Kavitark Ram Shriram
Source of wealth: Google, venture capital
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The scale of their wealth
Health
The price of life
Let's compare Kavitark Ram Shriram's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country
Kavitark Ram Shriram could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 1.9 years.
But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country
On the other end, Kavitark Ram Shriram could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.8 years.
Education
Buying the future
Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country
Kavitark Ram Shriram could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 1.2 years.
And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country
But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and Kavitark Ram Shriram could pay for it entirely for 1.7 years.
Research
The monopoly on progress
Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country
Kavitark Ram Shriram could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 7.1 years.
And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide
But even if we compare the total wealth of Kavitark Ram Shriram with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.2 years.
Gold
Everyday luxuries
Kavitark Ram Shriram's fortune is equivalent to 29 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.
A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.
Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.
Kavitark Ram Shriram could buy 7,683,931 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!
And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 1 trucks to transport them. Although Kavitark Ram Shriram will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.
Biography
An early Google backer, Kavitark Ram Shriram has sold of most of his stock but remains on the board of its parent company, Alphabet.
Born in India, Shriram studied math at the University of Madras. After moving to the U.S. he joined Netscape in 1994 as an executive.
Later he became president of Junglee, an online comparison shopping firm acquired by Amazon in 1998. Ram took on a vice president position at Amazon.
He left Amazon and since 2000 has been investing in technology startups through his firm, Sherpalo Ventures.
His portfolio includes online invitation service Paperless Post, online HR service provider Gusto and mobile advertising company InMobi.
Financial Assets
Monthly wealth history
Fortune comparison
Historical data not available for comparison