ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / NEWS

Jeff Bezos could easily end U.S. hunger with his massive wealth as per estimates. But would he?

How much money could Jeff Bezos give everyone in the world? See statistics about the Amazon founder’s massive net worth and how it could be spent.
PUBLISHED SEP 28, 2024
Jeff Bezos participates in an event hosted by the Air Force Association in National Harbor | Getty Images | Photo by Alex Wong
Jeff Bezos participates in an event hosted by the Air Force Association in National Harbor | Getty Images | Photo by Alex Wong

In 2018, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said he would spend his massive net worth—then around $131 billion, now around $180 billion—on space travel through his company Blue Origin

 

“I am very lucky that I feel like I have a mission-driven purpose with Blue Origin that is, I think, incredibly important for civilization long term,” he told Business Insider. “And I am going to use my financial lottery winnings from Amazon to fund that.”

That plan came as a disappointment to Dr. Harold Pollack, a public health and social services expert who wrote in a New York Times opinion at the time that Bezos “has done conspicuously less to aid humanity than have many other tycoons, even those who command far less wealth.”

Pollack went on: “Mr. Bezos’s comments and record regarding philanthropy reflect a surprising lack of creativity and strategic vision regarding what his fortune could accomplish.”

Other people have had different ideas regarding what that fortune could accomplish, though, including the people who have asked how much Bezos could give to everyone in the world.

 

Jeff Bezos could give $23 to every person on the globe.

Jeff Bezos
Source: Getty Images

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the world population is around 7.75 billion. Bezos’ net worth at the time of this writing is $180.4 billion, according to Forbes

Therefore, Bezos could give everyone in the world about $23.27. Limiting that math to just the United States, Bezos could give each of the roughly 330 million people living in America about $546.66.

He could have paid all of his employees a $173k bonus.

 

In February, when Bezos’ net worth was $196 billion, he could have given every one of Amazon’s 1.13 million employees a $173,628 bonus, Nexstar reported. 

The wire service had other statistics to share: Bezos could have given $25,764 to every resident of Washington, where Amazon is based. Or he could have spent $3.7 billion per week for a year. Or he could have spent $1 billion every day for the next month and still have had $165 billion remaining.

Bezos could have bought 23 percent of Tesla.

The Verge took a more comical approach to hypothetical uses of Bezos’ wealth in February. The site reported that Bezos could have purchased 1,932 diamond-encrusted Damien Hurst skulls (worth $100 million a skull), or 64,000 Bugatti Chirons (at $3 million a vehicle), or 644 copies of Larry Ellison’s private island (which Ellison purchased for $300 million), 19 iterations of the James Webb Space Telescope (costing $10 billion per telescope), or even 23 percent of Tesla (valued at $818 billion at the time).

He perhaps could have ended hunger in the United States seven times.

Turning serious, The Verge also speculated that Bezos could have put that fortune toward ending hunger in the United States. Hunger Free America CEO Joel Berg said in 2016 that it would take $25 billion—which Bezos has seven times over—to solve U.S. hunger.

“Mr. Bezos will be remembered as a great businessman,” Pollack concluded in his 2018 New York Times op-ed. “It’s up to him whether he will be remembered."

This article was originally published three years ago. 

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
Despite having just 25% ownership of her company, Meagan Bowman managed to bag a $400,000 deal.
21 hours ago
In the end, Harrison felt like he hit the jackpot as he knew every collector would be after the item.
22 hours ago
Former players and audience members shared how the show deals with controversial statements.
1 day ago
Fans were divided on whether Adam Wredberg's Bonus Round puzzle was solvable or not.
1 day ago
The lucky win delighted the fans as the contestant, Sunita Baru took home more than $50,000.
2 days ago
Chris and Jeanie Rodgers didn't just beat up the zombie on the show, but also had him present their product to the judges.
2 days ago
Fans on Reddit complained complained that some games are either overly difficult by design or favor only physically fit contestants.
2 days ago
Contestant Joey Sweet took the loss in stride, but the show's viewers weren't happy with the puzzle selection.
3 days ago
A lot of things on set were put to the test during the "Is it real or is it cake?" challenge, including the host.
3 days ago
Fans were left disappointed after the contestant, Alicia Slagle, failed to guess an easy phrase in the finale.
3 days ago
Jackie Fakhoury was also joined by her husband and son in celebration on stage.
4 days ago
The guest had no idea that her $30 ring was studded with diamonds and made of platinum.
4 days ago
In a rare event, Harrison didn't haggle the seller as he knew he had to make a deal for he coin.
4 days ago
The Bobek family, who came dressed in Polish Highlander attire, had the host grooving to their tunes.
5 days ago
Contestant Marie-Eve Augier’s smart letter choices turned the puzzle into an easy solve.
5 days ago
The Sharks felt that the founder of Besomebody didn't have the "capacity to listen."
6 days ago
Jennings shared how Trebek showed great resillience and showmanship during his last days on the show.
6 days ago
The contestant, Staci Urban put up a great show to win over $60,000 in one night.
6 days ago
The TikToker warned fellow shoppers about the risks of infection from the salmon.
7 days ago