Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Vaults Into World’s 10 Richest For First Time Ever

Topline

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang leapt into the top 10 of Forbes’ real-time billionaire rankings Monday, a first for the former Denny’s busboy and waiter turned perhaps the most recognizable name associated with the 2020s generative artificial intelligence boom.

Key Facts

Key Background

Nvidia’s chief executive since the company’s inception in 1993, the 61-year-old Huang is by far the company’s largest individual shareholder even after selling $713 million worth of the stock this summer. A trio of current Nvidia board members associated with the company dating back to the early 1990s – Tench Coxe, Harvey Jones and Mark Stevens – are also billionaires. Nvidia is the leading designer of the custom AI technology needed for high-end AI applications developed by other big technology firms like Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and Tesla. The Santa Clara-based Nvidia has about an 80% share in the rapidly growing AI accelerator market, according to recent Bank of America research. Well-known in video game circles for years, Nvidia’s graphics processing units became a hot commodity as they proved to be the leading currency for large-language models like the ones behind the viral OpenAI chatbot ChatGPT, leading Huang to declare demand is so “insane” for his company’s products that customers get “really emotional.”

Surprising Fact

Huang was worth just $20.6 billion as of 2022’s Forbes 400 list published two Septembers ago, meaning his wealth is up sixfold in two years time. The “insane” demand for Nvidia’s technology has translated into an explosion in Nvidia’s share price and financial performance, with its share price up more than 1,000% over the past two years and its current fiscal year profits are projected to increase 1,400% compared to the period ending Jan. 2023.

Tangent

Ballmer, whose fortune stems from his 34-year tenure at Microsoft, told Forbes last week he’s poured more than $100 million into his not-for-profit company USAFacts aimed at arming the public with accessible government data.

Further Reading

ForbesHow Steve Ballmer Has Spent $100 Million In A New Twist On Political GivingBy Kyle Khan-Mullins

ForbesNvidia Can Approach $5 Trillion Valuation With ‘Generational’ AI Opportunity Still Ahead, BofA SaysBy Derek Saul