Ever since the first generation computer was invented, Technology is something which always contributed towards the comfort and reduced human efforts to get a job done. Early Tech adopters who recognized the potential of this rising industry is one of the most successful people on the planet right now. Technology reduces time, and we all know that “time” equals “money” — which in turn collects all the wealth for the most successful people in the world, who are dedicated in the technological advancement.
Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page and Michael Dell are few of them who explored the untapped field and mastered it as their profession — creating an entirely new world! Let’s get to know about the top 10 richest people in the world who made a big name in Tech Industry.
1. Bill Gates – Microsoft ($79.6 Billion | Global Rank – 1)
He’s back. Helped by a bounce in Microsoft shares, Bill Gates returns to the top of our annual Billionaires list this year amid a leadership shakeup at the software giant he founded. He’s been the richest man in the world for 15 out of the last 20 years. After years focused on his philanthropy, Gates plans to spend more of his time working with product managers at Microsoft as rivals like Google and Apple continue to outshine the company in the market.
2. Larry Ellison – Oracle ($50 Billion | Global Rank – 5)
San Francisco lost $11.5 million hosting the America’s Cup during the summer of 2013, but that’s nothing compared to what Larry Ellison spent bringing the event to town. In September, his Team Oracle pulled off a stunning comeback from a seven-race deficit to win its second consecutive Cup, allowing the Oracle and founder and CEO to choose the setting for the next race. With a loss already on its books San Francisco may not want another event, though little gets in the way of Larry Ellison’s ambition–or mouth. In an Aug.
3. Jeff Bezos – Amazon.com ($47.8 Billion | Global Rank – 18)
Jeff Bezos fortune rose $13 billion in 2013 as shares in his online retailer Amazon soared 55%. In October he bought the Washington Post for $250 million. The next month he sold 1 million shares of Amazon, less than 1% of the company, for about $260 million. After graduating with a degree in electrical engineering and computer science from Princeton, Bezos headed off to Wall Street, where he saw that the internet was the fastest-growing industry on the planet. He quit his job, headed to Seattle and founded online bookstore Amazon in 1995. The company expanded beyond books and now sells anything to anyone.
4. Mark Zuckerberg – Facebook ($41.2 Billion | Global Rank – 21)
Facebook turned 10 this year and no one was celebrating harder than CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook’s shares are up more than 130% over the past year as of Feb. 2014, enabling blockbuster deals like the $19 billion purchase of WhatsApp and more than doubling Zuck’s net worth over the same period, even after he gifted away 18 million shares in late December. He sold more than 41 million shares and exercised 60 million options around that time as well.
5. Larry Page – Google ($33.4 Billion | Global Rank – 17)
CEO Larry Page is rearranging the furniture at Google. Over two weeks in January, he announced his company’s $3.2 billion, all-cash acquisition of smart-thermostat-maker Nest as well as the $2.9 billion sale of its Motorola phone business to Lenovo. Shareholders seem happy. The search giant’s stock continues to trade at record highs, up about 50% year-over-year as of mid-Feb. 2014.
6. Sergey Brin – Google ($32.8 Billion | Global Rank – 19)
Confining himself to a more background role, Brin lets Page run the show as CEO while he oversees the secretive Google X division, dedicated to breakthrough “moonshots” like driverless cars and Glass, the augmented-reality spectacles he wears everywhere. In April 2014, Google will undergo a stock split to introduce new Class C shares that will carry no voting power. That move will consolidate the voting power of executives including Brin, who owns more than 23 million Class B shares, which carry 10-to-one voting power.
7. Jack Ma – AliBaba ($23.2 Billion | Global Rank – 33)
Jack Ma or Ma Yun (Chinese: ??; born September 10, 1964) is a Chinese business magnate and philanthropist. He is the founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group, a family of highly successful Internet-based businesses. He is the first mainland Chinese entrepreneur to appear on the cover of Forbes.
8. Steve Ballmer – Microsoft ($22.7 Billion | Global Rank – 36)
You won’t have Steve Ballmer to kick around any more. He announced last August that he would be gone from Microsoft company within a year, and in February 2014 company insider Satya Nadella took over the CEO gig. Ballmer oversaw many years of growth at Microsoft, and generated $120 billion in profit, but will leave behind a legacy of having fallen behind Google, Apple and others in the post-PC mobile era.
9. Laurene Powell Jobs – Apple ($21.4 Billion | Global Rank – 44)
Laurene Powell Jobs (born November 6, 1963) is an American heiress; business executive; and the founder of Emerson Collective, which advocates for policies concerning education and immigration reform, social justice, and environmental conservation. She is also co-founder and President of the Board of College Track, which prepares disadvantaged high school students for college. Powell Jobs resides in Palo Alto, California, with her three children. She is the widow of Steve Jobs, co-founder and former chief executive officer of Apple Inc.
10. Michael Dell – Dell ($19.3 Billion | Global Rank – 47)
Michael Saul Dell (born February 23, 1965) is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. He is the founder and CEO of Dell Inc., one of the world’s leading sellers of personal computers (PCs). He was ranked the 41st richest person in the world on 2012 Forbes list of billionaires.
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His four-year run as world’s richest person has come to an end, primarily because shares of Minera Frisco, his mining company, have fallen more than 50% in the past year as the price of gold and copper plummeted. That plus a dip in the value of his largest asset, pan-Latin American telecom firm America Movil, combined to knock $1 billion off his net worth, making him the only billionaire among the world’s 10 richest to get poorer in the past year.
Now in his ninth decade, Buffett is still doing huge deals. Last year he teamed up with 3G Capital to pick up iconic ketchup maker H.J. Heinz for $23.2 billion, invested nearly $4 billion in ExxonMobil and a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary bought Nevada’s NV Energy for $5.6 billion. All of this helped boost his fortune by $4.7 billion despite his gift of $2 billion in Berkshire stock to the Gates Foundation in July, bringing his lifetime giving to $20 billion.
World’s richest retailer Ortega added $7 billion to his fortune this past year, expanding the gap between him and number four, Warren Buffett. He is up a total of $26.5 billion in the past two years. Though he stepped down as chairman of Inditex (best known for its Zara brand) in 2011, he still owns nearly 60% of its shares. He also has a growing real estate portfolio, estimated to be worth nearly $5 billion, much of it acquired at bargain prices during the financial downturn.
San Francisco lost $11.5 million hosting the America’s Cup during the summer of 2013, but that’s nothing compared to what Larry Ellison spent bringing the event to town. In September, his Team Oracle pulled off a stunning comeback from a seven-race deficit to win its second consecutive Cup, allowing the Oracle and founder and CEO to choose the setting for the next race. With a loss already on its books, San Francisco may not want another event though little gets in the way of Larry Ellison’s ambition–or mouth. In Aug.
Charles Koch is chairman and CEO of Koch Industries, the country’s second-largest private company with sales of $115 billion, a post he’s held since 1967. He is worth $6 billion more than a year ago as Koch Industries steadily expands, buying electronics-components maker Molex for $7.2 billion and cellulose fibers producer Buckeye Technologies for $1.5 billion. He and his brother David, with whom he owns 84% of Koch, are funneling a chunk of their money to try and win the Senate for Republicans in the 2014 midterm elections, prompting Sen.
New York City’s richest resident David Koch is $6 billion richer than a year ago. He and his brother Charles, with whom he shares the fortune, own 84% of $115 billion (sales) Koch Industries, America’s second-largest private company with interests in oil pipelines, refineries, building materials, paper towels and even Dixie cups. David was a top donor to the Republican Governors Association in 2013, giving $1.25 million to the cause. Together the brothers, the richest siblings in the world, are funneling a chunk of their money to try and win the Senate for Republicans in the 2014 midterm elections, prompting Sen.
Walton is the richest woman in the world once again, taking back the title from L’Oreal Heiress Liliane Bettencourt. She has now held that title for 4 out of the last 5 years. She inherited her wealth when husband John Walton, a former Green Beret and Vietnam war medic, died in an airplane crash in 2005. The bulk of her holdings is in Wal-Mart, the massive retailer founded by her father-in-law Sam Walton and his brother James in 1962.
The youngest son of retail visionary Sam Walton saw a nice bump in his wealth last year thanks to a 6% gain in Wal-Mart shares. Mr. Sam’s store remains a powerhouse worldwide, with 2013 sales of nearly $470 billion and 2.2 million employees in 11,000 stores. Jim received more than $475 million in dividends after taxes in 2013.