# Yes, Mojang Has Created Multiple Billionaires - Canonical: https://33rdsquare.com/is-mojang-a-billionaire/ - Published: 2023-11-06 - Author: Nelson Ayers - Categories: [Business & Worth](https://33rdsquare.com/category/games/worth/) --- Mojang AB, the Swedish video game developer behind the massively popular sandbox game Minecraft, is responsible for creating several billionaires since its founding in 2009. Through the runaway success of Minecraft across multiple platforms, the company has generated huge wealth for its founders and early investors. ## Minecraft Founder Markus "Notch" Persson – Net Worth $1.9 Billion Markus "Notch" Persson is the creator of Minecraft and founder of Mojang. He started working on the first versions of Minecraft in 2009 as an independent project. The basic sandbox building concept showed promise, and Persson soon founded Mojang with partners to turn it into a real game. Minecraft was released in 2011 and quickly became a viral hit, amassing millions of players. By 2013, the game had sold over 20 million copies across PC, mobile, and consoles. Notch owned the majority of Mojang, with around 70% of shares by the time it was sold. In September 2014, Microsoft acquired Mojang and the rights to Minecraft for a staggering $2.5 billion. As the majority owner, Notch earned over $1.5 billion from the sale, instantly launching him into billionaire status. His current net worth is estimated at [$1.9 billion](https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-businessmen/richest-designers/markus-persson-net-worth/). ## Mojang Co-Founders Also Cashed In Big While Notch earned the biggest individual payout from Microsoft‘s acquisition, Mojang‘s other founders also earned huge fortunes: - **Jakob Porser** – Mojang CTO and co-founder, owned 40% of the company at the time of sale. His portion of the $2.5 billion sale likely exceeded $500 million. - **Carl Manneh** – Mojang CEO and co-founder, held a 10% stake at the time of sale, earning him around $200 million. Both Porser and Manneh became mega-millionaires from Minecraft‘s sale, with net worths likely reaching into the hundreds of millions. While Notch is the sole billionaire, Mojang created huge wealth for its core founders. ## Major Investors Scored Massive Paydays Too In addition to its founders, major venture capital investors in Mojang also earned significant fortunes when Microsoft bought the company: - **Creandum** – Early Mojang investor, held 7% at the time of sale, share worth around $140 million - **Niklas Zennstrom** – Invested through Atomico Ventures, also had 7% stake, earned ~$140 million These technology VC firms invested in Mojang when it was still a small independent developer. Their belief in Minecraft‘s potential gave them ownership stakes that paid off with massive 9-figure payouts after the Microsoft acquisition. ## YouTube Millionaires Built on Minecraft Content The popularity of Minecraft also extended far beyond the game itself, spawning a massive ecosystem of online content centered around the game. YouTube and Twitch creators have built huge followings – and multi-million dollar fortunes – simply by playing Minecraft. Some of the biggest Minecraft influencers include: - **[DanTDM](https://www.youtube.com/user/TheDiamondMinecart)** – 25 million YouTube subscribers, $16.5 million net worth - **[Stampy](https://www.youtube.com/user/stampylonghead)** – 13 million subscribers, $7 million net worth - **[CaptainSparklez](https://www.youtube.com/user/CaptainSparklez)** – 11 million subscribers, $4 million net worth The content empire around Minecraft has created superstar streamers and let‘s play personalities. While Mojang developed the game, these creators also built fortunes playing it for huge online audiences. ## Mojang‘s Sales, Revenue, and Growth To fully understand Mojang‘s financial success, let‘s look at some key statistics: - **Minecraft sales** – over 200 million copies sold across all platforms as of 2020 - **Annual revenue** – in 2020, Mojang brought in $350 million in revenue from Minecraft - **Sales by platform** – 47% of sales from mobile devices, 39% PC, 14% consoles - **Monthly active users** – over 140 million monthly active users in 2021 - **Queen‘s Award** – honored with Sweden‘s top business award for growth in exports in 2016 Since its initial release, Minecraft has shown consistently strong sales and revenue. It has exhibited incredible staying power, retaining a large, dedicated player base even a decade after launch. This ongoing success transformed Mojang into a highly-valuable acquisition target for Microsoft. ## Mojang Continues Growing Minecraft Even after selling Minecraft to Microsoft in 2014, Mojang continues to develop and expand the Minecraft universe: - Release of **Minecraft Dungeons** in 2020, Minecraft‘s first spin-off game - Announcement of **Minecraft Legends** scheduled for 2024, an action strategy title - Over 1,000 employees now working on Minecraft and Mojang titles - Opening of a second studio location in Stockholm in 2020 Under Microsoft, Mojang has grown into a true AAA studio, expanding the Minecraft brand into new genres and platforms. With Microsoft‘s backing, the company seems poised for continued success. ## Final Thoughts In my view, Mojang‘s story represents one of the great startup success stories in gaming history. Minecraft resonated with players worldwide in a profound way. Its sandbox creativity and gameplay accessibility created the perfect formula for a viral hit. By retaining control and ownership early on, Mojang‘s founders were richly rewarded when Minecraft really took off. Microsoft‘s $2.5 billion acquisition validated just how strong the Minecraft brand had become after only a few years. It took the right product at the right time, combined with business savvy to grow the company, to produce this gaming goldmine. --- Source: [Yes, Mojang Has Created Multiple Billionaires](https://33rdsquare.com/is-mojang-a-billionaire/)