Another jackpot surpasses $1 billion. Is this the new normal?

Remember this moment because it probably won't last: A U.S. lottery jackpot soared above $1 billion, and that's still a big deal.

After three months without anyone winning the top prize, a ticket worth an estimated $1.22 billion was sold in California for the drawing Friday night. The high number evoked headlines and likely lured more people to convenience stores with dreams of private spacewalks above the Earth.

It doesn't seem to matter that the nation's top 10 jackpots, not including Friday, already boasted 10-figure payouts. For many of us, something stirs inside when a number ticks one dollar above $999,999,999.

“The question lurking is, what happens when $1 billion becomes routine and people don’t care about it anymore?” said Jonathan D. Cohen, author of the 2022 book “For a Dollar and a Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America.”

“There's no easy round number after a billion,” Cohen said. "But also, how much money can one person possibly, possibly, possibly need?”

Mega Millions ticket prices are set to rise from $2 to $5 in April. The increase will be one of many changes that officials say will result in improved jackpot odds, more frequent giant prizes and even larger payouts.

Here's brief history of lotteries and why jackpots are growing:

Cohen notes in his book that lotteries have existed in one form or another for more than 4,000 years.

In Rome, emperors and nobles held drawings at dinner parties and awarded prizes that ranged from terra cotta vases to people who were enslaved. As early as the 1400s, lotteries were used in Europe to fund city defenses and other public works.

Sweepstakes were common in the American colonies, helping to pay for the revolution against Britain. Cohen noted in his book that Thomas Jefferson approved of lotteries, writing that they were a tax “laid on the willing only.”

Lotteries began to fall out of favor in the U.S. in the 1800s because of concerns over fraud, mismanagement and impacts on poor people. But starting in the 1960s, states began to legalize them to help address financial shortfalls without raising taxes.

“Lotteries were seen as budgetary miracles, the chance for states to make revenue appear seemingly out of thin air,” Cohen wrote.

When Mega Millions started in 1996, it was called “The Big Game” and involved only six states. It was meant to compete with Powerball, which then had 20 states and the District of Columbia.

The original payout for The Big Game started at $5 million. The value would be nearly twice that today accounting for inflation.

In 2024 dollars, the before-taxes prize could buy a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution or cover Michael Soroka's $9 million contract to pitch next season for the Washington Nationals.

By contrast, the pre-tax winnings from Friday’s Mega Millions prize could theoretically buy a Major League Baseball team. The Nationals would be too expensive. But Forbes recently valued the Miami Marlins at $1 billion.

A better comparison might be Taylor Swift's tour revenue at the end of 2023. Her Eras Tour became the first to earn more than $1 billion after selling more than 4 million tickets.

Swift, however, was expected to bring in a total of more than $2 billion when her tour finally wrapped up Dec. 8, according to concert trade publication Pollstar.

These days, Mega Millions and its lottery compatriot Powerball are sold in 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball also is sold in Puerto Rico.

In October, Mega Millions said it hoped increased ticket revenue and less stratospheric odds would lead to more people winning, even as prizes grow extraordinarily high.

Games with massive payouts tend to be more popular despite the slimmer odds. Larger jackpots also attract more media attention, increase ticket sales and bring in new players, Cohen said.

Lottery officials have allowed the odds to become lower with a larger pool of numbers to pick from, Cohen said. And that has made games harder to win, leading to payouts rolling over into even larger prizes.

The first $1 billion jackpot was in 2016. Cohen said he expects the upward trajectory to continue.

Meanwhile, he warned against the tropes of the troubled or bankrupt lottery winner.

A well-known example is Andrew “Jack” Whittaker Jr. He won a record Powerball jackpot after buying a single ticket in 2002 but quickly fell victim to scandals, lawsuits and personal setbacks as he endured constant requests for money, leaving him unable to trust others.

Most winners don't turn out like him, Cohen said.

“Even if we deny it, we all sort of believe in the meritocracy — this belief that if you won your money through luck, then you probably didn’t actually deserve it,” Cohen said. And yet various studies have shown “lottery winners are happier, healthier and wealthier than the rest of us.”

A digital Mega Millions ticket is seen on a screen as a person makes their selections on a self-serve terminal inside a gas station ahead of Friday's Mega Millions drawing of $1.15 billion, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

A person makes their lottery ticket selections on a self-serve terminal inside a gas station ahead of Friday's Mega Millions drawing of $1.15 billion, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

A person retrieves a Mega Millions lottery ticket from a self-serve terminal ahead of Friday's Mega Millions drawing of $1.15 billion, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

A person inserts cash into a self-serve terminal while holding their play slip ahead of Friday's Mega Millions drawing of $1.15 billion, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Rob holds up a Mega Millions ticket at Rossi's Deli in San Francisco, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A person fills out a Mega Millions play slip ahead of Friday's Mega Millions drawing of $1.15 billion, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Rob, right, buys a Mega Millions ticket at Rossi's Deli in San Francisco, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Rina Flores, middle, works behind the counter over a sign advertising the estimated $1.15 billion Mega Millions jackpot, bottom right, at Rossi's Deli in San Francisco, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A pedestrian walks behind a sign advertising the estimated $1.15 billion Mega Millions jackpot at Rossi's Deli in San Francisco, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Oscar Flores, left, works behind the counter next to a sign advertising the estimated $1.15 billion Mega Millions jackpot at Rossi's Deli in San Francisco, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A Mega Millions lottery ticket is displayed at a store on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024, in Tigard, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Fidel Lule buys a MegaMillion lottery ticket at Won Won Mini Mart in Chinatown Los Angeles, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

The option to play the $1.15 billion Mega Millions jackpot is seen on a self-serve terminal inside a gas station in Baltimore, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk, preparing to step back from his work leading the Department of Government Efficiency, had a request of the reporters gathered at the White House to interview him: Before he would answer any questions, he wanted someone to tell him a joke.

The tech billionaire’s request in the Roosevelt Room on Wednesday underscored the surreal and idiosyncratic presence of the world’s richest man at the highest echelons of American power. Over the past few months, his work of downsizing the workforce has sent shocks through the federal government and drawn intense pushback, including protests of his electric vehicle company, Tesla.

Musing about his and DOGE’s incongruous role in the U.S. government, he said, “It is funny that we’ve got DOGE."

“Doesn't the absurdity of that seem, like, like, are we in a simulation here or what’s going on? But, like, it was a meme coin at one point," he said, laughing. "How did we get here?”

Musk, clad in all black but missing the two hats he had worn at Wednesday's earlier Cabinet meeting, defended DOGE's work as he prepares to scale back his government role and spend more time at his businesses. But he gave hazy answers about the work he’d been doing and DOGE’s future, and he seemed taken aback by the intense backlash he’d encountered.

“Being attacked relentlessly is not super fun," he said. “Seeing cars burning is not fun,” he added, referring to the instances of Tesla cars being smashed or set on fire.

“In the grand scheme of things, I think we’ve been effective. Not as effective as I’d like. I think we could be more effective,” Musk said. “But we’ve made progress.”

DOGE's large-scale slashings have been met with dozens of lawsuits. DOGE's attempts to access sensitive government information, including Social Security data, has similarly met resistance in court. And Democrats this week unveiled an online tracker tallying the federal funds approved by Congress that DOGE has blocked, setting up a constitutional struggle between two branches of government.

Musk wouldn’t offer examples of anything he’d do differently, though DOGE is nowhere near its original savings goal and has overstated its progress.

DOGE had sought to cut spending by $1 trillion. Musk estimates he’s cut $160 billion so far and acknowledged it would be hard to get anywhere close to $1 trillion.

"It's sort of, how much pain is the Cabinet and the Congress willing to take?" Musk said. “It can be done, but it requires dealing with a lot of complaints.”

Musk didn't detail any of those complaints and said he has a good relationship with President Donald Trump's Cabinet. But when asked about clashes with certain members, particularly Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Musk said, “at times, there will be some disagreements with the Cabinet.”

He defended DOGE’s attempts to access Americans' personal data, dismissing concerns about a potential “surveillance state” by quipping, “Don’t we already have a surveillance state?” He said DOGE needs to access the systems in its hunt for fraud, and said, “There has to be some way to reconcile the improper payments.”

He said DOGE has referred cases of suspected fraud to the Justice Department, though he offered few details, including how many referrals were made. Antonio Gracias, a Musk investor working for DOGE, pointed to the indictment last week of an Iraqi man living in New York on charges he illegally voted in the 2020 election. U.S. prosecutors said DOGE assisted in the investigation.

A Justice Department spokesperson said DOGE “is working closely with DOJ to identify potential fraud."

Musk acknowledged there were some instances in which they had to restore the jobs of government workers who, in his words, were “accidently let go,” like “some people that were doing important regulatory work or taking care of national parks.”

When asked if he’s found any areas where he’d recommended efficiencies beyond cuts, Musk veered into the nation's military strategy and said he has repeatedly recommended to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that he should be spending more money on hypersonic missiles and long-range drones instead of on crewed systems.

Musk said DOGE is also working on improving connectivity for the nation’s air traffic control system and reviewing plans to improve its software, but DOGE’s primary goal is “trying to stop wasteful and fraudulent spending."

But on other points, he was vague.

Who will lead DOGE when he leaves?

“DOGE is a way of life,” he said. “Like Buddhism.”

Will he retain the title of senior adviser to the president?

“I guess.”

Will DOGE wrap up its work by July 2026, as originally stated?

“If the president wants us to stick to that date, we'll stick to that date.”

How many of the roughly 100 DOGE employees will stay on the job while he winds down?

“Some will stay on. Some will not. So it's up to them. This is basically a volunteer organization.”

Is DOGE winding down?

“No, I think it will gain momentum.”

Musk struck up a friendship with Trump during the 2024 campaign and spent nearly $300 million on the election — the bulk of which went toward helping the Republican reclaim the White House. He has since become a constant presence with Trump for much of the first 100 days of the administration, regularly traveling with the president to his home in Florida on the weekends.

Musk said Wednesday that he was working on DOGE seven days a week during the first months of the administration, at times sleeping in the Lincoln Bedroom at Trump’s invitation.

He declined to say just how many times he had slept at the White House but said the president had implored him to try the caramel ice cream from the kitchen.

“Don’t tell RFK,” Musk joked, referring to Trump’s Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Musk described it as an “intense period” during which he was trying to understand and map out the federal government.

“It’s a startup, effectively. A new administration is like a startup,” he said.

But he said he is now scaling back his work on DOGE, spending one to two days a week on it, and he plans to be in Washington less.

“Now we’re getting more of a rhythm so the amount of time that’s necessary for me to spend here is much less," he said.

He also pointed to the limitation on his status as a special government employee, which means he can only work 130 days in a 365-day time period.

He said he will keep his “tiny” office on the second floor of the West Wing that he said has “a view of nothing” — a feature, he then remarked, that keeps him safe.

“It’s harder to shoot me,” he said. “There's not a good line of sight.”

Associated Press writer Alanna Durkin Richer contributed to this report.

Elon Musk speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Elon Musk speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, April 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)