The start of 2026 has brought significant movement to the upper echelons of global wealth, with market volatility impacting the fortunes of the world’s richest individuals. According to the latest Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List, six of the top ten saw their net worth decline in the first week of January. However, extending the view to the top 20 reveals a dynamic landscape shaped by technology, retail, and industrial titans.
Elon Musk remains in a league of his own, retaining the top spot with a net worth of $713.1 billion. His wealth, largely tied to Tesla and SpaceX, is nearly triple that of the second-richest person. Musk also cemented his status as 2025’s biggest gainer, adding over $333 billion to his fortune, putting him on a potential trajectory to become the world’s first trillionaire.
The top five is dominated by U.S. tech magnates. Google co-founders Larry Page ($263.8B) and Sergey Brin ($243.4B) hold the second and fourth spots, respectively, flanking Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ($251.9B) at number three. Oracle’s Larry Ellison rounds out this group in fifth place with $241.5 billion.
Notable climbers within the top 20 include Zara founder Amancio Ortega, who entered the top 10 at ninth place with $147.2 billion, and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who secured the tenth position. Jensen Huang, the CEO of Nvidia, continues his ascent, holding eighth place with $164.1 billion as demand for AI and semiconductors remains strong.
Here is the complete list of the Top 20 Richest People in the World as of January 2026:
1. Elon Musk – $713.1 Billion (USA)
* Source: Tesla, SpaceX, X Corp., Neuralink, The Boring Company
* The Detail: Musk’s wealth surge to near-triple his closest rival is powered by a historic 2025. Tesla’s "Model 2" launch captured the global affordable EV market, while SpaceX’s Starship achieved its first fully successful Mars simulation mission, securing monumental NASA and ESA contracts. His fortune now hinges less on automotive margins and more on the valuation of a multi-planetary transportation and communications empire.
2. Larry Page – $263.8 Billion (USA)
* Source: Google (Alphabet)
* The Detail: The reclusive Google co-founder remains the strategic compass of Alphabet. His personal focus and capital are heavily directed toward "Google X" moonshot projects, particularly in quantum computing (Sycamore 3.0) and AI-for-medicine venture Calico. His wealth growth consistently outpaces the market, reflecting bets on the next frontier, not just the current ad-revenue engine.
3. Jeff Bezos – $251.9 Billion (USA)
* Source: Amazon
* The Detail: Bezos has masterfully transitioned from day-to-day operations. His wealth is now a dual-engine rocket: Amazon Web Services continues to be the profitable backbone of the internet, while his space venture, Blue Origin, has become the primary U.S. contractor for lunar logistics, finally turning a profit with its reusable New Glenn rocket.
4. Sergey Brin – $243.4 Billion (USA)
* Source: Google (Alphabet)
* The Detail: Brin has returned to a hands-on technical role at Alphabet, specifically overseeing the "Gemini Ultra" AI project. His legendary 20% time policy for engineers is credited with breakthroughs in real-time AI translation and search synthesis. Unlike Page, a significant portion of his wealth is actively managed through a family office investing in climate tech and cellular agriculture.
5. Larry Ellison – $241.5 Billion (USA)
* Source: Oracle
* The Detail: Ellison’s aggressive cloud-computing pivot has paid off. Oracle’s Gen 3 Cloud, built for sovereign AI and government workloads, has captured critical market share from rivals. His personal passions are equally grand: he owns 98% of the Hawaiian island of Lanai and his sailing team, *Oracle Red Bull Racing*, just won its third consecutive America’s Cup.
6. Mark Zuckerberg – $222.4 Billion (USA)
* Source: Meta
* The Detail: After the costly "metaverse winter" of the early 2020s, Zuckerberg’s pragmatic pivot to AI and smart glasses has restored investor faith. Meta’s open-source Llama models are industry standards, and its "Ray-Ban Meta" glasses, with seamless AI assistant integration, have become the first wearable computing device to achieve true mainstream adoption.
7. Bernard Arnault – $189.4 Billion (France)
* Source: LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton)
* The Detail: The master of luxury has navigated economic uncertainty by focusing on absolute top-tier clients. LVMH’s growth is now driven by its highest-margin segments: watches (TAG Heuer, Hublot) and jewelry (Tiffany & Co.). A recent headline-grabbing acquisition was the purchase of the legendary Hotel de Crillon in Paris for the Cheval Blanc hotel chain.
8. Jensen Huang – $164.1 Billion (USA)
* Source: Nvidia
* The Detail: Huang, the rockstar CEO in his signature leather jacket, presides over the company that *is* the AI hardware revolution. Nvidia’s "Blackwell" and "Rubin" GPU architectures are so dominant they are considered a strategic national asset. His wealth is almost entirely tied to Nvidia stock, reflecting a total, bet-the-company focus on accelerated computing.
9. Amancio Ortega – $147.2 Billion (Spain)
* Source: Zara (Inditex)
* The Detail: The octogenarian founder of fast-fashion giant Inditex remains a force through a unique strategy. While retired from operations, his private investment arm, Pontegadea, pours billions into prime real estate in London, New York, and Madrid. His fortune is a dual engine: evergreen Zara royalties and one of the world’s most valuable, low-profile property portfolios.
10. Steve Ballmer – $147.2 Billion (USA)
* Source: Microsoft
* The Detail: The former "Mr. Energize" of Microsoft is now America’s most passionate civic data geek. While Microsoft dividends form his wealth base, Ballmer’s public passion is USAFacts.org, a non-profit he funds that provides government data transparency. He is also the most vocal and visible owner in the NBA, constantly cheering from courtside for his LA Clippers in their new, privately financed Intuit Dome.
11. Michael Bloomberg – $136.7 Billion (USA)
* Source: Bloomberg L.P.
* The Detail: The "terminal" is more indispensable than ever. Bloomberg L.P. enjoys a near-monopoly on financial data and terminal sales. His wealth is actively deployed in philanthropy (Bloomberg Philanthropies) and political advocacy, focusing globally on public health and climate change, and domestically on gun control.
12. Michael Dell – $125.4 Billion (USA)
* Source: Dell Technologies
* The Detail: Dell engineered one of tech’s great turnarounds by pivoting Dell from a PC maker to an integrated IT solutions giant. His key move was taking the company private in 2013 to restructure, then bringing it public again in 2018. His family office, MSD Capital, is a major player in private equity, sports (partial owner of the San Antonio Spurs), and real estate.
13. Françoise Bettencourt Meyers – $119.8 Billion (France)
* Source: L'Oréal
* The Detail: The world’s richest woman is the quiet guardian of a global empire. As chair of L’Oréal, she has overseen the strategic acquisition of several premium skincare brands. A noted philanthropist and scholar, she channels wealth through the Bettencourt Schueller Foundation, supporting the arts and life sciences, and recently funded a major wing at the Louvre.
14. Warren Buffett – $115.2 Billion (USA)
* Source: Berkshire Hathaway
* The Detail: The "Oracle of Omaha" remains a symbol of value investing. His recent legendary bets include massive stakes in infrastructure and traditional energy during the AI boom, a contrarian move that has paid off handsomely. His annual shareholder letter is still the most-read document in finance.
15. Mukesh Ambani – $112.5 Billion (India)
* Source: Reliance Industries
* The Detail: Ambani presides over a national champion. Reliance has successfully pivoted from oil & gas to become India’s leader in telecom (Jio) and retail. His current mega-project is the development of a new energy giga-complex in Jamnagar, aiming to make India a green hydrogen exporter. His family's residential skyscraper, Antilia, remains a Mumbai landmark.
16. Gautam Adani – $104.3 Billion (India)
* Source: Adani Group
* The Detail: After swiftly recovering from a short-seller attack in 2023, Adani has doubled down on infrastructure. His empire controls India’s largest private ports, airports, and coal mining operations. His defining project is the $50 billion green energy push in Gujarat’s Kutch region, aiming to create the world’s largest renewable energy park.
17. Zhong Shanshan – $96.1 Billion (China)
* Source: Nongfu Spring, Wantai Biological Pharmacy
* The Detail: Known as "the Lone Wolf" for his aversion to debt and political circles, Zhong built fortune on fundamental needs: water and health. Nongfu Spring is China’s dominant bottled water brand. His vaccine maker, Wantai, saw enormous valuation growth post-pandemic. He is famously private, with no social media and rare public appearances.
18. Zhang Yiming – $91.6 Billion (China)
* Source: ByteDance
* The Detail: The founder of ByteDance, parent of TikTok and Douyin, resigned as chairman in 2023 but retains a controlling stake. His fortune is tied to the relentless global growth of TikTok, especially its explosive e-commerce arm, TikTok Shop. He is now focused on long-term, long-shot investments in AI and advanced brain-computer interface research through his personal venture fund.
19. Rob Walton – $88.9 Billion (USA)
* Source: Walmart
* The Detail: The eldest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, Rob chaired Walmart for over 20 years. Now retired, his legacy project is his 2022 purchase of the NFL's Denver Broncos for a record $4.65 billion. His wealth is sustained by Walmart's colossal dividend payouts and his focus on conservation philanthropy.
20. Jim Walton – $87.5 Billion (USA)
* Source: Walmart, Arvest Bank Group
* The Detail: The youngest Walton sibling has always been the banking arm of the family. He focuses on running Arvest Bank, a regional powerhouse in the American Midwest. Like his brother, his wealth is anchored in Walmart stock, and he is the quietest of the heirs, known for funding education reform in his home state of Arkansas.
The list reflects the sustained dominance of the technology sector, with 12 of the top 20 fortunes originating from tech or tech-driven enterprises. The presence of Indian industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani highlights the growing economic influence of Asia. Meanwhile, luxury goods (Bernard Arnault), retail (the Walton family), and consumer staples (Zhong Shanshan) continue to generate immense, stable wealth.
*Source: Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List, January, 2026.*
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