Mark Zuckerberg, 42, and his wife Dr. Priscilla Chan, 41, possess a massive fortune — but their children won't be inheriting the hundreds of billions that the tech power couple is currently worth. Instead, the pair has vowed to give away 99% of their Meta shares over their lifetime.
It's a strategy that's shared by a number of modern tech titans who plan to give away their billions instead of leaving it as a legacy to their kids.
The 'Letter to Max': Why Mark and Priscilla pledged to give away 99% of Meta
To understand the Chan-Zuckerberg decision to give away their huge fortune, you have to look back to more than a decade ago, and the birth of the couple's first daughter, Maxima. In December 2015, when she was born, the new parents unveiled their Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), pledging to donate 99% of their shares of Facebook (now Meta) over their lifetimes.
© Instagram/@priscillachanIn an open letter to their firstborn daughter, entitled simply "Letter to Max," they sent a message that the greatest gift parents can give their children isn't a massive empire, but a better world.
The note, published on Facebook, read in part: "We want you to grow up in a world better than ours today. We will do our part to make this happen, not only because we love you, but also because we have a moral responsibility to all children in the next generation."
The letter also reads: "We understand you’ll have many questions about why and how we’re doing this… Max, we love you and feel a great responsibility to leave the world a better place for you and all children. We wish you a life filled with the same love, hope and joy you give us."
At the time, Meta/Facebook shares were worth about $45 billion; today Zuckerberg alone is worth over $200 billion.
"Mark and I have known each other 18 years, that’s half my life,” Chan told the Sunday Times in a 2021 interview. “He’s always known that giving back is my life’s mission. And very early on — as early as 2005, when it was clear that we — he — was going to make some money out of Facebook, we decided we’ve got to give back.”
We understand you'll have many questions about why and how we’re doing this…
Having children helped fast track that wish. "You just love that 'little being' so much, more than you ever thought was possible," Chan told the Today Show about being a mom in 2016. "You have so many hopes and dreams for that child, and that drives me to want to work harder and invest now to make sure that the future is where it needs to be for all of our children."
While CZI initially focused on a broader range of social causes, such as statewide housing initiatives and criminal justice programs, in recent years, the targeted programs have changed. Against the political backdrop of the Trump administration, CZI has stepped away from social advocacy; its core funding is now primarily focused on tech-driven causes, AI-powered biomedical and scientific research.
Inside the Chan-Zuckerberg family's home life: How they're raising their children
Chan and Zuckerberg first met just four weeks into college, and she admits she was fascinated by him. As she told CBS This Morning: "He just had a totally different mentality in terms of being able to do things and take risks than I did. And I thought he was fascinating. But he was 18. I didn't think I was gonna marry him."
But in 2012, she did marry the Harvard dropout, and eventually left medicine to serve as co-CEO of CZI. And after welcoming Max, they further expanded the family with two more daughters, August, now nine, and Aurelia, who is three.
Chan and Zuckerberg have spoken about the upbringing they provide their girls, revealing such details as reading stories — and practicing coding — at bedtime.
During an interview with Gayle King on CBS Mornings, the then-parents-of-two revealed how they keep their children's feet on the ground. "Well, I think first of all, we don't give them everything. So I think that's an important piece. But also they just have responsibilities and chores," said Zuckerberg.
Chan noted: "We also take them to work. Mark and I take both of them to the office to see what we do, how we contribute.”
Ten-year-old Max, who inspired the 99% pledge, is now "vibecoding" and could be a tech titan in the making. “She’s quite limited, because Mom doesn’t let her build things that are open to the internet,” Chan told Colossus. "Like, she wanted to build a dating site. That was a no."
The mom-of-three explained: "She just has a desire to build things that is innate, that we didn’t teach her. It just came. She’s delighted by the idea of bringing something into the world."
The Anti-Dynasty Club: Why tech billionaires refuse to pass down generational wealth
The mass disinheritance movement is one whose vision is represented by the Giving Pledge, signed by the likes of Warren Buffett and Bill Gates along with more than 200 billionaires around the world. They've committed to donating at least half of their fortunes to charitable causes either during their lifetimes or in their wills.
It's a move that effectively removes direct descendants from inheriting the majority of the billionaires' wealth. Buffett, whose children were encouraged to work regular jobs and find their true passions, once famously declared: "Leave children enough so they can do anything but not enough that they can do nothing."
I think first of all, we don't give them everything. So I think that's an important piece. But also they just have responsibilities and chores
Initiated long before the letter to Max, the Giving Pledge is also signed by Zuckerberg. In a statement, the pair said they "salute" the movement and are "proud" to be a part of it.
"The needs of our world are great," they said. "We believe passionately that people should not wait to give back. Our giving is just starting and we commit to being active learners, listeners and participants for years to come. We'll devote our resources as well as our personal time and energy. We will spend our lives working to make sure future generations have the greatest opportunities possible."
© Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine IHow much will the Zuckerberg children actually inherit from the $200 billion empire?
The truth of the matter, though, is that when you have such a massive amount of wealth, even leaving behind just 1% of a $200 billion fortune still amounts to $2 billion. The Chan Zuckerberg children will still be extraordinarily wealthy and under normal circumstances, it's not likely that they would face financial hardship.
Still, the gesture does shift the definition of success from a purely old-school concept of a family dynasty, to a focus on global impact. The goal isn't to disinherit their children, it's to leave a legacy that goes far beyond money.
"We launched CZI when I was 30 years old," Chan said in the Times interview. "Not because we thought we had the answers, but because we knew we were going to need the rest of our lives to figure out how to do this well.”
