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Last Updated:June 15, 2026, 16:30 IST
Ahead of America's 250th anniversary, Forbes celebrated the country's immigrant success stories with a ranking of its greatest living immigrants.

As the United States prepares to mark its 250th anniversary, Forbes has released a list celebrating the country's most successful living immigrants, individuals who arrived in America from around the world and went on to leave an outsized mark on business, entertainment, technology, and public life. From Hollywood icons to tech billionaires, these stories are a reminder of the enduring appeal of the American Dream. (Image: Pexels)

1. Arnold Schwarzenegger (Austria)
Arnold Schwarzenegger tops the list. The former bodybuilding champion moved to the US in 1968 and built an extraordinary career spanning Hollywood, real estate, and politics. He served two terms as Governor of California and has often described being an American as one of his proudest identities. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

2. Elon Musk (South Africa)
Elon Musk, born in South Africa, became a US citizen in 2002. The trillionaire entrepreneur founded SpaceX and transformed industries through ventures including Tesla, making him one of the wealthiest people in history. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

3. Sergey Brin (Russia)
Sergey Brin arrived in the United States as a six-year-old refugee from the Soviet Union. He went on to co-found Google and played a key role in shaping the internet age. More recently, he has returned to focus on the company's artificial intelligence efforts. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

4. Jensen Huang (Taiwan)
Jensen Huang moved to the US from Taiwan and later co-founded Nvidia. Under his leadership, the chipmaker has become one of the biggest winners of the AI boom, turning Huang into one of the world's richest individuals. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

5. Rupert Murdoch (Australia)
Media mogul Rupert Murdoch relocated to America in 1973. Through ownership of outlets such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, and Fox News, he has had a profound influence on US media and politics. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

6. Peter Thiel (Germany)
Peter Thiel came to the US as an infant and later graduated from Stanford University. He co-founded PayPal and became one of Silicon Valley's most influential investors and thinkers. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

7. Thomas Peterffy (Hungary)
Born in Hungary, Thomas Peterffy arrived in New York with little money and eventually founded Interactive Brokers. He is widely credited with pioneering electronic trading. (Image: Instagram/@matthewdefeo)

8. Lisa Su (Taiwan)
Lisa Su immigrated to the US at the age of three. As CEO of AMD, she transformed the company from an underdog into a major player in artificial intelligence and semiconductor technology. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

9. Vlad Tenev (Bulgaria)
Vlad Tenev moved to America as a child and later co-founded Robinhood, the investing platform that helped popularise commission-free trading among retail investors. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

10. Wolfgang Puck (Austria)
Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck revolutionised American dining with his "California cuisine" and built a culinary empire that includes restaurants, cookware, and food products. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
News Photogallery world Elon Musk To Arnold Schwarzenegger: Forbes Names America's Most Successful Immigrants
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