’s total passenger traffic with its neighbors.In the first eight months of 2025, Georgian airports recorded a historic high, with over 24,000 international and domestic flights. The number of passenger and cargo flights (24,915) carried out from January to August exceeded the figure for the same period in 2024 by 15%.Currently, about 700 flights per week are operated across Georgia’s three international airports. In the first eight months of 2025, a total of 5,635,975 passengers used Georgian airports, which is 14% more than in the same period of 2024.

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Through close coordination between the Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia and other relevant divisions of the ministry, 107 foreign citizens were expelled from the country last month, the Interior Ministry reported.“In September, as a result of comprehensive measures, citizens of Russia, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Nigeria, Cameroon, Sudan, Bangladesh, Jordan, Myanmar, Nepal, Syria, Azerbaijan, and Ethiopia — a total of 107 people — were expelled from the country.According to data from the first nine months of the current year, 852 foreign citizens without legal grounds for staying in the country were expelled from Georgia. This is an unprecedentedly high figure, significantly exceeding the total number of expulsions in 2022–2023–2024.It is noted that, starting today, amendments to the Law of Georgia “On the Legal Status of Foreigners and Stateless Persons” have come into effect, aimed at strengthening mechanisms to combat illegal migration and reinforcing migration control on the country’s territory.Procedures for detecting and expelling foreign citizens illegally residing in Georgia have been improved. The changes also apply to the Administrative Offenses Code of Georgia. Legal responsibility for violating the terms of legal stay in the country has been tightened, and the amount of administrative fines has increased.According to the legislative amendments, depending on the duration of the violation of legal stay in Georgia, fines may range from 1,000 to 3,000 lari. In addition to the fines, expelled individuals will also be subject to entry bans for a certain period.The ministry emphasized that these changes are part of the state’s policy to combat illegal migration and serve to ensure the rule of law, public order, and security in Georgia.”

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The Tbilisi City Court upheld the claim of the Ministry of Finance and ordered Georgia’s third president, Mikheil Saakashvili, and the former head of the Special State Protection Service, Teimuraz Janashia, to return up to 9 million lari (about $3.3 million) to the state budget.Saakashvili and Janashia were convicted of the embezzlement of large sums of budget funds by a group of individuals acting in collusion and abusing their official positions.On March 12, 2025, the Tbilisi City Court sentenced Mikheil Saakashvili to 8 years in prison and imposed a fine of 300,000 lari on Teimuraz Janashia. Following this, the Ministry of Finance filed a civil lawsuit to recover funds from the convicts, which, according to the agency, amount to 9 million lari.Today, the Court of Appeals upheld the verdict delivered by the court of first instance against Saakashvili and Janashia.According to previous court rulings, Mikheil Saakashvili will remain imprisoned until April 1, 2034. He and his party consider all the verdicts politically motivated.

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According to forecasters, on September 30 in Western Georgia, and from the afternoon of September 30 until the first half of October 2 in Eastern Georgia, rain is expected, in some areas heavy, with possible thunderstorms, hail, and strong winds.“The expected precipitation may cause a significant rise in water levels in Georgia’s rivers, flash floods in small rivers, and the triggering or intensification of landslide and mudflow processes in hilly and mountainous zones (hazard level – medium),” the National Environment Agency reported.

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Georgia’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mariam Kvrivishvili, congratulated representatives of the tourism sector on World Tourism Day.“I congratulate all representatives of the tourism industry without exception on World Tourism Day! I thank each of you who welcomes guests arriving in our country — international travelers — and helps present and promote Georgia with dignity. Your efforts are especially important for strengthening the country’s economy,” said Mariam Kvrivishvili.In her address, the minister noted that supporting tourism is a priority direction of the government’s economic policy. According to her, over the past decade, tourism has become one of the fastest-growing sectors of Georgia’s economy, contributing to job creation, improving the socio-economic well-being of the population, and attracting new investments.As Kvrivishvili emphasized, the sector is developing in a diversified way, with a focus on target countries from which it is possible to attract more solvent visitors. According to the minister, special attention is given to European countries, the Persian Gulf, and Asia — in these regions, large-scale marketing campaigns are being carried out, along with strategic cooperation with international platforms and airlines, as well as leading media outlets and travel companies.

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The Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia, Geka Geladze, held an expanded-format meeting with the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, Ali Yerlikaya, who is on an official visit to Georgia.According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the ministers of the two countries discussed issues of fruitful cooperation between the law enforcement agencies of Georgia and Turkey.The importance of further deepening the existing close partnership in various areas was emphasized. Geka Geladze noted that the Georgian side is ready to actively continue working together with Turkish colleagues in order to make the existing cooperation mechanisms even more flexible and effective.The parties also expressed their readiness to carry out relevant activities aimed at sharing experience and best practices between their agencies.The meeting was attended by the Chief of the National Police of the Republic of Turkey, Mahmut Demirtaş, First Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia Roland Meskhia, deputies Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, Shalva Tadumadze, Giorgi Butkhuzi, Mariam Tabatadze, and other senior officials of the ministry.At the conclusion of the meeting, Geka Geladze thanked his Turkish colleague for the fruitful police cooperation.

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Spanish media reacted to the performance of Georgian striker Georges Mikautadze for “Villarreal” against “Sevilla.”DAZN_ES: “They should already commission a statue for this guy. Mikautadze’s assist, which allowed Solomon to score the winning goal, belongs in football schools and museums.”Álvaro Ramos, journalist for Diario AS: “Mikautadze is one of those players who decide everything. He is constantly looking for a chance to strike and almost always manages to make the right decision.He is special: his mobility tears apart the opponent’s defense, and he has outstanding ball control. Add his statistics to that. ‘Villarreal’ has acquired a top-level striker. Mikautadze does whatever he wants. Against ‘Sevilla,’ the Georgian had a brilliant match.”“Villarreal” paid €30 million to “Lyon” for Georges Mikautadze. In La Liga, he has already played three matches, scored one goal, and provided one assist.

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In the Isani district of the capital, at Samgori Park on Kakheti Highway, a solemn ceremony was held to unveil a monument to Georgian King Erekle II. The project was carried out through the joint efforts of Tbilisi City Hall and the Ministry of Culture.The ceremony was attended by Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, and Minister of Culture Tinatin Rukhadze.“Today is a truly special day for our city — we are unveiling a monument to the great Georgian king Erekle II. With this, we once again confirm that Tbilisi has always been and remains the guardian of historical memory and the center of national identity. The monument is a message to our children, to future generations, that Georgia is eternal — with its history, faith, great culture, and values passed down to us by our ancestors and great kings, sometimes through struggle, sometimes through creation, and above all through wise politics. The erection of this monument in the heart of Georgia’s capital symbolizes the strength of our state and its peaceful future. It is also symbolic that the monument was created based on a sketch by Merab Merabishvili, the renowned sculptor behind the beloved equestrian statue of Erekle II in Telavi,” said Kakha Kaladze.The mayor also thanked the prime minister for the initiative, as well as the Ministry of Culture and the group of sculptors who worked on the project:“My special thanks go to the sculptors and the architect who were involved in making this project a reality. I also want to thank the Ministry of Culture. This project was carried out precisely through the joint efforts of Tbilisi City Hall and the Ministry of Culture. And of course, special gratitude goes to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, at whose initiative the monument to Erekle II was erected in Tbilisi,” the mayor noted.The monument, created by a team of sculptors based on a sketch by Merab Merabishvili, was installed in Samgori Park in honor of Erekle II’s legacy, giving the area additional cultural and historical significance.The unveiling ceremony was attended by sculptors, architects, and other representatives of the arts.

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Occupied Abkhazia and the so-called South Ossetia are planning to establish trade without intermediaries, which will become possible after the signing of an agreement on a trade regime between Sukhumi and Tskhinvali. This was stated by the so-called Minister of Economy of Sukhumi, Teimuraz Mikvabia, according to Apsadgil.info.According to him, the main goal of the document is to increase trade turnover, as well as to allow the import and sale of goods without customs duties.A Sukhumi delegation visited Tskhinvali, where it took part in the international economic forum “South Ossetia — Investment Horizons.”

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The process of printing ballots for the elections of municipal bodies — the Council and the Mayor of a self-governing city/self-governing community — on October 4, 2025, is ongoing. This was reported by the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Georgia.According to the CEC, the ballots are being printed at four printing houses in Tbilisi. The process is continuously monitored by CEC members as well as representatives of observer organizations. Today, the Chairman of the Central Election Commission, Giorgi Kalandarishvili, inspected the ballot printing process at the “Favoriti Style” printing house.“This is a very important process because the main electoral document — the ballot — is being created. Naturally, it is also important that both the participating parties and the election administration closely monitor and supervise the printing process, which in turn ensures transparency and high accountability to the public regarding the electoral process.On the other hand, quality control is ensured to guarantee the production of documents that meet high standards for both modernized and traditional polling stations. Together with observer organizations, we will monitor the process throughout the entire period, ensuring in cooperation with the contractor company and printing houses that high-quality documents are produced, as well as a transparent and open electoral process,” noted the CEC Chairman.In total, 3,897,500 ballots will be printed, of which 2,813,150 are for technological polling stations and 1,084,350 for traditional polling stations (three types).It is worth noting that for regions populated by ethnic minorities, ballots will be printed in Georgian-Armenian (103,200) and Georgian-Azerbaijani (295,100) languages.The ballot printing process began on September 21 and will continue for several days. After printing is completed, the ballots will be delivered to district election commissions within the legally established timeframe, and later to precinct election commissions.