American magazine Forbes calculates the wealth of the richest billionaires on the planet by analysing fluctuations in the markets, and the rankings on January 1, 2025, make it clear that tech is still king.
Elon Musk retains the top spot - and with Donald Trump’s return to The White House will only grow in influence, too. And as we look down the list, we see the familiar names - Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Google inventors Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and Oracle creator Larry Ellison all dominant.
In the top 10, only luxury goods magnate Bernard Arnault and investor Warren Buffett are not in the tech field - and after the 2024 that chip manufacturer Nvidia had, few would bet against Jensen Huang leapfrogging those two in the next 12 months.
For those interested, the places from 11 to 20 do see a more varied roster. There are tech barons such as Michael Dell, but also - individually - the Rob, Jim and Alice Walton, scions of the Walmart dynasty. And you’ll also see a familiar face placed 16th - Bill Gates, Microsoft founder and erstwhile world’s richest man. He has donated about $60bn to the charitable Gates Foundation so far.
9. Steve Ballmer
Ballmer ran Microsoft from 2000 to 2014 - having joined in 1980 - and now owns the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team. Having bought them for $2bn in 2014, Forbes now values them at $4.65bn. Another philanthropist, Ballmer is said to have so far given away more than $4bn | Getty Images
10. Jensen Huang
Nvidia was probably the single biggest business success of 2024, as the chips it produced became more and more in demand for high-speed gaming and - in particular - AI functions. Its CEO and president Jensen Huang, who founded the company in 1993, has seen his personal wealth swell as a result, and he is now the 10th richest person in the world. | AFP via Getty Images