Gujarat-born infrastructure magnate Gautam Adani, chairperson of the Adani Group, reclaimed the top position on Forbes’ revised India’s Richest 2026 list published on Wednesday, September 30. The story, which also appears in the October edition of Forbes Asia, documented the Indian billionaires‘ rankings reshuffling as Adani reclaimed the No. 1 spot after settling as the runner-up for three years.

Thanks to a multi-billion-dollar net worth surge tied to AI investments, he has now surpassed Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries. Just over a week ago, Adani and family (Rs 9.23 lakh crore ~ $96 billion) defeated Ambani (Rs 8.63 lakh crore ~ $90 billion) to emerge as India’s richest person on the M3M Hurun India Rich List 2026.

Near $21 billion fortune boost, but it’s still not Adani’s highest net worth

With his Ahmedabad-based Adani Group’s business operations spanning interests like ports, airports, power generation and transmission, green energy, cement and real estate, among others, the company’s founder owes the “richest” title to his shared fortune with his family. According to Forbes’ updated list, the multinational conglomerate’s boss (shared with his family) boasts an estimated net worth of $112.7 billion.

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Although a $20.7 billion fortune boost helped him secure the top spot, the Adani family’s net worth was still far from its one-time peak of $150 billion recorded in 2022.

Embroiled in a tug of war for the richest Indian title with Adani, Mukesh Ambani, meanwhile, dropped to the No. 2 spot owing to an estimated net worth of $86.3 billion, according to Forbes, a reduced fortune by $18.7 billion.

Nonetheless, the managing director of the largest public company in India by market cap (2025) is expected to revel in a considerable amount of cash flow soon as Reliance’s mobile operator, Jio Platform, prepares for a potentially historic IPO that could raise up to $3.8 billion, the largest public offering the country has ever seen.

Combined wealth of India’s 100 richest remained $1 trillion

According to Forbes’ latest report, the $1 trillion cumulative net worth of the 100 richest Indian tycoons remained unchanged from when these figures were ranked, despite a decline in the fortunes of over 50% of the wealthiest names.

Top 10 richest tycoons were: Gautam Adani & family ($112.7 billion), Mukesh Ambani ($86.3 billion), Savitri Jindal & family ($39.8 billion), Lakshmi Mittal ($34.7 billion), Sunil Mittal & family ($32.9 billion), Cyrus Poonawalla ($28.4 billion), Shiv Nadar ($27.4 billion), Dilip Sanghvi & family ($26.3 billion), Kumar Birla ($23.2 billion) and Hinduja family ($21.2 billion).

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After Adani and Ambani, OP Jindal matriarch Savitri Jindal again secured the overall No. 3 spot as India’s richest woman even as her estimated net worth slumped to $39.8 billion.

At No. 4, Lakshmi Mittal emerged as the biggest gainer in percentage terms. With his fortune soaring 74% to $34.7 billion, the steel tycoon climbed eight ranks, thanks to an acquisition alongside Cyrus Poonawalla’s son, Adar, that valued IPL’s Rajasthan Royals at $1.65 billion.

While 11 people fell out of the Forbes list, four newcomers were included. They are: Krishna Chivukula ($4.35 billion); brothers Kushal and Chaitanya ($4.25 billion); Aditya Khemka ($3.6 billion); and Bhikhabhai, Chandubhai & Kanjibhai Virani ($3.45 billion).

There were seven returnees to Forbes’ India’s 100 Richest in 2026.