World’s billionaires top 4,000 for first time as AI boom creates new fortunes

The number of billionaires worldwide has crossed 4,000 for the first time, according to the latest Hurun Global Rich List 2026, as the global boom in artificial intelligence rapidly creates new fortunes.

The report, released Wednesday by the Hurun Research Institute, counted 4,020 billionaires globally, up by 578 from a year earlier, with roughly two new billionaires created every day over the past year — the fastest pace since the list began.

China reclaimed its position as the world’s leading hub for billionaires, with 1,110, an increase of 287. The United States followed with 1,000, up by 130, while India ranked third with 308 billionaires.

Artificial intelligence companies were the biggest driver of new wealth. The report identified 114 billionaires from AI-related firms, including 46 newcomers, making AI the single largest source of newly minted billionaires globally.

At the top of the ranking, Elon Musk retained his place as the world’s richest person for the fifth time in six years. His wealth surged 89% to $792 billion, boosted by soaring valuations of Tesla and SpaceX.

Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, held second place with $300 billion, while Larry Page of Alphabet Inc. entered the top three for the first time after a sharp rise in wealth tied to AI-driven growth.

Gates Drops

The surge in AI valuations also pushed Jensen Huang into the global top 10 after Nvidia crossed a $5 trillion market valuation.

Europe’s richest individual, Bernard Arnault of luxury group LVMH, ranked seventh and remained the only non-American in the global top 10.

Meanwhile, philanthropy reshuffled the rankings. Bill Gates dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since the list’s launch after donating $20 billion over the past year, though he still holds wealth of about $115 billion.

By city, New York City remained the billionaire capital of the world with 146, followed by Shenzhen and Beijing.

The report also highlights the rise of extremely young tech founders. The three 22-year-old founders of AI recruitment startup Mercor — Brendan Foody, Adarsh Hiremath, and Surya Midha — became the world’s youngest self-made billionaires, each worth about $2.4 billion.