Money, though not the most powerful thing in the world, certainly is one of the most. Its power cannot be denied. It is said that smart work pays off more than hard work does. To get to the top, however, one needs both smart work and hard work.
Making the first billion is the hardest part; scaling a billion to ten is relatively easier – but so is losing. The list of top 10 richest people in the world keeps on changing. At the time of your reading, the number 1 spot might not be taken by Elon Musk.
10. Mark Zuckerberg
Net Worth: $79.8 B
Mark Zuckerberg is no stranger in this list. Hands down one of the most famous people in the world, Mark founded Facebook. Initially known as FaceMash, Facebook was founded in a college dorm.
Now known as Meta, the company is getting itself into the world of AR. Soon, the real and the virtual world will be connected thanks to Meta.
Mark Zuckerberg’s major wealth comes from his 13% stake in Facebook. Crashes influence the stock quite heavily. The latest crash, on 4th October, 2021, caused Facebook’s shares to plum down by 4.9%. Consequently, Mark’s net worth saw a $5.9 decline.
The CEO works almost 8 hours a day and lives a fairly simple lifestyle. He wears simple clothes (though his plain tee shirts cost hundreds and thousands of dollars).
Related: Top 10 Richest NBA Players of All Time
9. Steve Ballmer
Net Worth: $99.5 B
A businessman and an investor, Steve Ballmer is the current owner of the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association. He also served as the Chief Executive Officer at Microsoft from 2000 to 2014. However, he didn’t start from the top.
He joined Microsoft as an employee in 1980. Only after 20 years of grinding was he made the CEO of Microsoft. Many have critiqued his performance as the CEO.
Like other people on the list, most of his money comes from his stocks. He owns stocks of the same company he worked at and served as the CEO – Microsoft. Steve joined the $100 billion club just this July.
Steve dropped out from Stanford at the age of 24 to work at Microsoft. He started off as Bill Gate’s assistant and gradually climbed the corporate ladder.
8. Sergey Brin
Net Worth: $114.9 B
One of the two main co-founders of Google in 1998, focused on X – Alphabet’s moonshot research laboratory. Was president of Alphabet but later stepped down. Still a shareholder and a board member
A black horse, Sergey was one of the two main co-founders of Google in 1998. However, that wasn’t his main focus. Alphabet is the parent company of Google. That’s where you’ll find Sergey… or at least would have a while back ago.
Even in Alphabet, his focus was mainly on X – a research laboratory. He would ditch public events to focus on the laboratory. He was the president of Alphabet but later stepped down. Even after stepping down, he’s a shareholder and a board member.
7. Larry Ellison
Net Worth: $116.9 B
An application of Structured Query Language, Oracle proved to be quite successful. He served as the CEO of Oracle for 37 years before stepping down in 2014.
Like many other technocrats, Larry Ellison was a drop out (from the University of Chicago). He, along with two other people, founded Software Development Libraries (SDL). He also founded Miner and Oates. Later, his founded companies gave birth to Oracle – his wild card.
His main source of income is from the 33% shares of Oracle he holds – which are valued at around $75.7 billion.
6. Larry Page
Net Worth: $119.7 B
A dropout from Stanford (Ph.D), Larry Page is one of the co-founders of what’s today known as Google. Previously, it was known as “Backrub” – named on the basis of how it ranked websites – by using backlinks.
He served as the CEO of Google but later stepped down in 2001. In 2001, he took over again as the CEO. Then, he became the CEO of Alphabet – the parent company of Google.
Served as the CEO but later stepped down in 2001. Took over as CEO again in 2011. Later, he became the CEO of Alphabet – the parents company of Google. In 2019, he stepped down as the CEO of Alphabet after appointing Sundar Pichai as the new CEO. Currently, he’s a shareholder and a board member.
5. Warren Buffet
Net Worth: $129.7 B
Said to have started investing from the age of 12, Warren Buffet is the king of investing. However, his net worth is thanks to his share in Berkshire Hathaway. Currently, he is the Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
He emphasizes high tax caps on the rich but doesn’t exactly follow his words. His salary is $1 in order to avoid taxes. His philanthropic side, however, is quite generous. As of now, he has given away more than $41 billion in donations.
He doesn’t plan on giving away most of his wealth to his children. This, however, he does seem to be following.
Related: Top 10 Tech Companies with the Happiest Employees
4. Bill Gates
Net Worth: $136.1 B
Dropout from Harvard, Microsoft as CEO, chair and Chief Software Architect
At some time, Bill Gates used to be the richest man in the world. He was soon overtaken by Jeff Bezos and now, he’s here. One of the most renowned dropouts, Bill Gates dropped out from his university and let his entrepreneur side take over.
What many people don’t know is that he dropped out from Harvard – one of the most prestigious universities in the world. His wealth owes primarily to the company he founded – Microsoft. He earned most of his money as the CEO, Chair an Chief Software Architect at Microsoft.
Bill Gate’s Microsoft and Larry’s Google are the two main companies that have shaped the internet. We see the internet and experience it because of these two companies.
3. Bernard Arnault
Net Worth: $169 B
LVMH under which many like Louis Vuitton, Hennessey, Sephora. Share in Christian Dior SE.
Unlike the next person on the list, Bernard Arnault’s wealth comes from his business-oriented companies. They rely more on selling products than creating solutions that solve problems. Nonetheless, he has succeeded financially.
His main source of income comes from LVMH of which he is both the CEO and chair. Under this, the world’s largest luxury goods company, brands like Louis Vuitton, Hennessey and Sephora are parented. If you still think luxury goods aren’t overpriced, you should have a conversation with yourself!
Another big chunk of his wealth comes from his share in Christian Dior SE of which he owns 97.5%.
2. Jeff Bezos
Net Worth: $194.8 B
Started Amazon. Start as an online bookstore. Blue Origin another project on par with NASA and SpaceX
Known as the person who founded Amazon, it’s no surprise Jeff Bezos is on this list provided how successful Amazon is. Previously as something that just started as an online bookstore, Amazon now has nearly everything and anything you can find.
Not long ago, the company also started selling drugs. With that, Amazon now also covers the medical field. Before this, medical products like knee caps and bandages were also sold.
A significant portion of Jeff Bezos’ comes from another project of his – Blue Origin. If you’re a space enthusiast, chances are you know about this. For those of who don’t know, Blue Origin is a private space company that is on par with NASA and SpaceX.
Blue Origin has quite the achievements. The company plans on starting commercial space flights which will be the first in the industry.
1. Elon Musk
Net Worth: $289.4 B
Hailed as the changer of the twenty first century, Elon Muks owns multiple world-changing companies. Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink are some of the popular ones.
His major wealth comes from his stocks in his own companies. As an entrepreneur, his companies are more solution-oriented compared to the traditional businessW-oriented ones.
Elon Musk is actually one of those people who is changing both the present and (hopefully) the future of the world. He’s a pretty smart guy despite not having the technical degrees. He learns from others. This made him one of the best engineers.
In the beginning phase of SpaceX, he required a Chief Engineer, but didn’t find anyone suitable enough for the job. He ended up doing all the work himself.
Guest Author: Shaheer ul Haq
A tech geek turned-content writer who writes to provide value and not for the mere sake of writing. Other than writing, you’ll find me trying to solve physics equations.
Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash