Jeff Bezos is an American businessman, media proprietor and investor, best known as the founder, executive chairman and former president and CEO of Amazon, the world’s largest e-commerce and cloud computing company.
He had an early love for computers and studied computer science and electrical engineering at Princeton University.
After working on Wall Street, Jeff founded Amazon.com in 1994, initially as an online bookstore, which grew into a global marketplace for various products.
He also owns The Washington Post, which he purchased in 2013, and the aerospace company Blue Origin, founded in 2000 to develop technologies for affordable space travel.
Jeff’s successful business ventures have made him one of the world’s richest people, with an estimated net worth of $191 billion as of February 2024.
In addition to his business pursuits, he is involved in philanthropy, having donated to various causes, including education, cancer research, and journalism.
Siblings
Jeff has two siblings, namely Mark Bezos and Christina Bezos.
Mark is a renowned space tourist and former advertising executive, while Christina is a co-director of the Bezos Family Foundation.
Mark is three and a half years younger than Jeff, and they have a close relationship, having traveled to space together in 2021.
Christina, born in 1969, is Jeff’s youngest sibling and maintains a private life.
In the mid-1990s, Jeff encouraged both of his siblings to invest $10,000 each in Amazon, which has since grown significantly and made them billionaires.
Career
Jeff’s career began in the financial sector, where he worked at D.E. Shaw, a New York-based hedge fund, after graduating from Princeton University with a degree in computer science and electrical engineering.
He quickly rose to become the company’s youngest vice president.
In 1994, Jeff left D.E. Shaw to start Amazon, initially as an online bookstore that grew into the world’s largest e-commerce platform, offering millions of products and services.
Amazon’s success has made him one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, with an estimated net worth of $191 billion as of February 2024.
In addition to Amazon, Jeff founded Blue Origin in 2000 to develop technologies for affordable space travel and tourism.
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He has also been involved in philanthropy, donating to various causes, including education, cancer research, and journalism.
In 2018, Jeff committed approximately $2 billion to a fund focused on American homelessness and early childhood education.
His career has been characterized by his entrepreneurial spirit, innovative thinking, and a focus on long-term growth and sustainability.
Jeff has been recognized for his contributions to the technology and business sectors, receiving numerous awards and accolades, including Time magazine’s Person of the Year in 1999.
Personal life
Jeff has four children with his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott, Preston, an unnamed daughter adopted from China, and two additional sons whose names have not been made public.
Preston was born in 2000 and is named after Bezos’ middle name, which has been passed down through generations of his family.
Jeff and Scott’s daughter was adopted from China, but the exact timing of the adoption is unknown.
During their children’s younger years, Scott, a novelist, took on the primary role of raising them full-time while Jeff focused on building Amazon.
Jeff and Scott announced their split in 2019 after 25 years of marriage, but they continue to co-parent their children together.
He has since become engaged to news anchor Lauren Sánchez, who has two children from a previous marriage and a son with NFL player Tony Gonzalez.
Sánchez and Jeff are often seen together with their blended family, which they refer to as the “Brady Bunch.”
Net worth
Jeff has an estimated net worth of $193 billion, according to the Forbes Real-Time Billionaire List.
This makes him the second wealthiest person in the world, with a net worth of about $205 billion as of April 5, 2024.
Jeff owns about 9% of Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, which had revenue of $574.8 billion in 2023.
He also owns space exploration company Blue Origin, which is included in the calculation of his net worth.
Jeff has committed $2 billion to social issues in 2018 and made a pledge in February 2020 to donate $10 billion to help counter the effects of climate change.
He has sold about $38.5 billion worth of Amazon shares since 2002.