Larry Ellison surpasses Elon Musk to become the world’s richest person with $393B fortune

Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison has done what few thought possible: he’s dethroned Elon Musk as the world’s richest person, according to Bloomberg. Fueled by a historic surge in Oracle’s stock, Ellison’s net worth jumped to $393 billion on September 10, 2025, overtaking Musk’s $385 billion fortune and marking one of the most dramatic shifts in billionaire rankings to date.

The turning point came with Oracle’s blockbuster quarterly earnings. On September 9, the company reported staggering growth in its AI-fueled cloud business, sending shares soaring more than 30% in after-hours trading—the biggest single-day percentage gain since 1992. By morning, Oracle stock had climbed further, driving Ellison’s fortune up by an unprecedented $101 billion in a single day, a record-setting leap that stunned markets and social media alike.

“Larry Ellison has become the world’s richest person for the first time, ending Elon Musk’s nearly year-long reign in the top spot. Ellison’s fortune soared $101 billion as of 10:10 a.m. in New York after Oracle Corp. reported quarterly results that surpassed expectations and said there’s more growth to come,” Bloomberg reported.

Oracle’s success rests on its AI infrastructure dominance. Deals worth hundreds of billions are flowing in from companies racing to secure computing power. The most eye-popping: a reported $300 billion contract with OpenAI spread over five years, among the largest technology deals ever. Oracle has also tightened its ties with Google and other AI leaders, positioning itself as a key supplier in the global race for artificial intelligence capacity. The company now projects up to $500 billion in AI-related cloud growth by 2030, with $144 billion expected by fiscal year-end 2030 alone.

For Ellison, the timing couldn’t be better. At 81, the Oracle chairman and chief technology officer has spent decades building the database giant into a Silicon Valley cornerstone. His aggressive bets on cloud and AI have not only revitalized Oracle but have now catapulted him to the top of the billionaire index, edging out Tesla’s chief executive, whose fortune has faced pressure from market headwinds around Tesla’s stock. Musk briefly reclaimed the crown during intraday rebounds, but Ellison’s momentum held.

The sheer scale of Ellison’s gain has ignited reactions across social platforms. “Larry Ellison just posted the biggest 1 day gain ever… briefly topping Musk’s $385B for the No. 1 spot,” one user wrote on X. Another added, “Larry Ellison’s net worth has gone up by approximately $100 billion today lol Maybe the largest single day increase in wealth ever?” The commentary wasn’t all celebratory—many voices used the moment to renew calls for taxing the ultra-wealthy, sparking fresh debate over inequality in the tech age.

Ellison’s rise highlights a shift in where fortunes are minted. Musk built his empire on electric vehicles and rockets. Ellison’s wealth now rides on something less visible but equally indispensable: the computing infrastructure that makes AI possible. Whether this dethroning proves lasting remains to be seen, but for now, Ellison sits atop the global rich list, the undisputed beneficiary of AI’s newest boom.