The 10 most powerful people in high tech [pictures]

When there's so much money circulating in an industry, it creates power, among other things. Here's a list of the 10 most powerful people in tech right now. Many of them are multimillionaires or billionaires, and they run or have founded some of the most powerful tech companies in the world.

He has been a leader in high-tech innovation for 37 years and is still going strong. In September, he decided to step down as CEO of Oracle and take on the roles of chief technology officer and executive chairman. The move came with a small pay cut. Don’t worry, Ellison – whose net worth is estimated at $46 billion – will see his annual income in 2015 rise to $67 million. Ellison is self-made and is known for his lavish spending habits. He spends a lot of money on real estate, jets, islands and sailing.

Last February, Satya Nadella became the third CEO in Microsoft's history. Before that, he was head of the cloud-enterprise division. His new duties are not easy at all. He is called upon to completely reshape the company and give it a new direction. Instead of focusing his attention on Windows, he is making sure to turn it to new software that can "run" on any gadget. Nadella is working closely with Bill Gates to regenerate Microsoft.

Meg Whitman has long been one of the most recognizable faces in the tech world. After 10 years at the helm of eBay, she took over HP in late 2011. She took over the company after a period of costly acquisitions and a debt-ridden company. After a failed merger with EMC, Whitman took a big and bold step: she broke HP into two companies, something that many tech companies are now being pressured to do.

He clearly needs no introduction. However, for those who may have forgotten, he is the founder of Microsoft. He currently has taken on the role of “technical advisor” and, as he says, spends 1/3 of his time on the company. The rest of his time he “wastes” in order to solve global problems such as poverty, lack of education and diseases. He is the richest man in the world, with a personal fortune of 81 billion dollars.

He started his career at Cisco 23 years ago. He was CEO for 19 years and transformed the company from a $70 million “small and medium-sized” business into a $47 billion giant. There are constant rumors that he will retire, mainly because he is 65, but he keeps postponing it. After all, he has a lot of work to do right now as he leads the effort to make significant changes at Cisco.

He is a high-tech visionary responsible for the cloud computing revolution. He began his career at…. 15 as a programmer and his first job was at Apple alongside Steve Jobs. Then between the ages of 20 and 30 he worked at Oracle alongside Larry Ellison. Today he is considered a self-made billionaire, with his personal fortune at 3.4 billion dollars and one of the few people at whose home the US President, Barack Obama, dines. He is also an active philanthropist.

She was named CEO of Oracle, alongside Mark Hurd, in September. She is known as the “queen of mergers and acquisitions,” as she reviews which businesses Oracle might acquire. She has been the highest-paid woman in the industry for some time. Last year, she had annual revenue of $44.3 million.

Along with Catz, he took over the helm of Oracle in September. He previously headed NCR, where he spent 25 years of his career. He was also CEO of HP from 2005 to 2010. When he's not working, he's passionate about tennis.

She has worked at IBM for 33 years. She was appointed to its “head” in 2012. Clearly, 2014 was a difficult year for her, as IBM lost several clients. Despite this, IBM is still one of the largest technology companies in the world and Rometty intends to make it absolutely strong again.

Until he took over as EMC's CFO in 2000, Tucci was responsible for the company's "transformation.".

EMC, which had revenue of $23.2 billion last year and is considered a giant in its industry, is scheduled to retire in early 2015, but will remain chairman of the company.

Source: newmoney.gr