Oracle’s Larry Ellison surpasses Mark Zuckerberg as world’s second-richest person

Ellison, 80, now has a net worth of $251.2 billion after Oracle shares rose 5.7% on Tuesday.

The rally followed news that the Trump administration would allow chipmakers such as Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices to export some semiconductors to China.

More than 80% of Ellison’s wealth is tied to Oracle stock and options. The company’s shares have nearly tripled since ChatGPT was released in late 2022 and have seen sharp acceleration over the past three months, gaining over 90% since late April on the back of strong earnings, surging revenues, and major AI partnerships.

Oracle recently announced a cloud deal that would add over $30 billion annually, and closed its best week since 2001 last month.

Its AI initiatives include the Stargate joint venture with OpenAI and SoftBank, as well as a new partnership with IBM and planned AI expansions in the United Arab Emirates.

Ellison’s rise pushes Zuckerberg to third place on the Bloomberg list after Meta CEO’s net worth declined $3.59 on Tuesday to also reach $251 billion.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk remains the world’s richest person with a fortune of $358 billion.

On Tuesday, Ellison posted on X about his philanthropic plans, highlighting the recent founding of the Ellison Institute of Technology in partnership with the University of Oxford. He said he would be amending his support for the Giving Pledge to concentrate more of his resources on the Ellison Institute of Technology.

"Our mission at the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) is to solve some of humanity’s most challenging and enduring problems," Ellison wrote. ". I believe this will improve our chances of delivering practical solutions to the problems of hunger, healthcare and climate change."