Ellison vs Ballmer

Oracle and Microsoft.

The differences

Forbes puts Larry Ellison about $18.8B ahead of Steve Ballmer.Forbes figures from 9 Oct 2026 and 15 Oct 2026.
Larry Ellison: co-founded it. Steve Ballmer: built it up.
Larry Ellison is about 12 years older than Steve Ballmer.
Larry Ellison has signed the Giving Pledge; Steve Ballmer has not.
Larry Ellison has held a public or government advisory role; Steve Ballmer has none on record.

Put someone else on either side

Ellison

Ballmer

Net worth, Forbes: $184BForbes, 9 Oct 2026; $165BForbes, 15 Oct 2026
Net worth, Bloomberg: $192BBloomberg, 9 Oct 2026; $185BBloomberg, 16 Oct 2026
Forbes rank: No. 8Real-Time list, 9 Oct 2026; No. 9Real-Time list, 15 Oct 2026
Billionaire since: 1993Forbes: 'in 1993 Forbes first named Ellison a billionaire'; Not stated

How it started: Co-founded itOracle's bio says he founded the company in 1977; Bloomberg says he founded it with two partners; Built it upNeither founder nor heir: he joined Microsoft in 1980 as employee No. 30 and first business manager, and was CEO 2000-2014; Forbes counts him as self-made
Main source: Oracle stockBloomberg: 'The majority of Larry Ellison's fortune is derived from a stake in US software maker Oracle'; Microsoft stockBloomberg: 'The majority of Steve Ballmer's fortune is derived from a stake in Microsoft'
Companies: OracleOracle: Executive chair and CTO (since September 2014); MicrosoftMicrosoft: None (shareholder)
Biggest stake: Oracle38.2% owned; MicrosoftStake not stated

Born: 17 Aug 1944New York City, United States; 24 Mar 1956Detroit, Michigan, United States
Country: United StatesLives in Manalapan, Florida, United States; United StatesLives in Hunts Point, Washington, United States
Education: Left university without a degreeLeft the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign without a degree; Bachelor's degreeDegree in applied mathematics and economics, Harvard University; left Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1980 to join Microsoft
Parents: Born to Florence Spellman, a 19-year-old single mother, and adopted by her aunt and uncle, Lillian and Louis Ellison, who raised him in Chicago; Father was a manager at Ford Motor Co.Mother's occupation not in the cited sources

Giving Pledge: Signed in 2010; Not a signer
Foundation: Larry Ellison Foundation; Ballmer GroupCo-founded with his wife Connie Ballmer in 2015; he also founded USAFacts
Lifetime giving: $0.5BForbes, undefined undefined 2014. Forbes' 2014 America's Top Givers figure ($507 million lifetime), reported in 2016; no newer estimate cited; $7.4BForbes, 14 Oct 2026. Forbes: 'the Ballmers have given away more than $7.4 billion' (Steve and Connie together)

Role now: Runs the companyExecutive chair and chief technology officer of Oracle; No roleFormer Microsoft CEO and director; owner and chairman of the LA Clippers
Successor: Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia, co-CEOs since September 2025Named CEOs under Oracle's succession planning; no successor is named for his executive chair and CTO roles, and no family member is an Oracle executive officer; Satya Nadella succeeded him as Microsoft CEO in February 2014No Ballmer family member is named in a Microsoft executive role
Public office: Member, President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST)2026-; None found
Legal record: 2005: San Mateo County Superior CourtA judge approved his settlement of a shareholder suit over Oracle stock sales in 2001: he agreed to donate $100 million to charity in Oracle's name and pay $22 million in attorneys' fees, while denying wrongdoing.; None found