The big change that has occurred is the inclusion of AI in technology, exponentially increasing the wealth of the richest, but at the same time also providing another instrument to further widen the gap between the poor and the rich.
2026 is marked as a historic year for global wealth. According to the new Forbes ranking, 3428 businessmen, investors and heirs are on the extensive list of billionaires. There are 400 more than in 2025, with a total value of $ 20.100 billion, 4000 more than last year. The list is dominated by the USA, with 989 super-rich, including 15 of the top 20 in the world. They are followed by China with 610, India with 229. What is striking is the fact that in the ranking of the first places are all from two sectors, technology and fashion. The big change that has occurred is the inclusion of AI in technology, exponentially increasing the wealth of the richest, but at the same time also an additional instrument to increase the gap between the poor and the rich even more.
Elon Musk consolidates the first place by a remarkable distance from the second in the ranking, accumulating a fortune worth $ 839 billion, tripling it in no more than 20 months. He is followed by Larry Page, CEO of Alphabet, a “cousin” company of Google, and then Sergei Brin, president of the same business, Alphabet.
Jeff Bezos, the leader of e-commerce, ranks only fourth this year, with $224 billion, followed by Mark Zuckerberg with $222 billion, thus losing the pride of the race for first or second place, as was the case for years before. This ranking also notes an increase in the female presence, with 481 female billionaires worldwide, and at the same time an increase in the self-made sector is recorded, which means that today 67% of billionaires have built their personal inheritance starting from 0. There are also 20 other people who are part of the so-called “100 billion Club” in this ranking, half of whom are from the technology sector. One of them is Changpeng Zhao, founder of Binance, with $110 billion, thus surpassing Bill Gates, but also more powerful figures such as Donald Trump, who has a fortune of only $6.5 billion.
While there are 390 new billionaires who have just joined the ranking, including Dr. Dre, Beyoncé and Roger Federer. The 2026 ranking shows and touches several new records, such as 22-year-old Surya Midha, a young self-made billionaire with a fortune of $ 18 billion, followed on this list also by 35 billionaires under the age of 30. While the oldest billionaire on the expanded 2026 list is 104-year-old George Joseph.
The list is dominated by men, but women are also making strides and increasing their numbers, with 481 women billionaires, or 14% of the total. Most inherited their wealth, including Walmart’s Alice Walton, who is the richest woman in the world for the second year in a row with $134 billion, up $1 billion from 2025. 80% of the billionaires on the Forbes list have maintained or increased their wealth over the past year. Among those no longer on the list this year are 89 names, including real estate mogul Charles Cohen, who was caught in a debt crisis, and NASA administrator Jared Isaacman. 39 billionaires also passed away in 2025, including Giorgio Armani.
Every year in March, since 1987, the American magazine Forbes began publishing a ranking of the richest people in the world, starting at $1 billion. Kings and dictators, whose wealth comes from a dominant position, are excluded from this classification, which is in fact an indicator of documented personal wealth, also excluding the wealth of crime bosses.
While in terms of a history of the richest people in humanity, converting each element to today’s value, at the top of the list is the first Roman emperor Augustus, Caesar’s great-grandson, with a fortune estimated at around $4.6 trillion. He not only managed to rule the entire empire alone, but he had 30% of the entire world’s economic output in his hands. He accumulated so much personal wealth that it was equal to 1/5 of the economy of the Roman Empire. While the emperor of Mali and king of Timbuktu, Mansa Musa, in the Middle Ages, is at the top of the list of human history. He was rich beyond any possible description. Gold producer in a golden age. The writings show that during a pilgrimage to Mecca, passing through Egypt, he distributed such an amount of gold that it caused a severe inflation crisis that lasted 12 years.
While the richest countries in the world, according to IMF data, referred to World Economic Outlook based on gross domestic product ranking 2026, Luxembourg ranks first. The economy of the richest country in the world is based on a very strong financial sector and extremely advantageous fiscal policies, which have made it a financial paradise. It is followed by Singapore, whose wealth comes from a strategic combination, with a commercial port of primary importance, advanced financial sector and sophisticated industry.
In 3rd place is Macao, which has become the world capital of gambling, leaving Las Vegas behind. Casinos and tourism are the pillars of the economy of this small country with about 650 thousand inhabitants. The ranking continues with Ireland, Qatar, Norway, Switzerland, Brunei and in 10th place is the USA.