Tech Billionaires' Wealth Rose $845 Billion This Year; Non-Tech Fell $62 Billion

Tech billionaires gained a record $845 billion up to September, buoyed by the AI boom, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Over that stretch, non-tech billionaires saw a collective loss of $62 billion.

This divergence may appear to guide investment decisions, but the data tracks personal wealth rather than stock performance. A portion of the gains stems from private AI firms like Anthropic, which are inaccessible to retail investors.

Where Are the Tech Titans’ Gains Actually Landing?

About 100 of the world's 500 richest individuals have fortunes tied to technology, according to Bloomberg News wealth reporter Dylan Sloan.

Sloan cited King Slide of Taiwan, which started out making drawer slides in the 1980s. The company's slides are now used in data center server racks, and its founder joined the index with a valuation of $9.5 billion.

Since Sept. 10, the top 10 spots have been occupied entirely by Americans, a first in the index's history dating to 2012, Bloomberg data shows.

Sloan added that a growing number of newcomers are from China, among them founders of AI labs like DeepSeek and MiniMax.

Does a Billionaire Windfall Mean an Investor Return?

Bloomberg applies the same valuation method to private holdings as to public ones, with liquidity discounts applied in certain cases. In June, all seven co-founders of Anthropic were added to the index following a funding round that valued the firm at $965 billion.

Research from S&P Global showed that by mid-2025 the ten largest companies in the S&P 500 accounted for nearly 40% of the index. Such a high concentration had not been seen since the mid-1960s. Typical S&P 500 index funds follow those weightings.

Past performance suggests that size does not assure future returns. The same report noted that the top ten in 1965, which made up nearly half the index at the time, performed badly over the following six decades. Nonetheless, the S&P 500 returned around 7.4% annually over that period, not counting dividends.

Separately, the main hedge fund of Lone Pine Capital wiped out nearly all of a 44% increase that had accumulated through June, after AI wagers turned against it.

In a separate development, Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio last week cautioned about an AI bubble. He links the threat to AI-related debt and increasing interest rates.

The index captures wealth already accumulated, not future investment performance. The unresolved issue for index investors is whether the biggest AI-related stocks will continue to lift the S&P 500.