In an extraordinary display of financial gains, the top 10 wealthiest individuals globally increased their collective wealth by more than $500 billion in 2024, pushing their total net worth to just over $2 trillion.
Elon Musk was at the forefront of this surge, with a remarkable gain of $203 billion, bringing his net worth to $432 billion by the close of the year. His assets briefly peaked at $486 billion due to significant spikes in Tesla stocks and SpaceX valuations. Meanwhile, other tech giants also enjoyed substantial increases in their fortunes. Mark Zuckerberg, Jensen Huang, Larry Ellison, and Jeff Bezos each saw their wealth escalate by $60 billion to $80 billion as their respective companies experienced notable upswings in value.
The growth wasn’t confined to the tech sector alone. Michael Dell added $45 billion to his wealth, and Google cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin increased their fortunes by $42 billion and $38 billion, respectively. Interestingly, the heirs of Walmart founder Sam Walton—Jim, Alice, and Rob Walton—each entered the $100 billion club for the first time, further emphasizing how widespread these gains were.
The upswing in wealth for these individuals was largely fueled by the burgeoning artificial intelligence market, Federal Reserve interest rate reductions, and political shifts such as Donald Trump’s victory. The AI sector, in particular, piqued investor interest, leading many to anticipate higher profits from tech companies like Nvidia, Tesla, and Microsoft.
Despite these substantial gains, not every billionaire came out ahead in 2024. Bernard Arnault, the CEO of LVMH, saw his wealth decrease from over $230 billion in March to $176 billion by year-end, resulting in a drop from first to fifth position in the rankings. Other notable losses were experienced by Mukesh Ambani, Carlos Slim, Gautam Adani, and Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, though these figures remained among the world’s wealthiest despite the setbacks.
The financial landscape of 2024 underscored the influence of technology and economic policy on personal wealth. While the year’s circumstances benefitted many of the wealthiest, they also highlighted the volatility and rapid shifts possible in global wealth distribution.
Source: Businessinsider
