The release of the Forbes 400 richest Americans is getting more competitive than ever, as it took a net worth of $1.3 billion or more to make the list this year, while last year a puny $1 billion would have got you in.
In the tech industry it was well represented again, in alignment with what's happening in the real world.
Bill Gates of course retained his No. 1 position, having a net worth of $59 billion, with usual investment guru Warren Buffett breathing down his neck, finishing with $52 billion net worth for the year.
Oracle (ORCL) head Larry Ellison retained his No. 4 position this year, with a net worth of $26 billion.
Google (GOOG) founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page surged into the top ten, with their personal fortunes increasing; $4.4 billion for Brin and $4.5 billion for Page, based on the growing Google share price.
In spite of growth problems, Michael Dell (DELL) was still able to finish in the No. 8 position, finishing the year with $17.2 billion.
Paul Allen of Microsoft (MSFT) fame ended with $16.8 billion, good enough to take the No. 11 spot on the list.
Not a bad performance for an industry still relatively young in contrast to other industries. These names above were only taken from the top 25, there were many others as well.
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