Sergey Brin back as world's third richest after Google's $255bn wipeout

Google co-founder Sergey Brin has returned to the third spot on Forbes' real-time billionaires list. With this change, Brin has moved back ahead of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Michael Dell a day after Alphabet's sharp stock decline briefly pushed him down to fifth place. The recovery came after a modest 0.5% increase in Brin's net worth, following a session in which Google parent Alphabet lost roughly $255 billion in market value in what was reported as the company's largest one-day valuation decline in its history.According to Forbes, Brin's fortune stood at an estimated $243.1 billion as of 11 a.m. ET on Friday (July 24). His wealth had dropped by more than $17 billion on Thursday (July 23) after Alphabet shares fell more than 7%, allowing Bezos and Dell to temporarily overtake him before Friday's rebound restored his position in the rankings, the report claimed.How Google parent Alphabet’s stock decline reshuffled billionaire rankingsChanges in the market value of Alphabet shares drove the shift in Brin's ranking. He owns about 362.7 million shares of Google, which represents roughly a 3% stake in the company. Since Forbes updates billionaire wealth estimates in real time based largely on the value of publicly traded holdings, even relatively small stock price movements can alter the order of individuals whose fortunes are separated by only a few billion dollars.Alphabet's market sell-off came despite the company reporting its 12th consecutive quarter of double-digit revenue growth. However, investors reacted to the company's updated forecast of artificial intelligence capital expenditures, which is expected to be between $195 billion and $205 billion.AI spending outlook draws investor attentionThe higher AI investment guidance overshadowed Alphabet's earnings performance, contributing to the decline in its share price this week. The fall reduced the value of Brin's Alphabet holdings significantly, although the next day’s slight recovery was enough to move him back ahead of Bezos and Dell on the real-time wealth rankings.Forbes calculates billionaire net worth using the market value of publicly traded shareholdings alongside estimates for private companies and other assets, including real estate, cash, investments, yachts and art. As a result, fluctuations in the share prices of companies such as Alphabet can quickly reshape the rankings during trading sessions.Get the latest technology news and updates. Download the TOI App.