Anthropic’s new artificial intelligence tools wiped out billions of dollars from the stock market last month. Stocks of software, cybersecurity, legal tech and financial services companies were affected the most. However, a report claims that only two of the world's top 10 richest people saw their net worth most affected by the stock market 'bloodbath' caused by Anthropic's AI tool in February.
According to a report by Forbes, Google cofounder
Larry Page, who ranked among the world's wealthiest individuals for the fourth consecutive month, was one of five American tech figures in the top 10 to lose $20 billion or more in February, as shares of Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Oracle all declined. Jeff Bezos saw the largest drop of the month, with Amazon shares sliding 12%, reducing his net worth by $26 billion to an estimated $224 billion.
Apart from this, the composition of the world's top 10 wealthiest individuals remained largely unchanged last month. Only two people exchanged positions:
Warren Buffett moved up to ninth place while Zara co-founder Amancio Ortega slipped to tenth.
Both were among just four of the ten wealthiest who added to their fortunes in February. Tesla CEO
Elon Musk recorded the month's notable gain, adding $64 billion to his fortune over the past month and more than $100 billion since the start of the year, reaching a new personal wealth record.
Elon Musk is on track to become the first person in history with a $1 trillion net worth
In October 2025, Musk’s net worth reached $500 billion. In December 2025, it crossed both the $600 billion and $700 billion marks. Meanwhile, in February, it passed $800 billion. As of March 1, Musk was worth an estimated $839 billion, widening his lead over Google co-founder Larry Page to more than half a trillion dollars. This happened after Page lost $20 billion and is now worth an estimated $257 billion.
With markets moving in Musk’s favour over recent months, attention has turned to when Musk may become the first person to reach a $1 trillion net worth. While markets remain unpredictable, one development expected to have a bearing on his fortune is SpaceX's anticipated IPO later this year. Here are the top 10 richest people in the world as per Forbes (as on March 1)
1. Elon Musk
2. Larry Page
3. Sergey Brin
4. Jeff Bezos
5. Mark Zuckerberg
6. Larry Ellison
7. Bernard Arnault
8. Jensen Huang
9. Warren Buffett (up from No. 10)
10. Amancio Ortega (down from No. 9)
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