Immigration Nerds Goes Inside the Forbes 250: A Deep Dive into America’s Most Successful Living Immigrants

As America approaches its 250th birthday, Forbes has released a list that should be required reading for every business leader, talent strategist, and policymaker in the country: the Forbes 250 Most Successful Living Immigrants in America. And the story behind how that list was built is just as revealing as the names on it.

In this episode of the Immigration Nerds podcast, host Lauren Clark, Managing Attorney at Erickson Immigration Group, sits down with Alex Knapp, Senior Editor at Forbes, to go behind the curtain of the Forbes 250 list. Knapp co-edited the list alongside Michael Noer as part of Forbes’ year-long partnership with America 250, the bipartisan initiative established by Congress to celebrate the nation’s semi quincentennial.

The result is more than a ranking. It’s a data-driven, story-rich argument that immigration isn’t just part of America’s past, it’s the engine of its present and the key to its future. ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

#1: Immigrants Don’t Just Appear on the List, They Dominate Every Category

The Forbes 250 immigration list is part of a broader six-list series, each organized around a core American value: innovation, upward mobility, pluralism, reinvention, builders, and courage. What struck Knapp and his team is that immigrants don’t just show up on the immigration list, they keep appearing at the top of nearly every other list too.

The pattern is unmistakable:

• The Innovation list was heavily populated by immigrants. Elon Musk, an immigrant from South Africa, was ranked number one.

• The Self-Made Americans (Upward Mobility) list featured over a quarter immigrants.

• Nearly half of all Nobel Prizes awarded to Americans have gone to naturalized citizens immigrants who came here and advanced science, medicine, and technology.

• Every major Hollywood studio was founded by immigrants.

• Iconic American financial institutions, Goldman Sachs, Bank of New York Mellon were founded by immigrants.

• The technology sector’s biggest names, from the PayPal mafia to SpaceX leadership, are overwhelmingly immigrant-led.

“All of the areas in which America is dominant - finance, Hollywood, technology, science - immigrants are at the core of all of those stories.”     — Alex Knapp, Senior Editor, Forbes

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#2: Success on This List Is Multi-Dimensional, Not Just Wealth

One of the most interesting editorial decisions behind the Forbes 250 is that it isn’t purely a money list. While Forbes is candid that financial success is a significant factor, most of the billionaires on the Forbes Billionaires List who are immigrants naturally made the cut. The editorial team deliberately evaluated success across multiple dimensions.

The criteria included:

Entrepreneurial Impact: Building enduring businesses that reshaped industries.

Cultural Influence: Shaping American identity, aesthetics, and daily life.

Scientific Achievement: Advancing fields from mRNA vaccine technology to robotics.

Athletic Excellence Plus Legacy: Not just winning, but building something lasting afterward. Mario Lemieux, for example, ranked not just for being one of hockey’s greatest players but for saving the Pittsburgh Penguins from bankruptcy after retirement.

Philanthropic Reach: José Andrés ranked for taking restaurant logistics expertise and deploying it in humanitarian crises, setting up food operations in disaster zones in under 24 hours.

Multi-Domain Achievement: Arnold Schwarzenegger was ranked number one, not as the wealthiest, but as someone who topped nearly every success metric: athletics, entertainment, politics, business, and philanthropy.

“If we were grading purely on money, Arnold Schwarzenegger would not have been our number one pick. But he was number one because we looked at so many different success metrics, and he was at the top of nearly all of them.” — Alex Knapp, Senior Editor, Forbes

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#3: The Stories Behind the Rankings Are Quintessentially American

Beyond the data, it’s the individual stories that make this episode unforgettable. Knapp shares several that capture the essence of the immigrant journey and the unique American capacity for reinvention:

Tony Xu (#22, Founder of DoorDash): Washed dishes in the restaurants where his mother worked as a waitress. Built one of America’s largest delivery platforms. The generational arc from dishwasher to tech founder is, as Knapp puts it, “something so American.”

Anastasia Soare (Founder, Anastasia Beverly Hills): Left communist Romania legally unable to bring a single asset with her. Arrived in the U.S. literally penniless and built a $3 billion beauty empire that reshaped the American aesthetic. As Knapp notes: “Watch TV from the ‘80s and watch TV now, that’s her influence.”

Katalin Karikó (Nobel Laureate, BioNTech Executive): Arrived in the U.S. with a few hundred dollars hidden in a teddy bear. Nearly pushed out of academia. Went on to co-discover the mRNA technology that powered the COVID-19 vaccine and is now being developed for flu, cancer, and beyond. She has appeared on three Forbes 250 lists so far.

David Tran (Founder, Huy Fong Foods): Fled communist Vietnam and gave America sriracha. Knapp puts it simply: “I can’t even imagine the American culinary landscape without sriracha.”

Rodney Brooks (Co-inventor of the Roomba): An Australian immigrant and one of the great pioneers of robotics, appearing on both the immigration and innovation lists.

Michael J. Fox (#200): So synonymous with American culture that the Forbes team initially forgot he was born in Canada. “He is so American to me that I almost forgot he was an immigrant,” Knapp admits.

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#4: What "Being American" Actually Means, According to the Data

Knapp offers a reflection that goes beyond the list itself. When you compile six lists across six American values and the same immigrant names keep surfacing across all of them, a larger truth emerges: the American identity is defined by adaptability, self-reinvention, and multi-domain excellence, qualities that immigrant stories embody more powerfully than almost anyone else’s.

As Knapp puts it, there’s not one way to be American. The list includes Arnold Schwarzenegger, Melania Trump, and Australian novelist Peter Carey, all for entirely different reasons. That range isn’t a weakness of the list; it’s the point. Americanness, in Knapp’s words, is “indefinable but yet identifiable.”

And the top countries of origin on the living list tell their own story: India leads by a significant margin, followed by Canada and Israel. On the historic list, Germany and Hungary stand out, with Knapp noting that Hungarian influence on American history is so deep “there’s a book to be written” about it.

“There’s not one way to be American. There’s not one thing you can point to and say, “Oh, that’s definitely American.” And I think that fluidity, that adaptability... really speaks to that essential Americanness, which is indefinable but yet identifiable.” — Alex Knapp, Senior Editor, Forbes

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News Nerd Update: What’s Happening Right Now in U.S. Immigration

Rob Taylor, Partner at Erickson Immigration Group, delivered critical updates that every employer and immigration professional needs to know:

July Visa Bulletin - Mixed Movement and EB-2 India Unavailable: The July Visa Bulletin brought unusual shifts. EB-1 China and EB-3 China advanced, but EB-1 India retrogressed and EB-2 India became unavailable, likely until the new fiscal year begins in October. The Department of State attributed the changes to sustained high demand. Adjustment applications will be accepted under the Final Action chart for those who are current.

Supreme Court Strikes Down Birthright Citizenship Executive Order: In a landmark 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to nearly all children born on U.S. soil. Chief Justice Roberts concluded that children born to parents in the U.S. whether unlawfully or temporarily are citizens at birth under the Constitution. This was one of the most significant constitutional immigration cases in recent history.

$100K H-1B Fee - Back in Effect After Appeal: Though previously struck down by a court, the Trump administration appealed the decision on the $100,000 H-1B fee and received a stay, meaning the fee is currently back in effect. The timeline for when the appeal will be heard remains unclear.

Duration of Status Rule - Implementation Imminent: DHS is expected to finalize the rule changing the admission period for F-1 and J-1 visa holders from “duration of status” to a specific end date aligned with their program. This means students and exchange visitors will likely need to file extensions of stay to remain in the U.S. between or beyond programs. The rule also shortens the F-1 grace period from 60 to 30 days. Individuals on these statuses must pay close attention to their I-94 records and plan accordingly.

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Quote Highlight

A standout moment from the episode is a statement that captures the thesis of the entire Forbes 250 project in a single breath:

“Immigration is just, I think, core to our identity as Americans. Especially when you look at the history of it, they’re woven into the fabric of what America was, what we are today, and likely what we’ll have in the future.” — Alex Knapp, Senior Editor, Forbes

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Why This Episode Is a Must-Listen

This episode of Immigration Nerds is essential listening for anyone who wants to move the immigration conversation from abstract policy debate to concrete, undeniable impact. The Forbes 250 list isn’t an opinion piece, it’s a meticulously researched catalog of what happens when talented people are given the opportunity to build, create, and contribute in a country that lets them.

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Call to Action

• Subscribe to the Immigration Nerds podcast for ongoing updates and expert insights into immigration law, policy, and the stories that shape our world.

• Explore the full Forbes 250 Most Successful Living Immigrants list linked in the show notes, and share the stories that resonate with your network.

• Share this episode with colleagues, leadership teams, and anyone who needs a data-backed reminder of why immigration matters to American business.

• Visit Erickson Immigration Group at eiglaw.com for the latest immigration news, employer guidance, and strategic support.

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