Key Facts
- Jeff Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 as an online bookstore.
- He listed Amazon in an initial public offering at $18 per share in 1997. Afterwards, Amazon’s stock increased to over 40 times what it was worth before.
- He made the Forbes 400 list for the first time in 1998.
- He was named Time’s Person of the Year in 1999.
- He founded Blue Origin, an aerospace company, in 2000.
- He founded Amazon Studios in 2010, distributing movies and series through theaters and Amazon Prime Video.
- Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post for $250 million in 2013.
- He became the wealthiest person in the world in 2018, when he surpassed Bill Gates.
- He stepped down as Amazon’s CEO in 2021.
- He was part of Blue Origin’s first human flight in 2021.
- Over the years, Jeff Bezos sold over $27 billion worth of Amazon’s stock (before taxes).
Early Life
Jeffrey Preston Bezos was born on January 12th, 1964 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His mother, Jacklyn Gise Jorgensen was just 17 at the time of his birth, and his father, Ted Jorgensen was 18 and a bike shop owner. Jacklyn and Ted’s marriage didn’t last long, and Jacklyn married Miguel Bezos when Jeff was four years old. Miguel adopted Jeff, and he changed his last name to Bezos.
