Taylor Swift Unseated as World’s Youngest Self-Made Woman Billionaire: Who Took Her Place?

Taylor Swift claimed the title for youngest self-made woman billionaire in the world in 2023 when Forbes first reported the pop superstar’s billionaire status. Two years later, she’s been dethroned by Lucy Guo, the 30-year-old co-founder of Scale AI, Forbes recently reported.

Guo co-founded the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence company Scale AI in 2016 when she was 21 years old, alongside then-19-year-old Alexandr Wang. Wang was CEO, while Guo ran the operations and product design teams, and both made Forbes‘ 30 Under 30 list in 2018. But Wang allegedly fired Guo that same year when they disagreed on how to run the company.

She still owns an estimated stake of 5 percent of Scale AI, which is now worth nearly $1.2 billion after Business Insider first reported that the company is seeking valuation as high as $25 billion in a potential tender offer. Forbes estimates Guo is worth $1.25 billion, considering her stake in Scale AI and her holding in her second startup, Passes.

Guo is now one of only six self-made women billionaires on the planet who are under the age of 40. Out of those six extraordinary women are two powerhouse artists: Swift, 35, who has a $1.6 billion net worth, and Rihanna, 37, who has a $1.4 billion net worth.

Swift surpassed Rihanna as the world’s richest female musician last October. Forbes reported that Swift’s earnings from her international Eras Tour and the value of her music catalog made her a billionaire, becoming the first musician to reach that rank primarily based on her songs and live performance. Her fortune includes $600 million from touring and royalties, $600 million from her catalog and $125 million in real estate holdings.

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