Bill Gates may never have creatively made the same impact on computing that Steve Jobs did, but we doubt he’s too upset about it, since according to Forbes‘ newly-published annual ranking of global billionaires, the former Microsoft mastermind-turned-philanthropist is once again the world’s richest person.
And you know what the crazy bit is? Gates earned more money last year from his return on capital than he ever did from Microsoft wages. Wowza!
This is the second time in a row that the Microsoft founder has been named the wealthiest individual on the planet, although he doesn’t exactly have a bad record when you look back over the decades: having topped the list 16 times over the past 21 years.
He beat Mexico telecommunications giant Carlos Slim, whose total holdings shuffled in at a measly $77.1bn, and legendary investor Warren Buffett who has savings worth $72.7bn. Steve Jobs friend and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison was fifth on the list, while Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg was listed in the 16th place. Jobs’ widow Laurene Powell Jobs was valued at $19.5 billion. The two youngest billionaires were Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy (aged just 24 and 25 respectively), who co-founded a little app called Snapchat.
Kind of makes you think about how you’ve spent your last few years, doesn’t it?
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
13 responses to “Bill Gates is once again the world’s richest person”
OK. As an Apple user I think you’re wrong.
Gates maybe not as eccentric and charismatic as Jobs but his impact on the computer industry is huge.
He was less verbal but he did have a strong stance with implementing some standards to the most used OS. TCP/IP is one of them for instance.
While OS classic was toying with it’s own protocols Win OS had a strong course on making some things standard for any OS out there.
There some other examples of his stance with many other things.
I strongly believe that impact of his idea to license the OS to many companies created an opportunity for many people. So you can’t say that Gates is less then Jobs in personal computing world, he’s just not so loud.
I’m not saying that Gates didn’t make an impact on the personal computing world: of course he did. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say that Jobs was the one who made the bigger creative impact, however, while Gates’ contribution revolved around business strategy and getting Windows onto so many different machines. Bill Gates himself has admitted he didn’t have close to the taste that Steve Jobs did. I think he’ll be remembered more as a philanthropist than someone who creatively changed technology.
Luke. I am sorry but you’re wrong. He’s not less nor more innovative that Jobs.
He is different, but his influence is as enormous as Jobs’s.
He had a share of good strategic ideas and did what needed to be done back in his days.
I agree. Gates was at least as influential, if not more than Jobs.
What Luke did was selectively use the word “creatively” so that he could bring up Steve Jobs and still praise him in an article about Bill Gates. This is why there is a stereotype of Apple fans who can’t see past the company in some blind, cultish way. They always have to make everything about Apple or Steve Jobs even when an article has nothing to do with him or the company.
I am an Apple fan, but I am still able to see facts and reality.
Please don’t generalize :-)
I think it would be safe to safe that they were both just as influential, just in different ways.
“Bill Gates may never have creatively made the same impact on computing that Steve Jobs did…” LOL!!!
Ask the millions of people who Bill has saved from polio who was more important in their eyes! :)
This often repeated myth is simply not true. Google Rothschild.
And he’s given what… 30 billion away already? More of a man than Jobs EVER was.
thats deep
Not sure how “deep” it is… but Bill is a tremendous man. Most rich people hold onto their money with an iron grip, refusing to let their wealth leave them. Bill? He’s given away BILLIONS and yet? He’s still the richest man on earth. If anyone should be a role model, it’s Bill Gates. If more people were like Bill, this world would be a better place to live.