Catenaa, Tuesday, September 15, 2026- The 2026 Forbes 400 includes ten billionaires under the age of 40 for the first time, with the AI industry responsible for the surge.
The seven newcomers in this year’s list built their wealth in AI, entering a list that this year required a record-high minimum net worth of $4.4 billion for admission.
Four of the seven newcomers are cofounders of Anthropic, the AI safety company that split from OpenAI in 2021. Tom Brown (39), Daniela Amodei (39), Jack Clark (37), and Sam McCandlish (36) each have an estimated fortune of $15.5 billion, placing them in a four-way tie at No. 75.
Forbes puts Anthropic’s latest valuation at $965 billion, reflecting a $65 billion funding round completed in May.
Greg Brockman, 37, is the wealthiest newcomer among the under-40 cohort, worth an estimated $25.5 billion. The value of his OpenAI equity came to light in May, when court proceedings in the company’s lawsuit against Elon Musk required him to disclose it under oath, according to Forbes. OpenAI was valued at $852 billion in March.
The two youngest members of the group are also newcomers. Anduril founder Palmer Luckey, 33, has an estimated net worth of $5.9 billion; his defense technology company secured $5 billion in venture funding at a $61 billion valuation in May. At 30, Steven Hao holds the distinction of being the youngest person on the entire Forbes 400.
He co-founded Cognition, the startup behind AI coding agent Devin, which closed a $2 billion round at a $48 billion valuation in September, according to Forbes.
The three members of the under-40 group who carried over from the 2025 list are Edwin Chen, 38, founder of AI training company Surge AI, worth $18 billion; Vlad Tenev, 39, cofounder of trading app Robinhood, worth $7.1 billion; and Lukas Walton, 39, a Walmart heir worth $44.4 billion, the richest of the ten and the only one whose fortune was inherited rather than built.
In total, the ten youngest Forbes 400 members are worth $169 billion, down from $357 billion in 2025. The drop is largely explained by wealthy members aging past 40, most significantly Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, now 42, whose estimated $212 billion fortune had made him the dominant figure in the group a year ago.
The broader Forbes 400 list reflects a record wealth concentration: America’s 400 richest people are worth a combined $8 trillion, up from $6.6 trillion a year ago.
The minimum net worth needed to make the list rose to $4.4 billion from $3.8 billion, pushing a record 590 American billionaires below the threshold.
Anthropic and OpenAI, whose cofounders account for five of the ten youngest Forbes 400 members, have both submitted confidential IPO filings.
