Ma vs Ma Huateng

China's two internet founders.

The differences

Forbes puts Ma Huateng about $19.4B ahead of Jack Ma.Forbes figures from 15 Oct 2026 and 9 Oct 2026.
Both started the company their money comes from.
Jack Ma is about 7 years older than Ma Huateng.

Put someone else on either side

Ma Huateng

Net worth, Forbes: $26.1BForbes, 9 Oct 2026; $45.5BForbes, 15 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $42BBloomberg, 10 Oct 2026; $50.3BBloomberg, 17 Oct 2026
Forbes rank: No. 91Real-Time list, 9 Oct 2026; No. 44Real-Time list, 15 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: Not stated; 2008First on the Forbes World's Billionaires list in 2008 with $1.4 billion

How it started: Co-founded itAlibaba was founded in 1999 by 18 people led by Jack Ma; Ant Group grew out of Alipay, set up in 2004; Co-founded itCo-founded Tencent in 1998; Forbes labels him self-made
Main source: Alibaba and Ant Group shares, dividends and share salesBloomberg: most of his wealth is accumulated cash from dividends and share sales of Alibaba and Ant Group; Tencent Holdings stockBloomberg: 'the majority of Ma Huateng's wealth is derived from an 8% stake in Tencent Holdings'
Companies: Alibaba Group, Ant GroupAlibaba Group: Partner in the Alibaba Partnership and partnership-committee continuity member; Ant Group: Founder; no management role; TencentTencent: Executive director, chairman and CEO
Biggest stake: Ant Group9.9% owned; Tencent8.85% owned

Born: 10 Sep 1964Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; 29 Oct 1971Chaoyang, China
Country: ChinaLives in Hangzhou, China; ChinaLives in Shenzhen, China
Education: Bachelor's degreeBA in English, Hangzhou Teachers College (1988); Bachelor's degreeBS in computer and its application, Shenzhen University (1993)
Parents: His parents were traditional Chinese musician-storytellers in Hangzhou; His father, Ma Chenshu, moved the family to Hainan and later to Shenzhen, where he worked as a port manager

Giving Pledge: Not a signer; Not a signer
Foundation: Jack Ma FoundationFounded 15 December 2014; Tencent Foundation and a personal charity fundHe led the founding of Tencent Foundation in 2007 and in 2016 pledged 100 million Tencent shares to a charity fund; Ma Huateng Global Foundation Limited holds part of his Tencent stake
Lifetime giving: $0.3BForbes, 2 Dec 2019. Forbes, citing Alibaba: the Jack Ma Foundation had 'distributed or pledged at least $300 million' since its founding; paid and pledged combined; Not stated

Role now: Founder, no executive rolePartner in the Alibaba Partnership; Runs the companyChairman and CEO of Tencent
Successor: Daniel Zhang succeeded him as Alibaba chairman on 10 September 2019; None namedTencent's annual report lists him as the only executive director; no family member is on the board
Public office: Member, UK Prime Minister's Business Advisory Group; Special Adviser for Youth Entrepreneurship and Small Business, UNCTAD2015; 2016; Deputy to the National People's Congress (12th and 13th)2013-2023
Legal record: None found; None found