Michael Dell
Image by Anya Ulinich
Like many other Jewish boys, Michael Dell was supposed to grow up to become a doctor, just like his father. But from early on he had other plans. At the age of 12 Dell already showed his knack for business, making a small fortune from trading stamps and selling newspaper subscriptions.
So it was no surprise that the boy from Houston became one of America’s wealthiest computer entrepreneurs. In October, Dell stunned the tech community with the largest merger in the industry’s history, which will create the largest single vendor of personal computers, servers and storage in the world.
Under the $67 billion deal, which still requires regulatory approval, Dell, a computer maker carrying the name of its founder, will purchase data storage giant EMC. Analysts and insiders were taken by surprise by the huge deal, which they view as risky and complicated. But Michael Dell, 50, dismissed such concerns, saying he is “just on a really big adventure.”
In 2013 Dell bought back the company he founded, which was publicly traded, and has since succeeded in growing it despite a declining market for personal computers. While doing so he brought his personal wealth up to $19 billion. Critics note Dell’s aggressive use of tax shelters and overseas outsourcing to keep his company profitable.
A mainstream Republican, Dell contributes generously to the GOP, but most of the family’s philanthropic giving is directed at children’s issues. Dell is a major funder of the Jewish federation in his hometown of Austin, Texas, and of Friends of Israel Defense Forces.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
