Among the world's ultra-rich, United States tech billionaires have continuously been the most notable figures on Forbes's annual list of richest people. One tech mogul stands out in particular this year however, soaring from a ranking of number 20 on last year's list, to this month briefly earning his spot as the third richest person on the planet. Jeff Bezos, founder and chief of Amazon
Bezos's impact in the sphere of e-commerce has far outpaced all estimates for this year. While analysts expected shares to be around $1.11, Amazon announced an actual earning of $1.78 per share. Additionally, profits grew by an entire 31% in the second quarter, with an earning of $857 million, exceeding calculations by as much as $900 million. With an 18% stake in the company, Bezos has made many innovative changes this year which allowed the company to grow so greatly. Recently, Amazon launched its Prime subscription in India, quickly competing with well-established e-commerce sites like Flipkart and Snapdeal. In a press release, Bezos explained "It's been a busy few months for Amazon around the world, and particularly in India -- where we launched a new AWS Region, introduced Prime with unlimited free shipping, and announced that Prime Video is coming soon, offering Prime members in India exclusive access to Amazon Original Series and Movies -- including original content featuring top Indian creators and talent."
A large part of earnings can be attributed to the fact that AWS controls a full third of the world's cloud-computing market. This record-breaking year also benefited from Bezos's decisions to enter into new markets and increase diversification through content-creation. From the Fire TV streaming technology to the smart-speaker known as Echo, Amazon has managed to produce award-winning original series such as the show Transparent, and a few months ago even launched several of their own fashion labels. A well-known public advocate for free speech, Bezos also bought the New York Post and has created 100 newsroom jobs and counting.
Though Bezos has since fell from his position as third richest to fifth richest, it's a long way from his first appearance on the list in 1998 with a networth of $1.6 billion, and a ranking of 102. His ability to briefly pass Buffet drew great media attention, though it's worth noting that Buffett has donated at least $26 billion of his personal wealth to various charities since 2006, bringing down his standing.
Today, the top 5 list is as follows:
- Microsoft
(MSFT ) co-founder Bill Gates, - Zara (BME: ITX) founder Amancio Ortega
- CEO of Berkshire Hathaway
(brk.a ) Warren Buffett - CEO of Telmex Carlos Slim Helu
- Bezos rounding off the list.
