Jeff Bezos

From Garage Startup to World's Largest Online Retailer

tech business
Jeff Bezos

Net Worth

$180B

Born

January 12, 1964 (age 62)

Country

United States

Occupation

Entrepreneur, Investor, Media Proprietor

Gender

male

Generation

Boomer

Marital Status

single

Children

4

Single Parent Household

No

Education

Bachelor's

University

Princeton University

Industries

tech, business

Wealth Category

billionaire

Wealth Origin

self-made

First-Gen Wealth

Yes

Immigrant

Yes

Overcame

  • • Born to teenage mother and father who divorced when he was 2
  • • Stepfather was a Cuban immigrant who fled Cuba at 15
  • • Worked on his grandparents' ranch in Texas during summers
  • • Left high-paying Wall Street job to start Amazon with no guarantee of success

Jeff Bezos is an American entrepreneur, media proprietor, and investor. He is the founder, executive chairman, and former president and CEO of Amazon, the world's largest e-commerce and cloud computing company. He also founded aerospace manufacturer and spaceflight services company Blue Origin and owns The Washington Post.

Career Timeline

1964

Born Jeffrey Preston Jorgensen in Albuquerque, New Mexico

1968 Age 4
Turning Point

Mother married Miguel Bezos, a Cuban immigrant; Jeff adopted

1982 Age 18
Achievement

Graduated high school as valedictorian; founded Dream Institute summer camp

1986 Age 22
Achievement

Graduated from Princeton with degrees in electrical engineering and computer science

1990 Age 26
Achievement

Became youngest senior vice president at D. E. Shaw & Co.

1994 Age 30
Milestone

Quit Wall Street job to start Amazon in garage

1995 Age 31
Milestone

Amazon launched; sold first book

1997 Age 33
Milestone

Amazon went public at $18 per share

2000 Age 36
Turning Point

Founded Blue Origin to make space travel affordable

2006 Age 42
Milestone

Launched Amazon Web Services (AWS)

2013 Age 49
Achievement

Purchased The Washington Post for $250 million

2021 Age 57
Milestone

Stepped down as Amazon CEO; flew to space on Blue Origin's first crewed flight

Notable Quotes

"Your margin is my opportunity."

— Interview, 1999

"If you decide that you're going to do only the things you know are going to work, you're going to leave a lot of opportunity on the table."

— Shareholder Letter, 2016

"We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It's our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better."

— Interview, 2004

"What's dangerous is not to evolve."