Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, whose fortune is estimated at $372 billion, believes Americans have been taught to view wealth and success the wrong way. In his view, society has embraced the idea that enormous fortunes inevitably come at the expense of others, even though entrepreneurial success does not, in itself, make someone a bad person.
Bezos transformed an online bookstore he launched from his garage in 1994 into the largest company on the Fortune 500 list. Today, the 62-year-old entrepreneur ranks second among the world’s wealthiest people.
However, in a recent interview with Fox News, Bezos said he disagreed with those who view a fortune of that magnitude as something inherently objectionable.
“I think we live in a society where some people have been taught — wrongly, in my opinion — to look at the world through the lens of oppressors and the oppressed, and to believe that success is somehow villainous,” he said.
“Success does not make someone a villain. You can become a billionaire even if you started with a hamburger stand.”
To illustrate his point, Bezos suggested imagining an entrepreneur who opens a small food business with a team of around 10 people. Over time, the business could grow into a major chain with thousands of locations and employees, while its founder could go on to become a billionaire.
“That’s how it works. There’s nothing wrong with making incredibly delicious chicken that people love. And that doesn’t make you a bad person,” he explained.
Starbucks’ Former CEO and JPMorgan Chase Chief Also Oppose Demonizing Wealth
Bezos is not the only influential business leader who believes wealth and success should not automatically invite condemnation.
Howard Schultz, the former CEO of Starbucks, whose fortune is estimated at around $3.4 billion, has also repeatedly stressed that his wealth was built through years of hard work rather than unfair advantages.
During a tense US Senate committee hearing in 2023, Schultz pushed back against the use of the word “billionaire” as an accusation in itself.
“Let’s deal with this label — ‘billionaire.’ I grew up in subsidized housing. My parents never owned a home, and I had nothing. Throughout my life, I believed my journey embodied the American Dream. Yes, I have billions of dollars. I earned them. Nobody gave them to me,” he said.
Jamie Dimon, the head of JPMorgan Chase, whose fortune is estimated at around $3 billion, takes a similar view. He acknowledges that wealth inequality is a problem but opposes condemning people solely because they have achieved financial success.
In a 2019 interview with 60 Minutes, Dimon summed up his position this way: “I think we should condemn Nazis, but not people who worked hard to achieve something.”
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