- [Narrator] Jeff Bezos
is the richest person in modern history.
His estimated net worth is $156 billion,
making him the first person
to accumulate a fortune over $100 billion.
Bezos wealth is so massive that according
to Business Insider calculations
spending $88,000 to him is similar
to and average American spending one dollar
and he intends to spend his entire fortune
for the good of humanity,
but it might not be in the way that you'd think.
Amazon is the primary source of Bezos considerable wealth.
He founded the company in 1994,
and today he's the CEO and largest stockholder,
with a 16% stake in the company.
As the Amazon stock price increases
so does its leaders wealth.
Since it's IPO in 1997, Amazon's split adjusted stock price
has increased 97,000%.
Amazon has turned into a brand
that touches almost ever aspect of life
and has grown through lucrative acquisitions
and investments.
In 2009, Amazon purchased
the online shoe retailer Zappos for $1.2 billion.
In 2017 the company bought Whole Foods for $13.7 billion,
giving Amazon a hold on 18% of the U.S. online grocery
market. And in February of 2018, the company unveiled
Amazon Web Services.
Its $17.5 billion cloud computing business.
Not surprisingly the richest man in the country
is also one of the largest land owners in the country.
He owns a 5.3 acre home in Medina, Washington
that's valued at $25 million.
His estate neighbors the second richest living person,
Bill Gates.
Bezos also owns a $23 million townhouse in Washington, DC
neighboring the Obama's, and Ivanka Trump.
On top of that he has a $25 million mansion in Beverly Hills
and three apartments in New York City,
that total a value of $17 million.
And finally, his largest real estate purchase
is a 30,000 acre ranch in Van Horn Texas
that serves as a base for his space exploration company,
Blue Origin, but we'll get back to that.
To get around to all his homes and investments,
Bezos owns a $65 million Gulfstream jet.
Unlike his billionaire peers,
Bezos doesn't engage in public philanthropy very often,
but he has made large donations to Mary's Place,
an organization that supports Seattle's homeless population.
As well as TheDream.US, which supports people
protected by the Dream Act.
He does however, publicly invest in and fund projects.
In 2013 Bezos funded and led and expedition
to recover one of the rocket engines
from the Apollo 12 mission,
from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.
On his request, NASA donated it
to Seattle's Museum of Flight.
In early 2018 Bezos provided $42 million in funding
for the 10,000 year clock through The Long Now Foundation.
The clock is meant to be a symbol of long term thinking.
He's made a number of investments and acquisitions
through is Venture Capital firm, Bezos Expeditions
and he's personally invested in Google, Uber, Airbnb,
and more, including his 2013 purchase of The Washington Post
for $250 million,
but his most ambitious venture has been Blue Origin.
It's rocket New Sheppard
has had several successful test flights,
and it's currently developing
a larger rocket called New Glenn.
He liquidates $1 billion of Amazon stock per year
to fund the project, and its goals
of supporting large-scale human space flight
and colonizing the solar system.
And he plans to use all his wealth
to fund space exploration.
Bezos believes it's his most important work.
He hopes Blue Origin will increase
human production and efficiency,
and will help avoid civilization stasis.
- I'm very lucky because I feel like
I have a mission driven purpose with Blue Origin
that is I think incredibly important
for civilizations long term.