A new analysis by economist Gabriel Zucman, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, reveals that just 19 American households accumulated a combined $1 trillion in wealth in 2024—a figure that represents a dramatic and historic increase in concentrated wealth among the richest 0.00001% of Americans.
Zucman’s findings indicate that these ultra-wealthy families saw their combined wealth surge by $2.6 trillion from 2023 to 2024, the largest single-year increase on record. In 1982, the group held just 0.1% of total U.S. household wealth. That number grew slowly over four decades to reach 1.2% in 2023, then leapt to 1.8% in just one year.
Who are the billionaire titans?
Among the elite group are some of the world’s most recognized billionaires:
Elon Musk, Tesla and SpaceX CEO, currently leads the pack with a net worth of $381.9 billion.
Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder, holds a net worth of $205 billion.
Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder, has a fortune of $112.8 billion.
Others in the group include Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffett, and Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman.
Musk’s rise and recent dip
Musk, once a newcomer to Forbes’ billionaire list in 2012 with a net worth of $2 billion, became the world’s richest person by 2024, reaching a peak of over $400 billion, according to Bloomberg. However, his net worth saw a sharp decline of over $120 billion in March 2025, partly due to market reactions to his connections with former President Donald Trump.
America’s $148 trillion wealth landscape
According to Zucman’s analysis, total US household wealth stood at $148 trillion in 2024. The fact that just 19 households now control nearly 1.8% of that total wealth underscores growing concerns about wealth inequality and economic concentration.