Mark Zuckerberg Has a Golden Surprise

Everything is going well for him this year.

Mark Zuckerberg, who became a laughing stock last year, following the stock market crash of Meta Platforms, parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, seems to be rising from the ashes like the phoenix in Greek mythology.

His fortune which had plunged by $71 billion last year compared to 2021, a collapse which had ejected him manu militari from the crème de la crème of billionaires on the planet, has been reconstituted. His net worth has increased by $39.9 billion this year, one of the largest annual increases among any billionaire, according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. He is worth $89.5 billion as of May 8 and is now knocking on the door of the top 10. He is currently tied at 12th place, just less than $9 billion from the tenth place. 

At the same time, Meta Platforms  (META) - Get Free Report has returned to the elite of the largest companies on the planet, with a market value of almost $600 billion, making it the eight largest company in the world. 

Gold Medal

These rebounds are the result of a magic word which Zuckerberg repeats over and over again: efficiency. Behind this marketing word hide massive job cuts -- 21,000 jobs eliminated since November 9 -- drastic cost reductions and a strategic refocusing, giving space to Artificial Intelligence and relegating the metaverse to the abyss.

"Meta’s Year of Efficiency," the company's chief executive called 2023 in a blog post last month. "As I’ve talked about efficiency this year, I’ve said that part of our work will involve removing jobs -- and that will be in service of both building a leaner, more technical company and improving our business performance to enable our long-term vision."

Investors applauded the efficiency and rewarded Zuckerberg, who seems to have regained his edge, like an athlete finding the way to victory.

Speaking of sports, Zuckerberg is also an athlete and has just proven it. The billionaire just won two medals in Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitions, on May 6 in Silicon Valley.

He got into the Brazilian martial arts during the COVID-19 pandemic, he told controversial podcaster Joe Rogan in an interview last August. The martial arts gave him an energy boost, he said.

In just a short time he is already lining up victories. The soon to be 39 years old -- he will turn 39 in 5 days, on May 14 -- won a gold medal and a silver medal at his first competition, which took place on May 6 in Redwood City, California. He competed in two events - Gi (with use of traditional uniform) and No-Gi BBJ (without the uniform).

Controversy

"Competed in my first jiu jitsu tournament and won some medals