REDWOOD CITY, California – September 11, 2025 – In a stunning twist that sent shockwaves through the financial world, Oracle co-founder and tech billionaire Larry Ellison briefly claimed the title of the world’s richest person on September 10, 2025, surpassing his longtime friend and rival, Elon Musk. The dramatic shift, fueled by a meteoric 43% surge in Oracle Corporation’s stock price, propelled Ellison’s net worth to an estimated $393 billion, edging out Musk’s $384 billion, according to market analysts. Though the Oracle chairman’s reign at the top was short-lived, lasting mere hours before market fluctuations restored Musk’s lead, the event marked a historic moment for Ellison, an 81-year-old tech pioneer whose relentless drive and strategic vision have reshaped the global tech landscape. This unprecedented wealth surge, described as the largest single-day gain in history, has cemented Ellison’s status as a titan of industry and sparked widespread discussion about the AI-driven boom powering his ascent.
The catalyst for Ellison’s fleeting ascent to the top of the wealth rankings was Oracle’s blockbuster earnings report, released after market close on September 9, 2025. The Redwood City-based software giant, which Ellison co-founded in 1977, announced quarterly revenue of $14.9 billion, a 12% year-over-year increase, driven by explosive growth in its cloud infrastructure division. Oracle’s cloud services, now a cornerstone of its business, saw revenue jump 55% to $3.3 billion, fueled by surging demand from artificial intelligence (AI) companies. The company also revealed a staggering $455 billion backlog in future cloud contracts, including four multi-billion-dollar deals with major AI players like OpenAI and Nvidia. Oracle’s CEO, Safra Catz, declared on the earnings call, “We’ve become the go-to place for AI workloads,” a statement that sent investors into a frenzy and drove the stock to a record high of $345.69 by mid-morning on September 10.
Ellison, who owns approximately 41% of Oracle’s outstanding shares—around 1.16 billion shares—saw his fortune soar by $101 billion in a single day, a record-breaking gain that outstripped Musk’s previous high of $63 billion in December 2024. The 81-year-old, who stepped down as Oracle’s CEO in 2014 but remains its chief technology officer and executive chairman, has long been a dominant figure in Silicon Valley. His wealth, primarily tied to his Oracle stake, has been supercharged by the company’s pivot to cloud computing and AI infrastructure, positioning it as a critical player in the global AI race. Oracle’s market capitalization neared $1 trillion during trading on September 10, vaulting it from the 13th to the 10th most valuable company in the S&P 500, surpassing giants like Eli Lilly and JPMorgan Chase.
The financial world was quick to react. Social media platforms, particularly X, buzzed with commentary, with users posting, “Larry Ellison just out-Musk’d Musk!” and “Oracle’s AI gamble is paying off big time.” Financial analysts hailed the earnings report as a game-changer, with Bank of America and Citi upgrading Oracle to a “buy” rating and raising price targets. “Oracle’s $455 billion backlog is staggering,” said Ben Reitzes of Melius Research. “This is a company rewriting its legacy as an AI powerhouse.” The stock’s 103% rise in 2025 alone has outpaced competitors like Amazon and Microsoft, underscoring Oracle’s transformation from a database software provider to a linchpin of AI infrastructure.
Ellison’s rise to the top, however brief, was a personal triumph for a man whose journey began far from the glitz of billionaire rankings. Born on August 17, 1944, in New York City to an unwed Jewish mother, Ellison was adopted at nine months old after contracting pneumonia. Raised on Chicago’s South Side, he dropped out of both the University of Illinois and the University of Chicago before moving to Berkeley, California, where he took a programming job at Ampex. In 1977, Ellison, along with Bob Miner and Ed Oates, founded Software Development Laboratories, later renamed Oracle after a CIA database project they developed. The company went public in 1986, a day before Microsoft, setting the stage for Ellison’s ascent to the upper echelons of wealth.
Beyond Oracle, Ellison’s portfolio is as eclectic as his personality. He owns 98% of Lānaʻi, Hawaii’s sixth-largest island, purchased in 2012 for $500-$600 million, where he has invested in sustainable infrastructure and tourism. A passionate sailor, Ellison backed Oracle Team USA to America’s Cup victories in 2010 and 2013 and co-founded SailGP, a global racing league. He revived the Indian Wells tennis tournament, earning it the nickname “fifth slam,” and owns a sprawling real estate empire, including properties in Malibu, San Francisco, and Japan. His stake in Tesla, estimated at 1.4% from his time on its board from 2018 to 2022, adds billions to his fortune, as does his nearly 50% ownership of Paramount Skydance, the media conglomerate led by his son, David Ellison, following an $8 billion merger in August 2025.
Ellison’s relationship with Musk, a close friend and frequent guest on Lānaʻi, adds a layer of intrigue to their wealth rivalry. Musk, who has called Ellison “very smart” and a mentor, benefited from Ellison’s $1 billion investment in the 2022 acquisition of Twitter (now X). Their friendship, forged through shared interests in technology and innovation, made Ellison’s brief overtake all the more symbolic. While Musk’s wealth, tied largely to Tesla’s volatile stock, has dipped 13% in 2025 to $384 billion amid softening electric vehicle demand, Ellison’s laser focus on AI has propelled Oracle to new heights. Musk, however, remains a contender, with Tesla’s board proposing a compensation package that could make him the world’s first trillionaire if the company meets aggressive targets by 2035.
The Oracle surge reflects broader trends in the tech industry, where AI infrastructure has become the new gold rush. Oracle’s cloud services, competing with Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, have secured contracts with AI giants like OpenAI, Meta, and xAI, Musk’s own AI startup. A reported $300 billion, five-year deal with OpenAI, one of the largest cloud contracts ever, underscores Oracle’s role as the backbone of AI innovation. Ellison, speaking on the earnings call, boasted, “We will build and operate more cloud infrastructure than all our competitors combined. Oracle runs everywhere.” His vision, coupled with strategic acquisitions like Cerner in 2022 for $28 billion, has positioned Oracle at the forefront of healthcare and AI.
Ellison’s ascent also carries political undertones. A longtime supporter of President Donald Trump, Ellison has frequented the White House, most recently in January 2025 to announce The Stargate Project, a $500 billion AI infrastructure initiative with OpenAI’s Sam Altman and SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son. His ties to Trump, including donations to Republican causes and reported talks about acquiring TikTok’s U.S. operations, have raised eyebrows, with some speculating that Oracle’s government contracts could benefit from his influence. Critics, however, point to controversies, including a dismissed 2019 lawsuit accusing Ellison of funding activities tied to Israeli policies, as evidence of his polarizing presence.
The public reaction has been a mix of awe and debate. On X, supporters hailed Ellison’s rise as a testament to innovation, with one user posting, “From CIA databases to AI domination—Larry Ellison’s story is unreal.” Others questioned the societal impact of such wealth concentration, with comments like, “$101 billion in one day? That’s more than some countries’ GDPs.” Ellison’s philanthropy, including a $200 million donation to USC for cancer research and his 2010 Giving Pledge to donate 95% of his wealth, has been tempered by his recent announcement to redirect funds to the Ellison Institute of Technology at Oxford, focusing on healthcare, hunger, and climate change. Some see this as a shift toward personal legacy projects, with one X user noting, “Ellison’s giving, but he’s still calling the shots.”
As Oracle’s stock settled at a 36% gain by market close on September 10, Ellison’s net worth dipped to $383 billion, just shy of Musk’s $384 billion. Yet, the day’s events have redefined Ellison’s legacy. At 81, he remains a force of nature, steering Oracle’s AI ambitions while living a life of mega-yachts, private jets, and island ownership. His brief stint as the world’s richest person, driven by Oracle’s AI-fueled surge, underscores the transformative power of technology and the volatility of billionaire rankings. As cities prepare for Zarutska’s murals, funded in part by Musk, Ellison’s own legacy is being painted on a global canvas—one of innovation, ambition, and a relentless pursuit of the top.
