The 2025 Forbes 400 list highlights a rising wave of young billionaires who have built their fortunes through technology, investing, and innovation. While the average age of America’s wealthiest remains near 70, a new generation under 43 is rapidly accumulating wealth and influence at unprecedented speed.
This year, 33 people under the age of 50 joined the list, up from 26 in 2024. The ten youngest billionaires collectively hold nearly $357 billion, compared with $273 billion last year, reflecting a significant surge in wealth creation among younger entrepreneurs.
Much of this growth is driven by Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, whose personal wealth increased by $72 billion in just one year.
The list of youngest billionaires features individuals who primarily founded or invested in their own companies, with the exception of one heir. Nathan Blecharczyk, 42, co-founded Airbnb and oversees its technical operations, building the platform that has hosted over two billion stays in 220 countries. His fortune is estimated at $8.7 billion.
Mark Zuckerberg, 41, the third-richest American, grew his wealth to $253 billion through Meta’s expansion into artificial intelligence, including a $14 billion investment in Skell AI, while Dustin Moskovitz, also 41 and a Facebook co-founder, now runs Asana and the philanthropic foundation Good Ventures with his wife, donating around $4 billion to causes in health, science, and education.
Several billionaires on the list have emerged from newer tech ventures. Brian Venturo, 40, co-founded CoreWeave, which evolved from a cryptocurrency mining platform into a cloud computing and AI provider, reaching a net worth of $4.2 billion after its value doubled in 2025.
Biju Bhatt, also 40, co-founded Robinhood and retains a 6% stake in the company, which saw its stock quadruple last year, boosting his fortune to $6 billion. Josh Kushner, 40, founded venture capital firm Thrive Capital, investing in companies like Stripe and OpenAI, and has amassed $5.2 billion.
Other young billionaires include Eduardo Vivas, 39, who dropped out of high school to start a recruitment company later acquired by LinkedIn and invested early in AppLovin, now worth $3.8 billion.
Lucas Walton, 38, inherited his $39.8 billion fortune from the Walton family of Walmart fame and focuses on impact investing.
Vlad Tenev, also 38, expanded Robinhood’s offerings to include retirement accounts and credit cards, serving over 26 million users with a personal fortune of $5.8 billion.
Duyen Chen, 37, the youngest billionaire, founded Surge AI, which provides high-quality data for AI training, and now retains a majority stake in a company valued at $24 billion.
Together, these young billionaires illustrate a new era of wealth creation, where technological innovation, entrepreneurial vision, and strategic investments have propelled a younger generation to the forefront of global economic influence.
They exemplify the dynamic opportunities of the modern economy, reshaping the landscape of global wealth and inspiring future generations of innovators.
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