Oracle founder Larry Ellison has pledged to give away 95% of his $393B fortune—but sudden leadership changes fuel a mystery

Ellison pledged to donate 95% of his wealth as part of the Giving Pledge in 2010. Since then, he’s distanced himself from traditional nonprofits and says he’s opting to give away wealth on his own terms. He founded the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT), a for-profit philanthropic organization at The University of Oxford.

But Ellison’s EIT has recently been destabilized by leadership changes, according to a report in The New York Times. In 2024, he hired scientist John Bell to head the research. But in August, Ellison announced he had hired former University of Michigan President Santa Ono to “collaborate” with Bell. Just two weeks later, Bell announced his departure from the “very challenging project.”

The Times reports there are tensions over “how best to commercialize Mr. Ellison’s scientific research, along with persistent questions about how much the institute could trust Mr. Ellison to deliver on his financial commitments.”

Here’s what we know—and don’t—about Ellison’s plans to give away his fortune eventually.

Net worth (2025)

• Estimated at $393 billion as of September 2025.
• Most of his wealth derives from his 41% share in Oracle and a significant stake in Tesla.

Philanthropy and plans for giving

• His main philanthropic focus is through the Ellison Institute of Technology, which aims to address global issues such as healthcare, food insecurity, climate change, and AI advancements, with a major new campus opening in Oxford worth approximately $1.3 billion.
• In the past, Ellison has donated hundreds of millions to establish research and treatment centers, including a $200 million contribution to the University of Southern California for a cancer research center and approximately $1 billion in total to the Ellison Medical Foundation (now closed), primarily for medical research.

Amounts already given and future commitment

• Direct charitable disbursements are less than those of some peers, but commitments to the Giving Pledge and the Ellison Institute total in the billions.
• Key known contributions:
  • $200 million to USC for cancer research.
  • Over $1 billion to aging and disease prevention through the Ellison Medical Foundation, before winding it down.
  • $1.3 billion toward the Oxford Ellison Institute campus, set to open by 2027.
• He continues to indicate nearly all his fortune will eventually be directed toward philanthropic causes—done on his own terms and timeline.

Ellison’s net worth has reached record highs in 2025, and though he has pledged to give away almost all of it, his giving is uniquely structured—focusing on large self-driven projects such as the Ellison Institute, rather than broad public charity.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.