Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison has surpassed Elon Musk as the world’s richest person, with a staggering $101 billion jump in wealth to $393 billion. This surge is attributed to Oracle’s exceptional earnings report, which highlighted the company’s growing dominance in artificial intelligence and cloud computing.
Oracle’s stock price skyrocketed 41% on Wednesday, poised for its largest single-day gain since 1992. The company’s quarterly results exceeded expectations, driven by surging demand for its data center capacity from AI customers.
Oracle’s CEO, Safra Catz, announced four multibillion-dollar contracts signed during the quarter, with expectations of securing several more in the coming months.
Oracle’s emergence as a key player in AI technology has propelled its stock to rise 103% this year. The company has become a significant provider of infrastructure powering AI companies’ enormous demands for computing power.
Analyst Ben Reitzes noted that Oracle’s $455 billion backlog in demand for its AI services is “staggering” and predicted that the company’s performance will be remembered for a long time ¹ ².
Elon Musk, who first captured the title of world’s richest person in 2021, has briefly lost it twice to LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Musk’s net worth currently stands at $385 billion, with his wealth largely tied to his investments in Tesla and SpaceX.
The 81-year-old billionaire co-founded Oracle in 1977 and owns 98% of the Hawaiian island of Lana’i. Ellison is also credited with reviving the Indian Wells tennis tournament in California, earning it the nickname “fifth slam”. He has close ties with former US President Donald Trump and has appeared with him at various technology events.