Larry Ellison briefly became the world’s richest person Wednesday before ending the day just $1 billion shy of the lead.
The uber-billionaire is still on the verge of becoming the world’s richest person, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, growing his net worth $88 billion Wednesday, briefly toppling longtime title holder Elon Musk from his perch.
The 81-year-old is Oracle’s largest individual shareholder and whose stock is having its biggest single-day gain since 1992. Ellison’s wealth stands at $383 billion, slightly below Musk’s $384 billion, according to Bloomberg’s calculations.
So, how did he get here?
It traces back to 1977, when Ellison, Bob Miner and Ed Oates founded Software Development Laboratories in Santa Clara, California. They were contracted by the CIA to build a database program code-named “Oracle.”
Five years later, the company changed its name to Oracle and went public in 1986. Throughout the four decades, the company has found various levels of success in technology, but most recently in demand for its data center capacity from AI customers.
Ellison has held various leadership roles in Oracle, including being president of Oracle from 1978 to 1996. He was also chairman twice, from 1990 to 1992. In 1992, he had a near-fatal bodysurfing accident. He came back in 1995 for about a decade.
In 2014, Ellison stepped down as Oracle CEO and was named executive chairman of the board and chief technology officer, both titles he currently holds.
The company announced Tuesday that it signed four multibillion-dollar contracts with customers during the quarter and expects to sign several more in the coming months, propelling the stock — and Ellison’s wealth — to astronomical levels.
But it’s not all work and no play.
In 2012, Ellison bought 98% of Lana’i, the sixth-largest island in Hawaii. A CNN report from 2012 notes that his wealth back then was just $36 billion and it was the same island that Bill and Melinda Gates were married on. (They later divorced.)
He’s also a big sailor. In 2013, Oracle Team USA, the team he backed, came from behind to win and successfully defend the America’s Cup. The team dissolved in 2017.
In 2018, Ellison cofounded SailGP, a high-speed catamaran racing league that competes around the world and has attracted celebrity backers. Most recently, actress Anne Hathaway and a consortium of investors acquired the Italy SailGP team and soccer star Kylian Mbappé has invested in the France SailGP team.
He’s also revived the Indian Wells tennis tournament in California, earning it the “fifth slam” nickname. It’s also famous for having Nobu, a pricey sushi spot, overlooking one of its biggest show courts.
Politics are an area of interest for Ellison, who has frequently donated millions of dollars to Republican and conservative groups. In 2022, he gave $15 million to a super PAC supporting South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott for president. In 2015, he also donated to Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign.
Ellison currently has close ties with President Donald Trump. In January, he appeared with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son at the White House as Trump announced the creation a new company to grow AI infrastructure in the United States.
Ellison has donated to medical efforts, too. In 2016, he announced a $200 million donation to the University of Southern California to establish a cancer research and treatment center.
After his death, Ellison’s wealth will still be felt — somewhere.
In 2010, he signed the Giving Pledge, a Bill Gates-backed initiative that promises to give away at least 95% of one’s wealth to charity. Ellison recently announced on X he was “amending” that effort, funneling some of the money toward a technical institute he founded with the University of Oxford.
The Ellison Institute of Technology’s “humane endeavors include transforming healthcare by designing and distributing a new generation of life-saving drugs, combating world hunger by engineering higher yielding crops and building a global network of low-cost indoor growing systems, and slowing climate change by developing efficient clean energy generation and storage system,” he wrote.
A New York Times report from August said that Ellison “rarely engaged with the community of Giving Pledge signers” and “has cherished his autonomy and does not want to be influenced to support” Gates’ causes.