
Steve Jobs didn’t actually become a billionaire thanks to leading Apple—but rather from his work with a film company he bought off George Lucas
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Steve Jobs’ $10 million bet on Pixar turned him into a billionaire, long before the introduction of the iPhone.
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August 21, 2025
04:21 PM
Fortune
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Success·BillionairesSteve Jobs didn’t actually become a billionaire thanks to leading Apple—but rather from his work with a film company he bought off George LucasBy Preston ForeBy Preston ForeStaff Writer, EducationPreston ForeStaff Writer, EducationPreston Fore is a reporter at Fortune, covering education and personal finance for the Success team.SEE FULL BIO Steve Jobs’ $10 million bet on Pixar turned him into a billionaire, long before the introduction of the iPhone
Chris Polk—FilmMagic/Getty ImagesThe late billionaire Steve Jobs is known for being cofounder and CEO of Apple—and introducing the iPhone, iPad, and iMac to the world
However, his time at the computer company wasn’t what helped strike gold for his net worth
Jobs actually made the billions in 1995—three years before the iMac hit shelves—after using an unexpected career roadblock to his advantage, with a little help from Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. “To infinity and beyond!” wasn’t just the catchphrase of Toy Story’s Buzz Lightyear—it was the turning point that turned Steve Jobs into a billionaire
After a power struggle that forced Jobs out of Apple in 1985, Jobs bought Lucasfilm’s computer graphics division the next year for $10 million
The seller was George Lucas, fresh off creating the Star Wars empire
That small acquisition would soon be renamed Pixar—and would change both Hollywood and Jobs’ fortune forever
The company got off to a rocky start, with Jobs questioning whether to sell it multiple times, thanks in part to having to personally cover its monthly cash shortfall
But by 1995, Jobs believed Pixar was ready for primetime
In a week’s span in November, it would release its first major film, Toy Story, as well as launch an IPO
Lawrence Levy, the company’s then-CFO, wrote that it reminded him of the 100-meter s in the Olympic Games: a lifetime of training that comes down to a snapshot performance. “If the world fell in love with Toy Story, Pixar would have a chance to usher in a new era of animated entertainment,” he said in his book, To Pixar and Beyond: My Unly Journey With Steve Jobs to Make Entertainment History. “If it didn’t, Pixar might be written off as another company that tried but never quite hit the mark.” The IPO that made Jobs a billionaire As the 80% owner of Pixar, the IPO stakes were even higher for Jobs
If everything went well, he was hoping to finally see some return on his Pixar investment
If everything went south, it might have shut the door on any future collaboration with Disney and led to the waste of a decade of his entrepreneurial life
Luckily, all expectations were shattered
Pixar’s initial stock price was predicted to reach between $12 and $14, but at the end of the first day of trading, it was worth 175% more, at $39 a
This was thanks largely to Toy Story, with Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as lead voices, nearly doubling its box office expectations
Jobs’ stake sent his net worth soaring to over $1 billion
Jobs would later rejoin Apple in 1997, but he remained involved in Pixar as it churned out hit after hit, including Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, and Ratatouille—each bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide
Disney fully acquired Pixar for $7.4 billion in stock in 2006
Jobs’ stake was worth $4.6 billion
Overall, Jobs’ willingness to his instincts with Pixar ves the age-old advice that one key to success is finding your passion—and putting all of your energy into it. “No matter what you do next, the world needs your energy, your passion, your impatience with gress,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in 2015. “History rarely yields to one person, but think and never forget what happens when it does.” Finding fortune beyond their main companies Jobs isn’t alone in being a leader who gained significant wealth outside of what they’re primarily known for
Elon Musk has a similar story
While the world’s richest person is known today for being the leader of Tesla and SpaceX, that’s not how he first amassed his fortune
Musk sold his first company, Zip2, to AltaVista for more than $300 million
He also made millions through the creation of PayPal, which formed from a merger of Musk’s online financial services company, X.com, with software company Confinity, cofounded by billionaire Peter Thiel
Similarly, billionaire Richard Branson did not make all his money from being focused on his air and space companies, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Galactic
The 75-year-old British serial entrepreneur actually became a billionaire in part thanks to his chain of record stores called Virgin Records
It launched in 1971 and later expanded into a music label that artists the Rolling Stones and Janet Jackson
Branson later sold Virgin Records in 1992 to British conglomerate Thorn EMI for $1 billion
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