Mark Zuckerberg's fortune has surged this year – and nobody on the rich list comes close to his $44 billion gain

• Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's net worth is up an unmatched $44 billion this year.
• It makes him the world's 12th richest person, according to Bloomberg's Billionaire Index.

Mark Zuckerberg has seen his fortune surge this year – and nobody on Bloomberg's rich list comes close to his $44 billion gain so far in 2023.

The Meta CEO has made more than anybody else on Bloomberg's Billionaire Index this year, and his wealth gain in 2023 would have put him in the world's top 30 wealthiest people even if he'd started the year with $0.

With his net worth currently at $89.9 billion, Zuckerberg is the 12th wealthiest person on the planet, per the rich list.

He derives most of his fortune from his 13% stake in Meta. The tech giant's stock has almost doubled since January, making it among the top performers on the S&P 500.

The company has reported revenues of $28.6 billion in the first quarter of 2023, beating Wall Street's expectations and reversing three consecutive quarters of decline. It was the second-best performer in the S&P 500 over the quarter.

That comes after a dismal 2022 for Meta, when it was one of the worst-performing stocks in the S&P 500. The company's stock tanked in late 2022, losing trillions on its floundering plans to expand into the metaverse. Tech stocks were also hammered due to rising inflation and higher costs of borrowing.

But Meta has since been cutting costs and leaning into the buzz around AI, incorporating more of it into its services. That's prompting investors and analysts to become more optimistic on the stock, as they think that has potential to boost future earnings.

Last week, Bloomberg and other outlets reported that the "Instagram for your thoughts" Meta is building to compete with Elon Musk's Twitter could launch as soon as next month.