# Larry Ellison **Born:** August 17, 1944, New York City **Role:** Co-founder & Chairman/CTO, Oracle Corporation **Net Worth:** ~$200+ billion (fluctuates; among the top 3 wealthiest people globally) **Children:** [[David Ellison]], Megan Ellison --- ## Overview Lawrence Joseph Ellison co-founded Oracle Corporation in 1977 and built it into the world's largest enterprise database and cloud infrastructure company. As of 2026, Oracle is a major U.S. government and defense contractor, providing cloud infrastructure, database systems, and AI platforms to the Department of Defense, intelligence agencies, and allied governments worldwide. ## Defense & Government Ties - Oracle holds major contracts with the **DoD, CIA, NSA**, and other intelligence agencies - **Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI)** competes with AWS and Azure for government cloud workloads - Oracle won a share of the **JWCC (Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability)** contract - Larry has cultivated close relationships with political leaders across administrations, most notably with **[[Donald Trump]]** in the current era - **The VA health-record contract:** through [[Oracle Health]] (Cerner), Oracle holds the [[Department of Veterans Affairs]]' Electronic Health Record Modernization contract — $10B in 2018, modified to ~$27B in August 2026 with completion slipping to 2031. On September 15, 2026 the [[House Veterans' Affairs Committee]] served Ellison with a subpoena (return date December 10) after he and co-CEO [[Mike Sicilia]] skipped a hearing; the 19–0 vote included eight Republicans. See [[VA Oracle EHR Modernization Contract]]. ## Trump Relationship Larry Ellison is one of Trump's most prominent billionaire allies: - Major Republican donor - Hosted Trump at his Rancho Mirage estate - Reportedly involved in discussions about TikTok's U.S. operations (Oracle was positioned as a "trusted technology partner") - His financial backing of [[David Ellison]]'s media acquisitions has intersected with Trump administration regulatory decisions (see [[Skydance-Paramount]]) --- ## Media Empire (via David Ellison) Larry Ellison is the financial engine behind his son David's media consolidation campaign. While David serves as Chairman & CEO of [[Skydance-Paramount]], Larry provides the capital that makes the acquisitions possible. ### Financial Commitments | Deal | Larry's Role | |------|-------------| | **Skydance founding (2006)** | Primary financial backer | | **Skydance-Paramount merger ($8B, 2025)** | Capital backing via family investment vehicles | | **Warner Bros. Discovery bid (~$111B)** | **$40.4 billion irrevocable personal guarantee** of equity financing | ### What the Family Controls (or Will Control) **Currently owned (via Paramount Skydance):** - CBS, CBS News, 60 Minutes - Paramount Pictures, Paramount+ - MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, Showtime - Skydance production slate (Mission: Impossible, Top Gun, Star Trek, etc.) **Pending (via WBD acquisition):** - CNN - HBO / Max - Warner Bros. Pictures - DC Studios - Discovery networks See: [[Tech Oligarch Media Map]] for the full landscape of billionaire media ownership. ### The Structural Conflict Larry Ellison simultaneously: 1. **Runs Oracle**, which depends on government contracts and regulatory favor 2. **Finances media properties** (CBS News, potentially CNN) whose job is to hold that same government accountable 3. **Maintains a close personal relationship with the President**, whose administration controls the FCC, DoD procurement, and antitrust enforcement This creates what critics call a **military-industrial-media complex** — a feedback loop where defense contracting wealth funds media acquisition, and media properties shape public narratives about defense spending, foreign policy, and the government officials who award those contracts. --- ## Related - [[David Ellison]] - [[Skydance-Paramount]] - [[Tech Oligarch Media Map]] - [[Oracle Corporation]]