Top 10 richest people in the world as of May 1, 2024

Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH, the world's leading luxury goods company, continues to dominate as the world's wealthiest individual as of May 1, 2024. 

Forbes' real-time billionaires list confirms Arnault's ongoing reign at the top, a position he has held since February 2024, closely trailed by Elon Musk, the visionary behind Tesla.

In a recent turn of events, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, briefly surpassed Musk in April 2024, securing the second position. However, Musk swiftly regained his status after a remarkable 15 percent surge in Tesla's stock on April 29, 2024, bolstering his net worth by $14.5 billion, as reported by Forbes.

Musk's recent exploration of the electric vehicle landscape in China underscores his relentless drive for innovation. Despite trailing behind Arnault, Musk has narrowed the wealth gap, with Arnault's fortune currently standing at $209.4 billion, approximately $10 billion more than Musk's.

Nevertheless, Arnault's LVMH faced a setback in the past month, experiencing a decline in its stock value, resulting in a $17 billion decrease in its fortune. Despite this, Arnault's position as the world's richest individual remains unshaken.

In addition, Amazon Founder, Jeff Bezos, fell to the third place with a net worth of $193.3 pillion, while Mark Zuckerberg's Meta recorded a net worth of $151.2 billion for the period

Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, who reigned as the world's richest person for about three decades, saw his worth at $128 billion, making him the ninth richest person in the world, down from the seventh spot a month ago.

As of May 1, 2024, Francoise Bettencourt Meyers of France was the richest woman in the world. She is estimated to be worth $95.4 pillion and is the world's 15th richest person

According to Forbes, Francoise's fortune lies in her ownership stake in cosmetics giant L'Oreal, which she inherited from her late mother. Her grandfather was the founder of L'Oreal, Eugène Schueller.

1. Bernard Arnault

Net worth: $209.4 billion

Source: LVMH/ luxury goods Age: 75

Residence: Paris

Citizenship: France

2. Elon Musk

Net worth: $199.6 billion

Source: Tesla, SpaceX, X (Twitter) Age: 52

Residence: Austin, Texas

Citizenship: U.S.

3. Jeff Bezos

Net worth: $193.3 billion

Source: Amazon Age: 60

Residence: Miami, Florida

Citizenship: U.S

4. Mark Zuckerberg

Net worth: $151.2 billion

Source: Meta (Facebook)

Age: 39 Residence: Palo Alto, California

5. Larry Ellison

Net worth: $142.8 billion

Source: Oracle

Age: 79 Residence: Woodside, California

Citizenship: U.S.

6. Larry Page

Net worth: $135.4 billion

Source: Google Age: 51

Residence: Palo Alto, California

Citizenship: U.S

7. Warren Buffett

Net worth: $131 billion

Source: Berkshire Hathaway

Age: 93 Residence: Omaha, Nebraska

Citizenship: U.S.

8. Sergey Brin

Net worth: $129.9 billion

Source: Google

Age: 50

Residence: Los Altos, California

Citizenship: U.S

9. Bill Gates

Net worth: $127 billion

Source: Microsoft, investments

Age: 68 Residence: Medina, Washington

Citizenship: U.S.

10. Steve Ballmer

Net worth: $117.1 billion

Source: Microsoft, Clippers, investments

Age: 68

Residence: Hunts Point, Washington

Citizenship: U.S