- By Aashish Vashistha
- Fri, 04 Oct 2024 09:28 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
In a significant change in the ranks of the world’s wealthiest individuals, Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg surpassed executive chairman of Amazon Jeff Bezos to become the world’s second richest person as his net worth reached USD 206.2 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Bezos’s net worth stood at USD 205.1 billion. The index showed that the Facebook co-founder trails Tesla CEO Elon Musk by almost USD 50 billion.
The tech mogul’s net worth has increased by an astounding USD 78 billion this year, largely driven by his 13 per cent stake in Meta. This rise was more than the 500 richest people who were tracked by the Bloomberg Index.
As the company's shares soared to a record high of USD 582.77, marking a striking 68 per cent increase from their January lows of USD 346.29, Zuckerberg has outpaced every other billionaire tracked by the Bloomberg Index.
Meta has frequently highlighted its investments in artificial intelligence (AI) as a key factor driving its sales growth. Notably, the company fired nearly 21,000 employees in late 2022 as Zuckerberg adopted a major cost-cutting plan that investors feel helped the company rebound.
During the Meta Connect 2024 event, Zuckerberg highlighted the company's ambitious plans for its AI initiatives. He announced that Meta AI is on track to become the most widely used assistant globally, boasting nearly 500 million monthly active users. "We haven't even launched in major markets like the European Union yet," he said.
Currently, the title of the world’s richest individual remains with Tesla and X chief Elon Musk, whose staggering net worth of USD 272 billion sets him apart in the financial landscape.