Jensen Huang drops from world’s top 10 richest after Nvidia chips selloff

On November 5, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang experienced a significant financial setback as his net worth declined by US$15.1 billion to US$150.9 billion following a decline in stock prices. This drop moved him from the ninth to the 13th position on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Elon Musk of SpaceX and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison also saw their wealth decrease by US$79.7 billion and US$10.1 billion, respectively, to 13th and 19th respectively on the index.

The decline was attributed to expectations that a Democrat-controlled House and Senate would aim to regulate the construction of data centers, which are crucial for AI infrastructure. The semiconductor makers and computing power suppliers experienced a drop in share prices, with Nvidia plummeting 9.3%, SpaceX falling 9%, and Oracle declining by 6.9%.

Huang's substantial exposure to the data center buildout for AI demands amplified his financial impact. Collectively, the 500 individuals on the wealth index suffered a loss of US$185 billion, marking the 14th-largest one-day drop since Bloomberg initiated its ranking in 2012. This downturn occurred amidst tech billionaires being on track for their best year ever, contributing to 36% of the index's total wealth.