Musk dethroned as Oracle’s Larry Ellison becomes world’s richest man amid AI surge

Elon Musk has been knocked off the top of the global wealth rankings, as Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison surged past him to claim the title of the world’s richest person.

Ellison’s net worth soared by $101 billion in a single day to $393 billion, eclipsing Musk’s $385 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. The unprecedented leap followed Oracle’s blowout earnings report on Tuesday, which sent its shares up 40% by Wednesday morning.

The tech giant said soaring demand for data centres from artificial intelligence firms is fuelling its rapid growth. Chief Executive Safra Catz disclosed that Oracle had signed four multibillion-dollar deals in the last quarter and expected several more to follow. In July, the company also inked a landmark agreement to provide OpenAI with 4.5 gigawatts of power for its AI operations.

The surge delivered the single largest one-day wealth increase ever recorded by Bloomberg’s rankings. Oracle stock, up more than 100% this year, is now valued just under $700 billion, making it one of the most valuable companies in the world.

At 81, Ellison remains Oracle’s largest individual shareholder. His ascent highlights the wider boom in AI-related investments that has pushed Nvidia beyond a $4 trillion valuation and briefly carried Microsoft above that mark.

Musk, who first seized the crown in 2021, has seen his fortune rise and fall with Tesla and SpaceX. He temporarily ceded the title to LVMH boss Bernard Arnault in 2021 and to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2024, but has generally held on to the top spot. A new pay package tied to Tesla’s future growth could eventually boost his wealth close to $1 trillion.

Ellison’s journey began in 1977 when he co-founded Oracle after dropping out of college. Over the years, he has cultivated a reputation for both bold business bets and extravagant living. He owns nearly the entire Hawaiian island of Lana’i, revitalised the Indian Wells tennis tournament in California, and has kept close political connections in Washington.

Analysts say Ellison’s rise reflects a new reality: the next era of fortunes will be built not just on electric cars or rockets, but on the infrastructure underpinning artificial intelligence.