AI Founders Enter Hurun India Rich List as Adani Takes Top Spot

Artificial intelligence has made its debut as a standalone industry in the M3M Hurun India Rich List 2026, with 19 individuals holding a combined wealth of Rs 3.07 lakh crore. The group includes 15 new entrants, and the average wealth of a new AI founder stands at around Rs 12,100 crore, which is nearly five times that of a new entrant in traditional heavy industries. Indian entrepreneurs are building across data centres, chips, models, and applications through companies like CTRL S Datacentres, Yotta, Astera Labs, Sarvam AI, and Perplexity. However, 13 of the 19 AI names on the list are based outside India, pointing to the global footprint of local talent. Sridhar Pinnapureddy and family of CTRL S Datacentres recorded a wealth of Rs 46,100 crore, while Darshan Hiranandani of Yotta registered Rs 37,900 crore. In quantum computing, Bengaluru-based Nagendra Nagaraja of QpiAI entered the list with Rs 1,700 crore, backed by the Rs 6,003.65-crore National Quantum Mission approved in 2023. Meanwhile, Gautam Adani and family reclaimed the top spot from Mukesh Ambani and family, seeing their wealth rise 13 percent to Rs 9.23 lakh crore. Ambani and family saw their wealth decline 10 percent to Rs 8.63 lakh crore. Overall, India now has 391 dollar billionaires, with 76 new dollar billionaires minted over the past year. LN Mittal and family climbed to third place after their wealth nearly doubled with a 93 percent rise to Rs 3.39 lakh crore. Roshni Nadar Malhotra remained India's richest woman, ranking fifth overall with Rs 2.79 lakh crore. Jayshree Ullal of Arista Networks topped professional managers of Indian origin at Rs 77,400 crore, followed by Sundar Pichai of Google at Rs 14,500 crore. Rekha Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and family led top investors with wealth of Rs 75,800 crore.