Then and now: What tech CEOs and founders looked like when they first launched their companies versus today

Sarah JacksonJun 28, 2024, 20:23 IST

Elon Musk today runs several more companies than he did in 1999, when the photo on the left was taken.AP / Richard Bord/WireImage via Getty Images

Some of Silicon Valley's biggest names are in their tech bro era.
It wasn't always like this — many Big Tech CEOs have shed more nerdy personas from their startup days.

Mark Zuckerberg isn't the only tech CEO whose style has noticeably evolved over the years.

Other Big Tech leaders have significantly changed up their looks since starting their companies; some are nearly unrecognizable (we're looking at you, Jeff Bezos.)

Here's a look at the style transformations of some of tech's biggest names:

Jeff Bezos

Amazon has come a long way from just selling books, and its founder, Jeff Bezos, is also very different today.Getty Images

Mark Zuckerberg

Zuckerberg is currently in the T shirt-and-chain era of his fashion evolution.Rick Friedman / Mark Zuckerberg on Instagram

Michael Dell

Dell founded his company, initially called PC's Limited, in 1984 while still a student at the University of Texas in Austin.Dell / Errich Petersen/SXSW Conference & Festivals via Getty Images

Larry Page and Sergey Brin

Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google in 1998.Kim Kulish/Corbis via Getty Images / Getty

Elon Musk

Elon Musk today runs several more companies than he did in 1999, when the photo on the left was taken.AP / Richard Bord/WireImage via Getty Images

Bill Gates

Fun fact: The photo on the left is actually Gates' mugshot from when he got a speeding ticket without his license in 1977.Oklahoma County Sheriff's Department/Getty Images / CHRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Jack Dorsey

Dorsey has been sporting a beard in the years since he stepped down as CEO of Twitter in 2021.Kara Andrade/AFP via Getty Images / Joe Raedle/Getty

Richard Branson

At left is Richard Branson in 1969, one year before he started the Virgin brand.PA Images via Getty Images / Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Jack Ma

New photos of Ma are scarce as he's been out of the limelight in recent years.Liang Zhen/WireImage / Liu Yang/VCG via Getty Images

Anne Wojcicki

Anne Wojcicki is the CEO of DNA testing company 23andMe and the younger sister of former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki.Donald Bowers/Getty Images for The Weinstein Company / ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images

Whitney Wolfe Herd

Whitney Wolfe Herd became the world's youngest self-made female billionaire after taking Bumble public.Kate Warren for The Washington Post via Getty Images / Dipasupil/Getty Images

Evan Spiegel

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel was the world's youngest billionaire in the year 2015, when he was 25 years old.J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images / Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images

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