Singapore — CNBC has unveiled the final, ranked list of CNBC First 25: Rebels, Icons & Leaders, a definitive list of people who have had the greatest influence, sparked the biggest changes and created the most disruption in business over the past quarter century. Steve Jobs earned the top spot for both transforming the way we think about technology and redefining the style in which we live.
CNBC First 25: Rebels, Icons & Leaders
CNBC revealed the list across CNBC’s multiple platforms and around the world. The network featured coverage of the CNBC First 25 throughout CNBC’s Business Day programming and on CNBC Digital on April 30. The on-air coverage will culminate with a one-hour special at 7am and 11am (SIN/HK) on May 1, Rebels, Icons & Leaders: The CNBC First 25, anchored by CNBC’s Tyler Mathisen.
CNBC.com has robust coverage of the list including extensive profiles, in-depth feature stories, slideshows and videos. A roster of all-star journalists contributed to the digital coverage including former Wall Street Journal Managing Editor Paul Steiger, CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin, Co-executive Editor of Re/code Walt Mossberg, Editor-in-Chief of Inc. Eric Schurenberg and CNBC’s Tyler Mathisen.
The CNBC First 25 was chosen from an initial group of 200 contenders. Guided in part by CNBC’s audience, the final list was determined by CNBC top editorial leaders and an elite advisory board comprising former Wall Street Journal Managing Editor Paul Steiger, Yale University’s Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Professor Herminia Ibarra of INSEAD. Paul Maidment, Founding Editor of FT.com and former Executive Editor of Forbes, has served as contributing editor on the project.
Following is the full list:
1. Steve Jobs
2. Bill Gates
3. Alan Greenspan & Ben Bernanke
4. Sergey Brin, Larry Page & Eric Schmidt
5. Jeff Bezos
6. Warren Buffett
7. Oprah Winfrey
8. Mark Zuckerberg
9. Jack Bogle
10. Larry Ellison
11. Rupert Murdoch
12. Jack Welch
13. NR Narayana Murthy
14. Howard Schultz
15. Bernard Arnault
16. Li Ka-shing
17. Carl Icahn
18. Meg Whitman
19. Amancio Ortega
20. Michael Bloomberg
21. Sandy Weill
22. Cher Wang
23. Aliko Dangote
24. Martha Stewart
25. Carlos Slim
