Jeff Bezos says he’ll give away most of his money, joining other billionaires’ pledge
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said he will give away the majority of his wealth during his lifetime, becoming the latest billionaire to pledge to donate much of his vast fortune.
Bezos, whose “real-time” worth Forbes magazine estimates at roughly $124.1 billion, made the announcement in a joint CNN interview with his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez that was released on Monday. The billionaire didn’t specify how – or to whom – he will give away the money, but said the couple were building the “capacity” to do it.
“The hard part is figuring out how to do it in a levered way,” Bezos said during the interview. “It’s not easy. Building Amazon was not easy. It took a lot of hard work and very smart teammates. And I’m finding – and Lauren’s finding – that philanthropy is very similar. It’s not easy. It’s really hard.”
Bezos had been criticized in the past for not signing the Giving Pledge, the campaign launched by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffet to encourage billionaires to donate the majority of their wealth through philanthropy.
Bezos has been making news for other reasons in recent weeks. Here’s a roundup:
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Mark Lennihan
Jeff Bezos, chairman and CEO of Amazon.com, unveils the Kindle 2 electronic reader Monday, Feb. 9, 2009 in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
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Mark Lennihan
In this Feb. 9, 2009 file photo, Jeff Bezos, chairman and CEO of Amazon.com, unveils the Kindle 2 electronic reader in New York. Amazon.com is widely expected to unveil a new Kindle electronic book device with a larger screen Wednesday, May 6, 2009, which would be geared for textbooks, magazines and newspapers and possibly shake up the economics of multiple industries at once. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, file)
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Mark Lennihan
Jeff Bezos, Chairman and CEO of Amazon.com, introduces the Kindle Fire at a news conference, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011 in New York. The e-reader and tablet has a 7-inch (17.78 cm) multicolor touchscreen. Behind him is a projected display of magazines that will be available on the Fire. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
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Reed Saxon
File- This Sept. 6, 2012, file photo shows Jeff Bezos, CEO and founder of Amazon, at the introduction of the new Amazon Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Paperwhite personal devices, in Santa Monica, Calif. An official in the Galapagos Islands says that Bezos was flown by helicopter from a cruise ship on Jan. 1 for medical attention after suffering intense pain because of a kidney stone. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)
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Evan Agostini
FILE - In this May 7, 2012 file photo, Amazone founder, president and CEO Jeff Bezos and wife Mackenzie Bezos arrive at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute gala benefit, celebrating Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada, in New York. Mackenzie Bezos is giving a thumbs-down to a recent book about her husband’s company, Amazon.com Inc. On Monday, Nov. 4, 2013, she posted a one-star review on the Amazon page for Brad Stone’s “The Everything Store,” which came out last month and has been received positively by critics and Amazon readers. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini, File)
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Phelan M. Ebenhack
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, right, and Florida Gov. Rick Scott watch a video message from Nasa astronauts Scott Kelly, left, and Kjell Lindgren, aboard the International Space Station, during a news conference unveiling the new Blue Origin rocket at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015. Bezos announced a $200 million investment to build the rockets and capsules in the state and launch them using the historic Launch Complex 36. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
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AP FILE
Jeff Bezos attends The American Portrait Gala 2019 at Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery on Sunday, Nov 17, 2019, in Washington. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Invision for National Portrait Gallery/AP Images)
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Cliff Owen
Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO, speaks at The Economic Club of Washington's Milestone Celebration in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018. Bezos said that he is giving $2 billion to start the Bezos Day One Fund which will open preschools in low-income neighborhoods and give money to nonprofits that helps homeless families. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
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Evan Agostini
FILE - In this March 4, 2018 file photo, Jeff Bezos and wife MacKenzie Bezos arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, Calif. Bezos says he and his wife, MacKenzie, have decided to divorce after 25 years of marriage. Bezos, one of the world’s richest men, made the announcement on Twitter Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
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Richard Drew
Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, demonstrates a cordless power drill and reciprocating saw as he wears a western-style hard hat at a New York news conference, Tuesday, Nov. 9, 1999. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
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Patrick Semansky
Jeff Bezos speaks at an event before unveiling Blue Origin's Blue Moon lunar lander, Thursday, May 9, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
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Charles Krupa
Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos, right, talks with Caroline Kennedy during the JFK Space Summit at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston, Wednesday, June 19, 2019. At rear is Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
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Pablo Martinez Monsivais
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos speaks during his news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019. Bezos announced the Climate Pledge, setting a goal to meet the Paris Agreement 10 years early. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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Pablo Martinez Monsivais
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos answers questions during his news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019. Bezos announced the Climate Pledge, setting a goal to meet the Paris Agreement 10 years early. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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Pawan Sharma
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his partner Lauren Sánchez stands for photographs in front of the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Pawan Sharma)
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Rafiq Maqbool
FILE - In this Jan. 16, 2020, file photo, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, right and his girlfriend Lauren Sanchez poses for photographs during a blue carpet event organized by Amazon Prime Video in Mumbai, India. Michael Sanchez, the brother of Jeff Bezos's girlfriend, is suing the Amazon founder for defamation, alleging that Bezos and his team falsely told reporters that he provided nude photos of Bezos to the The National Enquirer. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File)
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Pablo Martinez Monsivais
FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 19, 2019 file photo, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos walks off stage after holding a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington to announce the Climate Pledge, setting a goal to meet the Paris Agreement 10 years early. On Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, Bezos said that he plans to spend $10 billion of his own fortune to help fight climate change. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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Ted S. Warren
FILE - In this Monday, Jan. 29, 2018, file photo, Jeff Bezos, the CEO and founder of Amazon.com, speaks during the grand opening of the Amazon Spheres in Seattle. Bezos said Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, that he plans to spend $10 billion of his own fortune to help fight climate change. Bezos, the world's richest man, said in an Instagram post that he'll start giving grants this summer to scientists, activists and nonprofits working to protect the earth. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
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Ted S. Warren
FILE - In this Jan. 29, 2018, file photo, Jeff Bezos, the CEO and founder of Amazon.com, takes a walking tour of the Amazon Spheres in Seattle. Bezos said Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, that he plans to spend $10 billion of his own fortune to help fight climate change. Bezos, the world's richest man, said in an Instagram post that he'll start giving grants this summer to scientists, activists and nonprofits working to protect the earth. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)
