Nvidia Corp.’s Jensen Huang has steadily climbed the ranks of the world’s richest as the market value of his computer chip maker hits $3 trillion.
Huang achieved another milestone on Friday, surpassing personal computer pioneer Michael Dell becoming the 13th richest person in the world with a net worth of $106.1 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. His wealth has surged by more than $62 billion this year as demand for Nvidia chips used to power artificial intelligence tasks remains insatiable.
Huang, 61, is leading a new wave of AI-powered tech billionaires.Jensanity,“, as one analyst called it, is taking over Silicon Valley. Other beneficiaries include Lisa Su, chief executive of Advanced microsystems Inc., as well as Super microcomputer Charles Liang of Inc. Last month, Huang’s fortune exceeds every individual member of the Waltons, America’s richest family, following another explosive quarter from the chipmaker.
Huang’s wealth comes from his 3.5% stake in Santa Clara, Calif.-based Nvidia, which he co-founded in 1993 with Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem. Nvidia became the first computer chip maker to hit 3 trillion dollars in market capitalization on Wednesday, exceeding the value of Apple Inc., and flirted with this reference again on Friday.
Dell, 59, with a net worth of $105.9 billion, is an outlier in the hardware industry among the tech super-rich, who often owe their wealth to software companies. Dell made much of his fortune through his eponymous company, which sells personal computers and servers.
Still, Dell Technologies Inc. has benefited from AI’s recent success, as companies need servers and other infrastructure to use Nvidia’s advanced chips. Investors increasingly view Dell, alongside Super Micro, as Nvidia’s chosen partner for this business sector.
In early March, Dell joined the small group of people whose fortune exceeds 100 billion dollars as the company’s shares hit an all-time high. The stock has since fallen after reporting results that disappointed investors, reducing its founder’s wealth by nearly $12 billion in a single day.
Nvidia today has an ecosystem of hardware and software solutions that rivals AMD Intel Corp. is striving to divide or replicate itself, thanks to its dominant share of the market for high-end accelerators used to train AI.
And he has shown no signs of slowing down or letting his rivals catch up. Huang said the company plans to upgrade its so-called AI accelerators every year.
