Forbes 400 List Shows AI Boom Creating Young Billionaires

The annual Forbes list of America's 400 richest billionaires released in September 2026 shows a record minimum net worth of $4.4 billion required for entry. The list features 10 billionaires under the age of 40, more than double the four individuals who held that status the previous year.

Forbes reports that seven of these young billionaires built their fortunes as founders during the artificial intelligence boom. This group includes four cofounders of Anthropic, a company currently valued at $1.5 trillion in the secondary market, as well as founders from OpenAI, Surge AI, and Cognition. Most of these individuals reside in California, though Edwin Chen is based in New York.

Lukas Walton is the only person under 40 on the list to have inherited his wealth. Amidst the rise of AI-driven fortunes, Anthropic president and board chair Daniela Amodei argued that the technology will increase the importance of humanities majors, stating that "The ability to have critical thinking skills will be more important in the future, rather than less."