The second season of the BBC World Service podcast, Good Bad Billionaire is launching to spotlight a new cast of famous faces.
Hosted by Simon Jack, Business Editor for BBC News, and Zing Tsjeng, journalist, author and podcaster, they find out how the richest people on the planet made their billions and decide whether they think they are ‘good’, ‘bad’, or just another billionaire.
From celebrities and secretive CEOs, to sporting legends and Silicon Valley tech titans, the podcast explores the minds, the motives, and the big money behind some of the world’s richest people.
The new series looks at how Tiger Woods went from a child prodigy to the world’s highest paid athlete, how a communist mime artist became the boss of fashion house Prada, and how hedge fund tycoon George Soros escaped Nazi occupation to become one of the most successful investors in history.
It also explores how a mining magnate became the first black billionaire in post-apartheid South Africa, and how an Indian multinational conglomerate boss built the biggest fortune in Asia.
Simon and Zing will examine some of the biggest names behind the technology shaping our world – the founders of TikTok, Google, ChatGPT, Alibaba and Bumble.
How did a Chinese social media app, Tik Tok, become a multi-billion-dollar business and take over the social media world? How did ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman make a billion investing in tech start-ups like Reddit and Airbnb? And how did the founder of Google, Sergey Brin, shape the internet by building the planet’s most popular search engine?
Zing Tsjeng says: “You can tell a lot about someone by following their money – and how they made it – so I’m thrilled to be back with Simon to explore even more eyebrow-raising stories of the mega-rich.
“Even more people have joined the billionaire ranks since we were last on air, so there’s a lot to talk about! Reuniting with Simon for the new season from the BBC World Service has been great fun and we can’t wait for listeners to dig in.”
Simon Jack adds: “Since we made our last series, there are now 141 more billionaires on the planet. With this number increasing each year, there is no better time to shine a light on the world’s richest people and to assess whether we think they are using their power for good.
“Season two promises more scandal and intrigue as we ask why dozens of people have more than billions of others.”
The second season of Good Bad Billionaire has 20 episodes and launches on 29 July. New episodes are released very Monday wherever you get your podcasts. You can hear the latest episode a week early on BBC Sounds.
