Gates still world's richest

Tech industry billionaires loomed large in Forbes' latest list of the wealthiest people in the US, with Bill Gates and his $51bn fortune again topping the list.

The Microsoft chairman has now reined the ranks a dozen times. Co-founder Paul Allen, worth $22.5bn, again placed third, while CEO Steve Ballmer, valued at $14bn, nabbed the number 11 standing.

With the exception of legendary investor Warren Buffett, whose $40bn net worth secured him a spot behind Gates, this year's top five wealthiest Americans all represent the technology industry.

Michael Dell and Oracle executive Larry Ellison, with their fortunes pegged at $18bn and $17bn, respectively, both beat a handful of Wal-Mart heirs to take the fourth and fifth spots.

Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page - each worth $11bn and, at 32, the youngest of the pack - surged to the number 16 spots after debuting on last year's list at number 43. They displaced 38-year-old Pierre Omidyar of eBay, who, at $10.2bn, placed eighteenth.

Google is doing a lot of displacing these days. Brin and Page are the young lions of the tech industry, while Gates and company are increasingly looking like the old guard. And the battle between Google and Microsoft isn't just over the wealth of their employees - it also extends to which company will dominate in the early years of the 21st century.

Amazon.com's Jeff Bezos, who recorded $4.6bn, slightly more than last year, dropped from number 38 to 42. Apple's Steve Jobs, as well as Yahoo!'s David Filo and Jerry Yang, also made it into the top 100.

Overall, the total net worth of the Forbes roster grew to $1.13tr. All but 26 people on the list - including AOL co-founder Steve Case, ranked number 384 - counted net worth in the billions.

Anne Broache writes for CNET News.com