New Delhi: MacKenzie Scott has emerged as the top American individual philanthropist after she donated $7 billion in 2025 to numerous charities. Scott, who is the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, accounted for nearly one-third of the total ‘megagift’ donations last year.
Her cumulative giving is at $26.2 billion in just five years, Fortune reported. She has given to about 2,700 organisations. However, not everyone appreciates her philanthropy.
American Right-wing is criticising Scott’s choice of charities, which includes Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and organisations focused on DEI, climate, and LGBTQ+ issues. Tesla founder Elon Musk is among these critics.
In a recent post, X handle @FrenlyOfficer—the bio for which describes the user as a ‘Heterosexual Alpha Male’—said that Scott was paying to make the world a worse place. Musk replied to the post with “Sadly, yes”.
Sadly, yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 28, 2026
“Did a single person notice any improvements in their daily life thanks to this massive injection of charitable giving? No. Because it all, 100%, vanished into the bottomless coffers of the most corrupt and useless NGOs on the planet,” wrote Peachy Keenan, an American ‘tradwife’ on X.
Still one of the wealthiest women worldwide
Scott is a novelist who has written The Testing of Luther Albright (2005) and Traps (2013). Author Toni Morrison mentored her at Princeton University, where Scott studied English and creative writing. She worked as a research assistant for Morrison after graduating, and later joined investment firm D.E. Shaw, where she met Bezos.
The couple moved to Seattle in 1994, a year after they married, and Bezos launched Amazon. As an early contributor, Scott helped draft business plans, negotiate contracts, and manage accounts.
Scott and Bezos divorced in 2019, after which she received about a 4 per cent stake in Amazon, then valued at $36 billion. She signed the Giving Pledge the same year, vowing to donate the majority of her fortune.
“In addition to whatever assets life has nurtured in me, I have a disproportionate amount of money to share. My approach to philanthropy will continue to be thoughtful. It will take time and effort and care. But I won’t wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty,” she said in her pledge letter.
Despite having donated more than half of her Amazon shares, Scott’s net worth is around $34 billion, due to the market appreciation of the stock.
Also read: Elon Musk releases the movie about immigrants that Germany doesn’t want you to see