Larry Ellison: From Dropout to Second-Richest Person

Larry Ellison co-founded Oracle, a software giant, in 1977. He dropped out of college and owns over 40% of the company, as well as a stake in Tesla and real estate, including Hawaii's Lanai island. Ellison is worth $251.2 billion, making him the second-richest person in the world after Elon Musk. Oracle's success in cloud computing has contributed to Ellison's wealth, with the stock nearly tripling since ChatGPT's public release in November 2022.

At 80 years old, Larry Ellison has overtaken Mark Zuckerberg to become the world’s second-richest person, with a net worth of $251 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index [1]. This significant wealth surge is largely attributed to Oracle’s robust earnings and substantial investments in artificial intelligence (AI). Ellison, who co-founded Oracle in 1977, owns a 40% stake in the company, which has seen its stock price nearly triple since the public release of ChatGPT in November 2022 [2].

Oracle’s strong financial performance has been driven by a 41% year-to-date increase in its stock, with a particularly notable rally over the past two weeks. The company reported quarterly revenues of $15.9 billion in its latest earnings report, up 11% year-over-year, driven by a 14% increase in cloud services revenue [2]. Additionally, Oracle’s latest fiscal full-year results revealed remaining performance obligations up 41% to $138 billion [1].

Ellison’s wealth has also benefited from Oracle’s central role in President Trump’s Stargate initiative, which aims to invest $500 billion into AI infrastructure over the next four years. Oracle, along with SoftBank, OpenAI, and MGX, are initial equity founders in this project, and the company has recently announced a $3 billion investment in Germany and the Netherlands to boost cloud services and AI [1].

Investors are optimistic about Oracle’s potential, but analysts remain cautious. Goldman Sachs’s analysts maintain a neutral rating on Oracle, noting that while they are encouraged by the clear demand momentum for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), there are risks that Oracle may over-invest in low-margin, capital-intensive AI training cycles [1].

Ellison's wealth has also been bolstered by his stake in Tesla and his real estate holdings, including Hawaii’s Lanai island. Despite his significant financial success, Ellison has demonstrated a commitment to philanthropy. He recently amended his commitment to the Giving Pledge, promising to concentrate his resources on the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) at the University of Oxford. The EIT focuses on transforming healthcare, combating world hunger, and slowing climate change through innovative technologies [1].

References:
[1] https://fortune.com/2025/07/16/larry-ellison-mark-zuckerberg-world-rich-list-oracle-ai/
[2] https://www.entrepreneur.com/business-news/oracle-cto-larry-ellison-is-now-the-second-richest-person/494708
[3] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/larry-ellison-surpasses-mark-zuckerberg-104009288.html