In our final episode, we look back at the century of wealth we've explored and look forward to the century to come. We synthesize the key themes of our series: the evolution of power from industrial muscle to financial engineering to data and algorithms. We trace the recurring patterns of monopoly, disruption, scandal, and the constant, often-successful, effort by the ultra-wealthy to translate their economic power into political influence.

We then turn our eyes to the future. Who will be the billionaires of the next generation? Will they come from fields we can barely imagine today, like artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, or asteroid mining? We explore the new ethical dilemmas that will arise with these new fortunes and ask whether our current systems of governance and taxation are equipped to handle a world with trillionaires. Will new models of philanthropy and social responsibility, like those championed by MacKenzie Scott, become the norm or remain the exception?

This finale is a reflection on everything we've learned and a sober look at the challenges ahead. The names and the industries may change, but the fundamental questions about the concentration of wealth, the nature of power, and the responsibilities of the rich to the society that created them will remain more urgent than ever. The story of the billionaire is far from over.

The rise of cryptocurrencies created a new, wild-west frontier of wealth, minting a generation of overnight, digital-native billionaires. This episode dives into the volatile world of crypto, focusing on some of its most prominent and controversial figures. We profile Changpeng Zhao ("CZ"), the founder of the world's largest crypto exchange, Binance, who built a massive, unregulated financial empire before facing intense scrutiny and legal trouble from governments around the world.

The centerpiece of our story is the spectacular rise and catastrophic fall of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the wunderkind founder of the exchange FTX. We explore how SBF became the friendly, public face of the crypto industry, attracting billions in investment and celebrity endorsements, all while secretly funneling customer funds to his own private hedge fund. We then chronicle the stunning collapse of his empire in a matter of days, exposing one of the largest financial frauds in recent history and wiping out billions of dollars in wealth.

The story of the crypto billionaires is a cautionary tale of hype, greed, and the dangers of an unregulated market. It captures the dizzying boom and the devastating bust of a new technological gold rush. Their fortunes were built on a new kind of asset, but their downfall was a classic story of old-fashioned fraud.

In the late 1990s, Sara Blakely, a fax machine salesperson, had an idea for a new kind of undergarment but only $5,000 in savings to her name. This episode tells the incredible story of how she turned that idea into Spanx, a billion-dollar global brand, without ever taking a dime of outside investment. We follow her scrappy, relentless journey as she navigated the male-dominated worlds of manufacturing and venture capital, facing constant rejection but refusing to give up on her vision.

We explore her unconventional and brilliant approach to marketing and branding. From using her own friends as models to her big break on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Blakely built her company through authentic storytelling and a deep connection with her customers. Her success made her the youngest self-made female billionaire in the world and a new icon of female entrepreneurship. She proved that a massive company could be built by solving a real-world problem that established players had ignored.

Sara Blakely's story is an inspiring tale of grit, creativity, and perseverance. It represents a new model for building a billion-dollar business, one that prioritizes organic growth and profitability over the venture-backed, "growth-at-all-costs" mindset. She didn't just build a company; she built it on her own terms.