Elon Musk is once again at the top of the Forbes rankings. His fortune is heading towards a record high.
March 10, 2026, 7:09 p.mMarch 10, 2026, 7:09 p.m
Rich, richer, richest: The boom in artificial intelligence (AI) has driven the number of billionaires worldwide to a new high, as the US magazine Forbes announced on Tuesday. At the top of the richest list for the second year in a row is Elon Musk, head of the space company SpaceX and the electric car manufacturer Tesla. His estimated fortune is $839 billion (around €725 billion).
Elon Musk could soon be a trillionaire.Image: keystone
According to the magazine, the now 40th Forbes rich list includes 3,428 billionaires. That’s 400 more than last year. It is the highest level since the list was introduced in 1987.
“It’s the year of the billionaires,” explained Forbes editor Chase Peterson-Withorn. “The planet has gained more than a billionaire a day over the past 12 months as the AI-powered stock market boom has driven wealth to previously unimaginable heights.”
Musk is richer than three other super-rich people combined
Musk in particular benefited from this, as he was able to more than double his holdings within a year and is now the first person on the way to becoming a trillionaire. According to Forbes, the 54-year-old has accumulated more wealth than the three super-rich people who followed him combined: Google co-founders Larry Page ($257 billion) and Sergey Brin ($237 billion) as well as Amazon boss Jeff Bezos ($224 billion). Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg follows in fifth place ($222 billion).
Lidl boss Dieter Schwarz remains the richest German with an estimated fortune of over $67 billion. He has worked his way up to number 29 on the Forbes list, after ranking 37 last year.
President Donald Trump is also among the winners. His wealth rose 27 percent to an estimated $6.5 billion in the first year of his second term. According to Forbes, he owes this primarily to his investments in cryptocurrencies. In a global comparison, Trump ranks 645th.
Sources used:
- Reuters news agency
(hkl)