Warren Buffett Is ‘Going Quiet’- Inside the Mind and Money of the Oracle of Omaha

Warren Buffett announced that he is stepping away from his role as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway by the end of this year and will significantly reduce his public-presence. In his shareholder letter he wrote that he is “going quiet... sort of”.

The 95 year old investor also revealed that he will no longer write the company’s main annual shareholder letter (a tradition he has maintained for decades) and will stop speaking at or leading the annual shareholders’ meeting in the same capacity.

Buffett expressed full confidence in his designated successor Greg Abel, calling him a “great manager, a tireless worker and an honest communicator”. Buffett will remain as chairman of the company and continues to hold a significant stake, until investors are fully comfortable with the transition.

Buffet’s Philanthropic Move

Buffett announced that he has donated about $1.3 billion worth of Berkshire Hathaway shares to four family foundations. These foundations are named after his late wife and his three children- the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, and the Howard G Buffett, Susan A Buffett, and Peter Buffett foundations. These gifts were made through the annual conversion of Class A shares into Class B shares, which he then distributed to these charitable trusts.

This move is part of Buffett’s broader philanthropic strategy that began in 2006, when he pledged to gradually give away over 99% of his wealth, most of it through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the four family-run entities. Over the years, his annual gifts have totaled more than $50 billion, making him one of the largest private donors in history.

Buffett reiterated in the letter that he is speeding up his donations as he approaches 95, aiming to put his wealth to productive social use during his lifetime. He noted that his fortune, largely in Berkshire Hathaway stock, affects the size of his giving, and even after this round, he still holds over $145 billion in shares that he plans to donate gradually.

Warren Buffett Networth

As of November 11, 2025, Warren Buffett’s net worth is estimated at $149 billion, making him the world’s 11th richest person, as per Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The vast majority of his wealth, about 99%, is tied to his stake in Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate he built and continues to lead. Buffett’s fortune is largely a product of decades of disciplined investing, compounding returns, and strategic long-term ownership of high-quality companies.

His wealth primarily comes from Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio of investments, which is highly concentrated in a few major holdings. The single largest investment is Apple Inc valued at roughly $63.6 billion, accounting for more than a fifth of the total portfolio.

Other significant holdings include American Express at around $48.4 billion, Bank of America at about $28.6 billion, Coca-Cola worth nearly $28.3 billion, and Chevron at approximately $19.3 billion. Together, these core positions represent the foundation of Berkshire Hathaway’s, and thus Buffett’s enormous wealth, reflecting his philosophy of concentrated, value-driven, and long-term investing.

Life & Career: Oracle Of Omaha

Warren Edward Buffett was born on August 30, 1930, in Omaha, Nebraska. He showed an early talent for numbers and business, buying his first stock as a teenager and running small enterprises, before studying under Benjamin Graham at Columbia Business School.

Buffett built his career as a value investor. After running Buffett Partnership Ltd in the 1950s, he began buying into and eventually taking control of Berkshire Hathaway in the mid-1960s, transforming the struggling textile firm into a diversified holding company that owns whole businesses (such as GEICO and BNSF) and large stakes in public companies (like Apple).

His investment approach emphasises buying high-quality businesses at sensible prices, holding for the long term, and compounding capital through conservative management.

Known as the “Oracle of Omaha,” investors worldwide follow his annual letters, stock picks, and public comments for insights on value investing and corporate decision-making.

Buffett’s Beef with Elon Musk

Buffett in his latest annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders criticised the broader trend of ever-rising CEO pay. He warned that public disclosure rules meant to create restraint can instead breed envy and push compensation even higher.

Although Buffett didn’t name any individual, the timing and wording were widely interpreted as an indirect critique of the sorts of massive pay packages tied to stock-based milestones, packages like the very large awards that have been associated with CEO Elon Musk and Tesla.

However, there’s no single dramatic public feud between Buffett and Musk, but rather a recurring clash of philosophies. The tension is partly rhetorical and partly substantive.

Musk has at times expressed admiration for Buffett and even hoped Berkshire Hathaway might invest in Tesla, yet he has also downplayed Buffett’s methods as overly cautious for today’s tech-driven world.

Buffett, meanwhile, has publicly questioned behaviors he sees as risky for shareholders, most notably a concern about executives who are too public or whose compensation structures aren’t well aligned with long-term shareholder interests.