From Akash Ambani To Ananya Birla: Meet The Heirs Of World's Richest Families

Over the years, big businesses have seen a lot of changes, especially with families running them. People like Mukesh Ambani and Bernard Arnault have worked hard for their success. But while some rich people had to work their way up, others were born into wealth. In 2024, some of the richest heirs come from famous families with billions of dollars.

Passing down wealth and planning who will take over the family business is a big deal. Families want to make sure the next generation can keep the business going and keep making money. That's why when Indian software tycoon Narayana Murthy gave his grandson shares in Infosys, it made the baby a billionaire.

According to Forbes, about a third of the world's billionaires in 2024 got their money from their families. Together, they're worth $5 trillion, which is more than last year. It's also the first time that all the billionaires under 30 inherited their money.

In this article let¡¯s learn more about some of the richest kids from families all over the world who are taking over or getting ready to run their family businesses. It's not in any particular order, but it shows the next generation of leaders in these wealthy families.

Bernard Arnault's heirs

Business Insider

As children of Bernard Arnault, the richest person in the world, the five Arnault siblings, Delphine Arnault, Antoine Arnault, Jean Arnault, Fr¨¦d¨¦ric Arnault, and Alexandre Arnault have important jobs at the LVMH company. They're following in their father's footsteps and getting ready to take over the luxury business.

Delphine Arnault, 49, became the CEO of Dior in 2023. She knows a lot about luxury because she grew up with it. Antoine Arnault, 46, looks after communication, image, and environmental projects at LVMH. He also leads Christian Dior SE. Alexandre Arnault, 31, is in charge of products and communication at Tiffany. Before that, he worked at Rimowa. Fr¨¦d¨¦ric Arnault, 29, became the CEO of LVMH Watches in 2024 after working at Tag Heuer. Lastly, Jean Arnault, 25, started working at LVMH in 2021. He's in charge of marketing and development for Louis Vuitton's watches.

Dietrich Mateschitz's heir

When Dietrich passed away in 2022, son Mark inherited a 49% stake in Red Bull. Mark Mateschitz tops Forbes' list of the youngest billionaires worldwide with a net worth of $38.7 billion, all of whom achieved great success before turning 33. At just 31, he's worth over Rs 326,294 crore, inheriting his wealth from his dad, Dietrich Mateschitz, who co-founded Red Bull. In 2023, Red Bull, Mark's company, sold a whopping 12.1 billion cans globally, enough to give everyone on Earth a caffeine boost. Despite his wealth, he maintains a low profile, going by his mom's last name. Besides Red Bull, Mark also started his own drinks company, Thalheimer Heilwasser, specialising in beer and lemonade made from Austria's oldest spring water.

Mukesh Ambani's heirs

Ambani Family

The Ambani family's riches are jaw-dropping, all thanks to Reliance Industries, India's biggest private company. Mukesh and Anil Ambani inherited Reliance after their father, 'Dhirubhai Ambani' passed away, but a family argument split them apart. Anil's part of the business didn't do well, and he dropped off the billionaire list. On the other hand, Mukesh's part became super successful, and he's among the richest people globally.

Mukesh's eldest son, Akash Ambani, leads the telecom company Jio Infocom and is said to be worth $40 billion. His twin sister, Isha Ambani, works as a director in Reliance Retail Ventures, the e-commerce part of the business, and is worth over $100 million. Mukesh's youngest son, Anant Ambani, manages renewable energy and founded Vantara, an elephant rescue center in Gujarat. He's also worth billions.

Gautam Adani's heirs

Karan and Jeet Adani, sons of Gautam Adani, one of India's wealthiest businessmen, are set to take over the family business. Karan, with a degree from Purdue University, started at Adani Group in 2009 and became managing director of APSEZ in 2024. He's also involved with ACC Cements and Ambuja Cements, with a net worth of $1.2 billion. Jeet joined the group in 2019 and rose to director of Adani Airport Holdings in 2020. In 2021, he took on roles in finance and Adani Digital Labs, aiming to create a super app. Jeet's net worth is also around $1.2 billion.

Fran?oise Bettencourt's heirs

Fran?oise Bettencourt Meyers, the world's richest woman for four years running, inherited a big chunk of L'Or¨¦al, a famous cosmetics company. She's in charge of her family's investment company and sits on L'Or¨¦al's board.

Her grandfather started L'Or¨¦al a long time ago. After her mother passed away, Fran?oise became super wealthy, crossing the $100 billion mark in 2018.

Fran?oise has two sons, Jean-Victor and Nicolas. Jean-Victor joined L'Or¨¦al's board when he was just 25, making him the youngest director of a big company in France. He's on some important committees and works for the family investment company. Nicolas works there too and is also on L'Or¨¦al's board. He's been involved in the family foundation and has been on some important boards since 2011.

Shapoor Mistry's heirs

Pallon Mistry, son of Shapoor Mistry, is part of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, a big construction company founded in 1865. They've built famous buildings like the Reserve Bank of India in Mumbai and the Al Alam Palace in Oman. The family also owns part of Tata Sons, the company that controls Tata Group. Pallon studied at Imperial College London. While his exact wealth isn't clear, Bloomberg says his family is worth about $37.7 billion. Pallon is one of the richest heirs globally, and his sister Tanya handles the group's social responsibility work, according to The Economic Times.

Kumar Mangalam Birla's heirs

The Birla family, led by Kumar Mangalam Birla, holds a significant fortune from their business, estimated at around $20.6 billion by Forbes. Kumar took over the family business when he was just 28, following his father's passing. Ananya and Aryaman joined the family companies' boards in 2023, becoming part of the business's future.

Ananya, 30, not only works in the family business but also runs Svatantra Microfinance, a company helping rural households and women entrepreneurs. She's also started CuroCarte, an online store for luxury handmade products, and made a name for herself in music. While her exact wealth isn't disclosed, it's estimated to be around $13 billion.

Aryaman, Ananya's brother, made a name for himself in cricket, playing for teams like Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Despite his success, he took a break in 2019 to focus on his mental health. His net worth is estimated to be around $8.4 billion.

Narayana Murthy's heirs

Rohan Murty, the son of tech giant Narayana Murthy who founded Infosys, inherits a big fortune from his father's business. After studying computer science at Harvard University, Rohan worked at Infosys but later left to start his own company, Soroco.

Because he's part of the Infosys family, Rohan owns a good chunk of the company's shares, bringing in millions in dividend income. He's also the Chief Technology Officer at Soroco, which became successful enough to land him on Fortune's '40 Under 40' list in 2023.

In April 2024, Narayana Murthy gave his grandson, Ekagrah Rohan Murty, 1.5 million Infosys shares, setting him up with a substantial holding in the company. This move shows how the next generation of the Murty family is getting involved in the business.