They Were Probably Bullied In School, Now They're Filthy Rich
For everyone out there who classifies as a nerd, don't worry, your time is going to come. The kids who are smart, unconventional, don't get invited to parties, and have pale skin from spending so much time inside fiddling with their computers are the ones who are going places one day. Just look at these mega nerds who became rich and famous.
Trevor Cokley on Wikimedia Commons
1. Mark Zuckerberg
Unless you're living under a rock, chances are you know who Mark Zuckerberg is. Co-founder of Facebook and Meta, the guy has even had a Hollywood movie made about him. This tech prodigy's estimated worth is around $110 billion.
JD Lasica from Pleasanton, CA, US on Wikimedia
2. Bill Gates
The co-founder of Microsoft was a trailblazer of early computers, rumored to have been building early prototypes out of his parents' garage. Today his net worth is estimated at around $100 billion.
The Times of India on Wikimedia
3. Larry Ellison
Who's interested in databases? This nerd, apparently. He turned his geeky obsession into a multi-billion dollar company, Oracle.
Oracle PR Hartmann Studios on Wikimedia
4. Elon Musk
You truly must be living under a rock if you haven't heard of this nerd. From clean energy to space travel to computer brain chips, he continues making massive strides for humanity out of his geeky day dreams which have also made him a healthy $230 billion.
5. Sergey Brin
Sergey Brin is known for his academic background in math and computer science, studying at Stanford, and being a little eccentric and unkempt.
He's also known for co-founding a little-known company called Google, the endeavor earning him $135 billion.
6. Michael Dell
Michael Dell founded one of the biggest computer companies after spending his university days building them in his dorm room and selling them to his classmates instead of partying like most students. His net worth? $112 billion.
7. Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto changed the gaming industry forever when he joined Nintendo as a student hire. His nerdiness allowed him to do things that were way above his pay grade, creating whole worlds and iconic characters that took the gaming world by storm, made him an icon, and earned him a nice $50 million.
8. Jack Dorsey
Jack Dorsey is an internet entrepreneur whose passion for tech enabled him to found Twitter and Square, both billion-dollar companies. His net worth is estimated at around $14 billion.
JD Lasica from Pleasanton, CA, US on Wikimedia
9. Craig Newmark
Another case of a nerdy software engineer-turned-billionaire, Craig Newmark made his fortune by starting Craigslist. The concept for the billion-dollar website began as a simple email list between friends.
Charlie Llewellin from Austin, USA on Wikimedia
10. Jeff Bezos
Even if you don't know his name, chances are you've used his service, Amazon. Now one of the richest people alive with a net worth at around $120 billion, Jeff Bezos started as nothing more than a nerdy computer science student at Princeton.
11. Steve Wozniak
The real brains behind Apple is co-founder Steve Wozniak. His early passion for technology prompted him and his buddy Steve Jobs to create computers in Jobs's garage. His net worth is a neat $100 million.
Photo taken by Al Luckow on Wikimedia
12. Reed Hastings
His passion for films plus a nerdiness for technology combined to create the beloved streaming platform Netflix. His net worth sits at a comfy $3 billion.
13. Sergey Nazarov
Sergey Nazarov's deep tech knowledge and passion for complex technical problems makes him the quintessential tech geek. His nerdiness led him to co-found Chainlink, the blockchain network used by all the major financial institutions, and amass a net worth of around $500 million.
14. Drew Houston
As an over-achieving MIT student, Drew Houston conceptualized drop box when he kept forgetting his USB drive. His net worth is around $2.2 billion.
Original:Financial Times photos, Cropped:Puramyun31 on Wikimedia
15. Linus Torvalds
As a computer science student, Linus Torvalds began dreaming up an operating system. That dream grew into Linux, one of the most popular platforms worldwide. His net worth is an estimated $150 million.
Krd (photo)Von Sprat (crop/extraction) on Wikimedia
16. Pierre Omidyar
Another software nerd-turned millionaire, Pierre Omidyar got his start as a developer. He first created a small website AuctionWeb which evolved to become the giant we now know as eBay. His net worth is hovering around $13 million.
Joi 15:42, 2 August 2007 (UTC) on Wikimedia
17. Paul Allen
Microsoft's other half, Paul Allen co-founded the company with his childhood friend Bill Gates back in 1975.
His early work developing software for Microsoft made him one of the richest people in the world.
18. Marissa Mayer
A trailblazer for women in the tech world, Marissa Mayer was one of Google's first female engineers. A computer science graduate from Stanford, you better believe this girl had her head in books more often than not, but it paid off, earning her more than $600 million.
19. Larry Page
Larry Page co-founded Google alongside Sergey Brin after developing his keen interest in technology into tangible skills as a computer science student at Stanford University. His net worth is a hefty $143 billion.
20. Pavel Durov
Pavel Durov, known for his reclusive, slightly antisocial demeaner, turned his passion for technology and social media into the Russian social networking platform, VK. Following that, he launched the hugely successful messaging app, Telegram. He is now worth around $16 billion.
