Most billionaires spend decades building their wealth. But the youngest billionaires in the world in 2026 didn’t wait that long. Some inherited fortunes from industrial dynasties. Others dropped out of college and built AI startups worth billions.
Either way, these youngest top 10 richest people in the world crossed the $1 billion mark before most people finish their first job!
According to Forbes’s 2026 World’s Billionaires List, there are now a record 35 people under 30 with ten-digit fortunes, which is about 1% of the 3,428 total billionaires worldwide. Together, the youngest billionaires are worth $92.4 billion.
This list focuses on the top 10 youngest billionaires by age, including both inherited and self-made wealth, from Brazilian electric motor manufacturers to AI recruiting startups reshaping Silicon Valley.
List of the Top 10 Youngest Billionaires in the World (2026)
1. Amelie Voigt Trejes — Age 20 | $1.1 Billion
Amelie Voigt Trejes holds the title of the world’s youngest billionaire in 2026, at just 20 years old. She owns a 2% stake in WEG, a Brazilian multinational that manufactures electric motors and automation systems. WEG was co-founded in 1961 by her late grandfather Werner Ricardo Voigt, who passed away in 2016, and has grown into one of the largest industrial companies in Latin America, with annual revenue of roughly $7 billion and operations in more than 41 countries.
Amelie does not hold a seat on WEG’s board or any executive position at the company. She is currently a university student. Her siblings Pedro and Felipe Voigt Trejes are also WEG shareholders and appear later on this list. Seven members of the Voigt family in total appear on the 2026 Forbes Billionaires List, with a combined fortune of $9.5 billion, all from WEG stakes inherited through family trusts.
What makes Amelie notable is simple: she is seven weeks younger than Johannes von Baumbach, making her the single youngest billionaire on earth right now.
2. Johannes von Baumbach — Age 20 | $6.6 Billion
Johannes von Baumbach is the second-youngest billionaire in the world and the wealthiest person on this list by age bracket, with a net worth of $6.6 billion. He is an heir to Boehringer Ingelheim, a German pharmaceutical company founded in 1885 and widely considered the largest privately held pharmaceutical firm in the world.
Johannes is the youngest of four siblings who all appear on Forbes’s under-30 list, each worth $6.6 billion. The company has been run by a family member, his uncle Hubertus von Baumbach, since 2015. Johannes himself competes in skiing in Austria and does not hold an operational role in the business.
His wealth reflects the sheer scale of Boehringer Ingelheim’s operations: the company operates across more than 130 countries and focuses on human and animal health, prescription medicines, and biopharmaceuticals.
3. Clemente Del Vecchio — Age 21 | $6.8 Billion
At 21, Clemente Del Vecchio is the third-youngest billionaire in the world and the wealthiest person on this entire top 10 list, with a net worth of $6.8 billion. His fortune comes from a 12.5% stake in Delfin, the holding company that controls EssilorLuxottica, the Italian eyewear giant behind brands like Ray-Ban, Oakley, and Persol.
EssilorLuxottica was built by his late father Leonardo Del Vecchio, who passed away in June 2022 at age 87. Leonardo was one of the wealthiest men in Europe and built the company into a global leader in prescription lenses and designer frames. Clemente is one of six children and shares the Delfin stake with his brother Luca (24), who carries the same $6.8 billion net worth.
Clemente’s position on this list reflects how generational wealth in manufacturing and consumer goods can outpace even the largest tech fortunes when passed down at a young age.
4. Lívia Voigt de Assis — Age 21 | $1.4 Billion
Lívia Voigt de Assis is 21 years old and worth $1.4 billion, placing her as the fourth-youngest billionaire globally. Like her younger cousin Amelie, her wealth comes from WEG, the Brazilian electrical motor manufacturer co-founded by their shared grandfather Werner Ricardo Voigt.
Lívia owns a 3.1% stake in WEG, slightly larger than Amelie’s 2% holding, which is why her net worth is a little higher despite being born later than some other family members on this list. Her older sister Dora Voigt de Assis (28) holds an identical 3.1% stake. Neither sister holds an executive role at WEG.
Lívia actually held the title of world’s youngest billionaire in 2024, when she first appeared on Forbes at age 19. She’s since been displaced by her younger cousin Amelie, a sign of just how expansive the WEG family inheritance has become.
5–7. Surya Midha, Brendan Foody & Adarsh Hiremath — Age 22 | $2.2 Billion Each
At just 22, Surya Midha, Brendan Foody, and Adarsh Hiremath are the youngest self-made billionaires in history, beating even Mark Zuckerberg, who first appeared on Forbes at 23 nearly two decades ago.
They founded Mercor in early 2023 after meeting at Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, California, where they competed together on the debate team.
All three dropped out of college: Foody and Midha from Georgetown University, Hiremath from Harvard, during their sophomore year at age 19 to launch the startup.
Here’s what Mercor does: it connects AI labs and enterprises with a vetted network of domain experts like scientists, doctors, lawyers, and engineers who evaluate and train AI models. Their clients include six of the “Magnificent Seven” tech companies, plus OpenAI and Anthropic.
By October 2025, Mercor had raised $350 million in a Series C led by Felicis Ventures, valuing the company at $10 billion. Each co-founder holds an estimated 22% stake.
Mercor’s key milestones:
- Founded: January 2023 (founders were 19 years old)
- Series C funding: $350 million at a $10 billion valuation (October 2025)
- Clients: OpenAI, Anthropic, and six Magnificent Seven companies
- Network: 30,000+ domain experts earning $1.5M+ daily
- All three are Thiel Fellows (Peter Thiel’s $100,000 entrepreneur grant program)
Surya Midha is a few months younger than his co-founders, making him the single youngest self-made billionaire of all, a title previously held by Alexandr Wang of Scale AI. Midha was born in California’s Bay Area to Indian immigrant parents and was a national debate champion in high school. Foody previously founded two software startups before Mercor.
8. Kim Jung-youn — Age 22 | $1.7 Billion
Kim Jung-youn is 22 years old and worth $1.7 billion. She and her older sister Kim Jung-min (24) inherited approximately 9% stakes each in Nexon after the 2022 death of their father, Kim Jung-ju, who founded the South Korean-Japanese online gaming company.
Nexon is one of the most significant names in global gaming. It pioneered the free-to-play model and leads in massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), with more than 80 live titles including MapleStory, KartRider, and Dungeon & Fighter. The company is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and operates across Asia, North America, and Europe.
Kim Jung-youn holds no executive role at Nexon. Her wealth is entirely tied to her inherited stake in the parent holding company NXC, which controls Nexon’s majority ownership.
9. Kevin David Lehmann — Age 23 | $4.9 Billion
Kevin David Lehmann is one of the better-known names on this list mainly because his story is unusually deliberate. His father quietly transferred a 50% stake in dm-drogerie markt, Germany’s largest drugstore chain, to Kevin in 2017, when Kevin was just 14 years old. The move was a long-term estate planning strategy, and it paid off.
By the time Kevin turned 18, he was already a billionaire. At 23, he’s worth $4.9 billion, making him one of the wealthiest young people in Germany. dm-drogerie markt was founded in 1973, and Kevin’s father first invested in it in 1974. The chain now operates thousands of stores across Germany and Europe.
Kevin does not run the business. His wealth is purely from his inherited ownership stake, held since childhood.
10. Pedro Voigt Trejes — Age 23 | $1.1 Billion
Pedro Voigt Trejes closes out the top 10 at age 23, with a net worth of $1.1 billion. He is the twin brother of Felipe Voigt Trejes (also 23, same net worth) and the older brother of Amelie, who tops this entire list at age 20.
Like the rest of the WEG family members on this list, Pedro’s wealth comes from an inherited stake in the Brazilian industrial machinery giant. WEG manufactures more than 21 million electric motors per year and exports to over 135 countries. Pedro holds no executive role in the company.
The Voigt family’s dominance on this list, with four members in the top 10 alone, shows how a single founder’s industrial empire, passed through generations, can create multiple billionaires within a single family tree.
Insights on the List of the Youngest Billionaires 2026
- Inherited wealth still dominates:
Most of the youngest billionaires are from the world’s richest families, inheriting stakes in long-established family businesses. On average, they have higher net worths than their self-made peers because their wealth is tied to large, mature companies with decades of growth behind them.
- AI is creating billionaires at record speed:
The rise of artificial intelligence has made it possible for entrepreneurs to reach billionaire status much earlier in life. The founders of Mercor, for example, each built fortunes exceeding $2 billion before turning 23.
- Legacy industries remain highly valuable:
Companies in sectors such as industrial manufacturing and pharmaceuticals continue to generate some of the largest fortunes on the list. Businesses like WEG and Boehringer Ingelheim illustrate the enduring value of established global enterprises.
- A record number of young billionaires in 2026:
In 2026, there are 35 billionaires under the age of 30, up from the previous year. Together, they account for about 1% of the 3,428 billionaires featured on the Forbes list.
- More self-made billionaires than ever in 2026:
Of those 35 youngest billionaires, 12 built their fortunes themselves, resulting in the highest number of self-made billionaires under 30 recorded to date.
- AI is reshaping wealth creation:
The growing presence of AI founders on the list of the youngest billionaires highlights how advances in technology are shortening the timeline for building companies valued in the billions.
- Powerful family business networks:
The Voigt family’s holdings in WEG have created multiple young billionaires. In total, seven family members appear on the Forbes billionaire rankings with a combined net worth of approximately $9.5 billion.
- Regional differences stand out:
Eight of the 35 billionaires under 30 are from the United States, and all of them are self-made. In contrast, many of the youngest European billionaires inherited their wealth through family-owned businesses.
- Substantial collective wealth:
Combined, the world’s 35 youngest billionaires hold an estimated net worth of $92.4 billion, highlighting the significant economic influence of this small but growing group.
Bottom Line
The youngest billionaires in the world in 2026 didn’t all follow the same path. Some were born into industrial dynasties built over generations like WEG, Boehringer Ingelheim, EssilorLuxottica. Others built AI companies in two years that most people couldn’t have imagined a decade ago.
What they share is scale. Whether it’s a $6.8 billion eyewear empire or a $10 billion AI startup, the numbers are extraordinary for people still in their early twenties.
The 2026 youngest billionaires list makes clear that the combination of generational wealth, AI-driven startups, and record investment activity is producing the youngest self-made and inherited billionaires the world has ever seen.
As the AI economy continues to expand and family wealth continues to pass down, don’t be surprised if the 2027 list looks even younger.
Maria Isabel Rodrigues
FAQs
- Who is the youngest billionaire in the world in 2026?
Amelie Voigt Trejes, 20, is the youngest billionaire in the world in 2026. She holds a 2% stake in WEG, a Brazilian industrial machinery company co-founded by her late grandfather Werner Ricardo Voigt. Her net worth is $1.1 billion as per Forbes (March 2026).
- Who is the youngest self-made billionaire in 2026?
Surya Midha, 22, is the youngest self-made billionaire in the world in 2026. He co-founded Mercor, an AI recruiting startup valued at $10 billion, with Brendan Foody and Adarsh Hiremath. Midha is a few months younger than his co-founders, making him the youngest of the three.
- How many billionaires under 30 are there in 2026?
There are 35 billionaires under 30 on the 2026 Forbes World’s Billionaires List, up from previous years. Together they are worth $92.4 billion. A record 12 of them are self-made.
- What is Mercor and why are its founders on this list?
Mercor is an AI recruiting startup founded in 2023 that connects AI labs and enterprises with vetted domain experts to train and evaluate AI models. After raising $350 million at a $10 billion valuation in October 2025, its three co-founders, each with roughly a 22% stake, became billionaires at age 22.
