For a brief spell this week, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison overtook Elon Musk as the world’s richest man. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Ellison’s net worth touched $393 billion (₹34.5 lakh crore), compared to Musk’s $385 billion (₹33.9 lakh crore). The surge was powered by a 40% jump in Oracle’s share price, driven by strong forecasts for cloud services and AI deals.
By the close of trading, Oracle’s stock cooled, trimming Ellison’s gains. This allowed Musk, who had held the crown for nearly a year, to reclaim his top spot. Still, the brief switch highlighted how cloud infrastructure and AI growth are reshaping fortunes across the tech world.
Ellison, now 81, co-founded Oracle in 1977 and built it into a global database giant. He remains Oracle’s chairman and CTO, with the company projecting 77% growth in cloud revenue this year. AI firms have been racing to secure Oracle’s data centers, further fueling investor optimism.
Beyond business, Ellison stays in the headlines for politics and media. A close ally of Donald Trump, he recently joined Sam Altman and Masayoshi Son in launching “Stargate,” an AI project. He also funded his son’s $8 billion Skydance deal to acquire Paramount, cementing his family’s Hollywood influence.
