Larry Ellison: How a College Dropout Became the Richest Man Alive

If you have ever wondered how someone with no college degree, no fancy background, and no clear plan can end up being the richest person in the world, the story of Larry Ellison is exactly that. He is the co-founder of Oracle, a tech company that most people don’t even see directly but almost every big business depends on. His journey is full of ups and downs, and honestly, it feels more like a movie than real life.

A Rough Beginning

Larry Ellison was born in New York City in 1944. His mother was young and struggling, so when he was less than a year old, she gave him to her relatives in Chicago. That’s where Larry grew up. The family wasn’t rich. His adoptive father was strict, often reminding him that he wouldn’t amount to much. You can imagine how hard that must have been.

At school, he wasn’t a star either. He dropped out of the University of Illinois and later from the University of Chicago. Twice. Most people would have stopped there, but Ellison didn’t. Instead, he followed his own curiosity. He loved learning about computers, teaching himself programming when the field was still brand new.

Finding His Way in Tech

In the 1960s and 70s, computers were big, slow, and mysterious. Only a few people knew how to make them useful. Ellison moved to California and worked different programming jobs. Nothing glamorous, but each job gave him experience and a sense of how much technology could change the world.

Starting Oracle

In 1977, Larry Ellison and two friends, Bob Miner and Ed Oates, started a tiny company. At first, it was just called SDL Software Development Laboratories. The turning point came when Ellison discovered the idea of “relational databases.”

Imagine companies drowning in information, unable to organize it properly. A relational database was like giving them a map and a compass. They could finally manage their data quickly and easily. Ellison saw this before most others.

Their first big project was for the CIA. The code name was “Oracle.” Later, that became the company’s name. From a small room with a few programmers, Oracle grew into a giant.

What Oracle Does

Even if you’ve never heard much about Oracle, chances are your bank, your hospital, or even your government uses it. Oracle builds software and cloud systems that store and manage enormous amounts of data. It’s like the invisible engine that keeps big organizations running.

Over the years, Oracle has expanded far beyond databases. Today it competes with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google in cloud computing. That’s how big it is.

Ellison’s Style as a Leader

Larry Ellison was never a “quiet” leader. He was bold, competitive, sometimes even ruthless. But that’s also why Oracle survived tough times. He ran the company as CEO for nearly four decades, from 1977 to 2014, and even after stepping down, he stayed on as Chairman and Chief Technology Officer. He’s always had his hands on the wheel.

The Rise to Number One

So, how did he jump to the very top of the world’s richest list? The answer is AI and cloud computing.

Recently, Oracle won huge contracts to provide infrastructure for companies working on artificial intelligence, including OpenAI. Suddenly, Oracle was not just a database company; it was at the heart of the AI boom.

Investors rushed in. Oracle’s stock price skyrocketed. And since Ellison owns a massive share of Oracle, his personal fortune exploded. Overnight, he overtook names like Elon Musk and became the richest person alive.

Challenges That Still Exist

Of course, wealth like this depends heavily on the stock market. If Oracle’s share price drops, Ellison’s ranking can fall too. And competition in cloud services is brutal. Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are not going to step aside.

There are also bigger questions around AI privacy, ethics, regulations that could change the speed of growth. So while Ellison is number one today, the future is never guaranteed.

Why His Story Matters

Larry Ellison’s journey is not just about billions of dollars. It’s about refusing to accept limits. From being told he wasn’t good enough, to dropping out of college, to building one of the most important tech companies in the world his life shows that success often comes from persistence more than perfect planning.

Whether or not he stays the richest man for long, his story will continue to inspire. Larry Ellison is proof that you don’t always need the perfect background to build a future nobody thought possible.