There's something special about a rags to riches story, don't you think? Unfortunately, we later learned that this phrase is actually 'rich to richer.' The richest people in the world have become even wealthier in 2021, and their names are pretty familiar to us. So let's take a look at how they made all their money.
Elon Musk has officially become the world's richest person, surpassing Jeff Bezos.Elon started his journey as a young entrepreneur with his first start-up, Zip2. With his efforts and father's investments, it quickly became one of the fastest growing websites on the new consumer internet. It sold in 1999 for $307 million, leaving Musk with a share of $22 million.For many people, becoming a multimillionaire at age 23 would be an accomplishment and highlight in life. For Musk though, it was a time of disappointment. From family emerald mines in Africa and having both parents as investors, he was already rich but wanted to explore the internet's potential instead.
Jeff Bezos, former CEO of Amazon, is widely known as one of the richest men to have ever lived. He held the title of world's richest man for four years until recently stepping down as Amazon's CEO after 27 successful years. Now serving as its executive chairman, Jeff Bezos lives a luxurious life that includes space travel aboard his personal rockets. Though he has lost his spot at number one to Elon Musk, he still remains the second wealthiest person on Earth.
Bezos started his journey in his garage, with a $300,000 investment from his parents and an online bookstore called 'Cadabra.' He quickly rebranded to 'Amazon' so that it would be listed first on web search results, and the company never looked back after that. Soon enough, Amazon's growth accelerated rapidly as it began expanding outside of the book industry into what we know it as now: a global hub for anything and everything. Twenty-seven years later, Bezos has decided to give up his CEO title and enjoy his wealth in peace.
Bernard Arnault is currently the wealthiest person in Europe and third richest globally, with an estimated net worth of $164 Billion. Arnault's journey to the top began when he graduated from one of the best engineering schools and started working for his father's company. Eventually, through ambition and drive, Arnault convinced his father to shift their family business interests into real estate. With help from both his father and a senior investor, Bernard acquired a textile company which then allowed him to turn towards Boussac Saint-Freres--this strategic move ended up placing Christian Dior under key assets.Arnault is nicknamed "the terminator" because he laid off 9,000 workers to make up for losses at his company, Louis Vuitton. Now Arnault enjoys collecting famous art pieces and unimaginable wealth while attending fashion shows.
Bill Gates is a name that needs no introduction. The Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist held the title of the world's richest man from 1995 to 2017, when he was dethroned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Gates dropped out of Harvard to pursue his startup with childhood friend Paul Allen. Seeing his enthusiasm, Gates' parents lent him their full support; his mother, who sat on IBM's board of directors, even helped get the company to invest in and partner with her son's new venture.When a big-name tech company got behind Gates, his program took off quickly and became successful.
In 2021, the founder and former CEO of Google is in fifth place on our list of the richest people in the world. Even though Larry has $127 billion now, he started with an idea for Google and a total investment of $200 000 from two family friends. He created the largest and most commonly used search engine before being forced to step down by two silicon valley investors. However, he is still a member of the board and a key controlling shareholder for Google's parent company which is Alphabet Inc.
