Larry Ellison at 81: From a poor kid to the AI era king – and his new wife

In mid-September 2025, a moment occurred that changed the ranking of the world’s wealthiest people. 81-year-old Larry Ellison, co-founder of Oracle, officially became the richest person on the planet, taking the crown from Elon Musk. His fortune reached $393 billion, while the previous leader had “only” $385 billion. But just as intriguing as the shift at the top of the wealth list is that Larry ultimately married Jolin Zhu, his fifth wife, who is significantly younger than him. His story is not only about building a tech empire but also a fascinating journey from an abandoned child to a ruler of the digital world.

Beginning: When an Orphan from the Bronx Met Silicon Valley

Born in 1944 in the Bronx neighborhood, Larry Ellison was born into extremely difficult circumstances. His mother, a teenage girl, was unable to raise him—by nine months old, the boy was placed in the care of his aunt in Chicago. Her husband, an ordinary government worker, did not have much money. This emotional and financial gap would shape his entire future.

Despite humble beginnings, Ellison found his way to education. He was admitted to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, but college was not for him. After his adoptive mother’s death, he dropped out and traveled across the United States, working odd jobs. A subsequent attempt at the University of Chicago ended the same way—one semester and done.

It was these failures, not poor grades, that led him to a short but pivotal job at Ampex Corporation in the early 1970s. There, working as a programmer, he participated in a secret CIA project—developing a database management system codenamed “Oracle.” That moment changed everything.

Oracle: From CIA Secret Project to Database Empire

In 1977, 31-year-old Larry Ellison, along with Bob Miner and Ed Oates, founded Software Development Laboratories (SDL). The initial investment was minimal—$2,000 total, with Ellison contributing nearly all of it ($1,200). They relied on experience from the CIA project and decided to create a commercial database management system—exactly as the secret project was named: Oracle.

Ellison’s genius was not inventing database technology but recognizing its business potential when others shrugged it off. In 1986, Oracle debuted on NASDAQ, introducing a productive, easily scalable technology to the market.

Over the next four decades, Ellison held nearly every executive role in the company—from CEO (1978-1996) to chairman of the board. His temperament despised routine and compromise. Even in 1992, when he nearly drowned surfing, he did not suppress his fighting spirit. He returned to work, to risk.

Oracle experienced ups and downs. There was a period of dominance in the market, followed by times of complacency, especially during the rise of cloud computing when Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure took market share. Yet Larry never allowed the company to fall completely into obscurity.

2025: Victory in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

In early fall 2025, Oracle announced a series of contracts that shook the industry. Among them was a five-year deal with OpenAI worth $300 billion to build infrastructure for artificial intelligence. The stock price surged over 40% in a single day—the biggest jump since 1992.

This victory was no accident. Although Oracle initially lost the cloud battle, its deep relationships with corporate clients and dominance in databases gave it a strategic position on a new front—AI infrastructure. In the summer of that year, the company conducted significant layoffs in traditional sales departments while heavily investing in data centers and AI technologies.

The transformation was astonishing: from a traditional software producer, Oracle became the dark horse of the AI infrastructure sector. It was Larry Ellison’s “delayed victory”—a win he had been working toward for forty years.

Wife, Sports, and Obsession—How an 81-Year-Old Still Keeps in Shape

In 2024, Larry Ellison married Jolin Zhu, a Chinese woman born in Shenyang, very discreetly. News of the marriage reached the public through university documents, where both were listed as donors. Jolin, 47 years younger than Larry, is a University of Michigan graduate. This relationship reignited discussions about the billionaire’s personal life—this time in the social media era.

Online observers noticed a pattern: Larry loves surfing and falling in love. Ocean waves and emotional waves attract him equally. But beyond romance, his secret to longevity lies in strict discipline.

Since the 1990s, Larry has been passionate about tennis and sailing. In 1992, he nearly died surfing—rather than retreat, he dedicated himself to sailing. In 2013, his Oracle Team USA executed one of the most spectacular comebacks in the history of the America’s Cup. A few years later, he founded the SailGP league, attracting investors like Anne Hathaway and Kylian Mbappé. He also revived tennis—bringing new life to the Indian Wells tournament in California, now known as the “Fifth Grand Slam.”

But sports are not just hobbies. They are an investment in longevity. In an interview with an online portal, a former Ellison manager recalled that in the 1990s and 2000s, Larry spent several hours daily exercising. His diet? Water and green tea. Sweets? Almost never. This obsession with disciplined living has propelled him to the top—today, at 81, he looks at least twenty years younger.

Sons, Jolin, and the Future: Building a Family Empire

Larry Ellison’s fortune is no longer just a personal legend but also a colossal family legacy. His son, David Ellison, took control of Paramount Global for about $8 billion, with $6 billion directly from the Ellison family fund. This marked the family’s entry into Hollywood.

The father rules Silicon Valley, the son manages the entertainment empire—together, they are building a conglomerate combining technology and media. Now, Jolin Zhu, his wife, symbolizes the importance of Asia in future business strategies.

In the political arena, Larry remains active. Since the 2010s, he has supported the Republican Party—funding Marco Rubio’s campaign in 2015 and donating $15 million to Senator Tim Scott’s super PAC in 2022. This year, he appeared at the White House alongside SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, announcing the construction of AI data center infrastructure valued at an estimated $500 billion. Oracle’s technology was a key element. It was not just a business deal—it was an extension of technological influence.

Money for the Future: Philanthropy Without Compromise

In 2010, Larry Ellison signed the “Giving Pledge”—a commitment to donate at least 95% of his wealth to charity. But unlike Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, Ellison acts independently. In an interview with The New York Times, he said, “I value solitude and don’t want to be influenced by someone else’s vision.”

In 2016, a $200 million donation went to the University of Southern California to establish a cancer research center. Recently, he announced a partnership with Oxford University to create the Ellison Institute of Technology—a center focused on developing new medicines, low-cost agricultural systems, and clean energy.

His philanthropy, like his entire life, rejects conformity. He does not want to work within groups; he wants to design the future according to his vision. That is Larry Ellison—remaining a rebel even in his charitable work.

Conclusion: The Last Time on the Throne

At 71, Larry Ellison finally saw himself at the top—the richest person in the world. The journey from an abandoned child from the Bronx to the leader of the digital world lasted nearly eight decades. He built not only one of the largest tech empires but also a family dynasty now shared with his fifth wife, Jolin.

Oracle, once following the competition, now leads the AI era. It’s a “delayed victory”—but like many things in Larry Ellison’s life, it turned out to be far more spectacular than expected. His character—unyielding, risk-taking, disciplined—has proven universal: successful in business, in sports, in love. And it will continue to do so in the future, if the past is any indicator.

The crown of the world’s richest person may change hands in a few months. But Larry Ellison’s legend—of a man who never stopped evolving, growing, and risking—is something permanent.