The most expensive Mistakes in History that cost trillions

Life is full of ups and downs. Sometimes, mistakes can have major consequences. Even one small typo can lead to significant losses. Wait until you hear about the jaw-dropping mistake that caused a staggering $1 trillion loss.

At number one is a low-cost yet irreparable mistake. Ancient artifacts are very valuable, and museum curators work hard to preserve them. In 2015, at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, a funeral mask belonging to King Tutankhamun was damaged. The mask's beard came loose because the wrong adhesive was used. The restoration did not go as planned. While no specific cost was given for this blunder, some speculate it could be worth over $2 million.

Number two presents a typo that cost a whopping $5.5 million. This error occurred when a business class fare from Toronto to Loma Cyprus was mistakenly priced at $39 Canadian instead of $3,900. Someone discovered the error on a ticket-selling website, leading to a rush to purchase before it was corrected. Initially, Alitalia attempted to cancel the wrongly issued tickets but ultimately decided to honor them. They could have lost between $2 million and $8 million Canadian dollars due to this typo.

Next at number three is London's Walkie-Talkie skyscraper. Its unique curved walls made it stand out, but it gained notoriety for reflecting intense sunlight. The south-facing wall, made of reflective glass, melted cars and caused fires on the street below. To address the issue, temporary netting was installed, followed by a permanent sunshade, costing around $10 million.

In fourth place is a costly mistake from the film industry. During the filming of Justice League, some scenes needed to be added. However, main actor Henry Cavill was also shooting for Mission Impossible Fallout, which caused a scheduling conflict. His role required him to grow a mustache. Coordinating the reshoots cost around $25 million. A visual effects team had to remove Cavill's mustache, and a planned pause in production would have cost an additional $3 million. Production delays only added to the costs.

At number five, we find the Beatles. The famous band faced numerous rejections before finally securing a record deal in 1962. Many producers believed guitar music was declining. However, once the Beatles were signed, their popularity skyrocketed. Their merchandising generated around $50 million in retail sales in 1964 alone. This left those early rejecting producers regretting their decisions.

The stakes get higher at number six. NASA lost the Mars Climate Orbiter due to a simple mistake. A Lockheed Martin engineering team used English units of measurement, while NASA's team relied on the metric system. This prevented crucial navigation information from being shared. The loss has been estimated at $125 million. Despite this setback, NASA plans to investigate the incident and continues with future missions to Mars.

At number seven, a French railway operator faces a costly blunder. New trains ordered are too wide for over 1,300 stations in France. This mistake has already cost around $20 billion, as adjustments are being made to many stations. The issue arose due to incomplete measurements from the railway network operator.

Similar in cost is a mishap in Dubai. The largest shopping center in the Middle East had to be partly cleared due to a leak in a shark tank. A small break in the glass panel caused water to spill onto the mall floor. Maintenance crews quickly resolved the issue, but the incident was still expensive.

Finally, let's talk about a trillion-dollar mistake. When Netflix was a struggling startup, co-founder Reed Hastings tried to sell it to Blockbuster for $50 million in 2000. Today, Netflix is valued at over $150 billion.

And at the very top is a remarkable story about Apple. Ronald Wayne, one of the three founders, sold his 10% stake for just $800 after 12 days. Today, Apple's value exceeds $1 trillion. Time has taught us the impact of such decisions.

So, what's your most costly mistake? What have you learnt from it? Like and subscribe for more fascinating stories.