Hundreds Of CA Billionaires Make New List Of World's Richest

California has the highest concentration of billionaires than any other U.S. state, with many in Silicon Valley, the Bay Area, and LA/OC.

Mar. 16, 2026 at 1:53am

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According to Forbes, there are more than 200 billionaires who call California home, with the state having the highest concentration of billionaires in the U.S. Elon Musk, whose fortune has soared to $839 billion, remains at the top of the list of the world's richest people. Other top California billionaires include Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, and Oracle's Larry Ellison.

Why it matters

The intensifying concentration of global economic power among the ultra-rich, especially in California's tech hubs, underscores growing wealth inequality and the outsized influence of billionaires on the economy and society. This raises questions about the role of billionaires, the impacts of wealth concentration, and the need for policies to address wealth disparities.

The details

California's billionaires are concentrated in Silicon Valley, the Bay Area, and clusters in Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Many of the state's wealthiest individuals, including Elon Musk, Sergey Brin, and Larry Page, built their fortunes in the tech industry. The rise of artificial intelligence has also fueled the wealth of at least 86 'centibillionaires' (those worth $100 billion or more). A record 35 under-30 billionaires also made the list this year, including the trio behind the AI recruiting startup Mercor.

  • Forbes released its annual list of the world's richest people in 2026.

The players

Elon Musk

Elon Musk's fortune has soared to an unprecedented $839 billion, keeping him at the top of the list of the world's richest people. Musk built his wealth in California but recently relocated to Texas, citing frustration with the state's taxes and regulations.

Larry Page

Larry Page co-founded Google in 1998 with Sergey Brin and remained CEO until 2001. He also stepped down as CEO of Google's parent company, Alphabet, but remains a board member and controlling shareholder.

Sergey Brin

Sergey Brin co-founded Google with Larry Page at Stanford in 1998 and remains a board member and controlling shareholder of Google's parent company, Alphabet.

Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg got his start when he co-founded Facebook, now known as Meta, at the age of 19. Today, Zuckerberg has promised to give away 99 percent of his Meta stake over his lifetime.

Larry Ellison

Larry Ellison is the chairman, chief technology officer, and co-founder of software giant Oracle, of which he owns 40 percent. In 2012, he bought nearly all of the Hawaii island of Lanai for $300 million.

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What they’re saying

“Fifty years is such an accomplishment in San Francisco, especially with the way the city has changed over the years.”

— Gordon Edgar, grocery employee (Instagram)

The takeaway

The growing concentration of wealth among California's billionaires, fueled by the tech industry and the rise of AI, highlights the need for policies to address wealth inequality and the outsized influence of the ultra-rich on the economy and society.