However, some industries have been far bigger wealth creators than others. This graphic visualizes the industries that produced the most billionaires globally from 2014 to 2024.
The figures come from Knight Frank’s Wealth Report 2025.
Below, we show the number of new billionaires created from the following 10 industries between 2014 to 2024.
| Industry | Number of New Billionaires (2014-2024) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 509 |
| Technology | 443 |
| Finance & Investments | 353 |
| Fashion & Retail | 318 |
| Healthcare | 284 |
| Food & Beverage | 277 |
| Real Estate | 228 |
| Diversified | 206 |
| Media & Entertainment | 110 |
| Automotive | 101 |
Manufacturing leads as the top industry for billionaire creation over the past decade, with 509 billionaires.
Just in 2024, 46 new billionaires emerged from the sector, including Anil Gupta, chairman of Indian electrical company KEI Industries.
Countries like India and China have seen rapid industrialization and an increase in manufacturing exports in recent years.
Manufacturing entrepreneurs in these countries have benefited from government incentives, growing consumer bases, and global market penetration, leading to wealth creation.
The tech sector ranks second, with 443 new billionaires emerging over the past decade. Many of the world’s wealthiest individuals come from this industry, including Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and other top tech CEOs.
One recent addition to the billionaire ranks is OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who reached a net worth of $1 billion in April 2024.
His fortune was fueled by the massive success of ChatGPT, which launched in 2021 and quickly accelerated AI integration across industries, reshaping how businesses and individuals interact with artificial intelligence.
Credit: Visual Capitalist
