A 25% jump in the ultra-wealthy ranks by 2031 is being supercharged by profits from artificial intelligence, consultancy Knight Frank has said

The number of billionaires worldwide is expected to climb to nearly 4,000 by 2031, rising about 25% from current levels as the pace of wealth creation accelerates, according to global property consultancy Knight Frank.

There are currently 3,110 billionaires globally, and the figure is projected to rise by about 25% to 3,915 over the next five years, the firm said in a report on Thursday.

Liam Bailey, the estate agent's head of research, said wealth among billionaires and millionaires had been "supercharged" by profits in the technology sector, particularly artificial intelligence.

"The ability to scale a business has never been higher," he said. "That has fed into the ability to make big fortunes quickly, supercharged by tech and AI."

Saudi Arabia is expected to see the fastest growth in billionaire numbers, more than doubling to 65 by 2031 from 23 in this year, the research found. Poland's billionaire population is also forecast to more than double to 29 from 13, while Sweden is set to see an 81% increase to 58 from 32.

North America accounts for the largest share of global wealth at 37%, followed by Asia-Pacific with nearly 31% and Europe with just over 25%, the report added.

Russia also remains a major center of billionaire wealth, with Forbes counting 155 billionaires in 2026, up from the previous year, and their combined fortunes rising to a record of roughly $696 billion, driven largely by gains in commodities and metals.

The number of multimillionaires is also rising rapidly, with those worth at least $30 million increasing to 713,626 globally from 551,435 in 2021 - an addition of more than 160,000 people in five years, Knight Frank said, highlighting the strong pace of wealth creation led by the US and driven in part by growth in China and India.

The outlook comes amid widening global inequality, with the World Inequality Report 2026 showing that fewer than 60,000 people - about 0.001% of the world's population - hold three times as much wealth as the bottom half of humanity.

(RT.com)