Given that he's pledged to give away his money before death, I don't think he's super concerned about it.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/howardhusock/2015/03/29/tim-coo...
He probably is, but it always surprises me that billionaires think they know when they will die.
Obviously, it is what it is if one were to die unexpectedly, but that is an obvious caveat that does not need a disclaimer.
Another possibility is they are encouraging others to make the same commitment.
> JUST IN: CEO of biggest company in the world donates 90% of their wealth. Articles for years about how they did it.
> CEO of biggest company in the world joins many others in promising giving away most of their money but not doing it.
Mind you, I have nothing against rich people and crazy spending. Just don't pretend like you're so magnanimous if you're not actually doing it.
My prediction is the donation from the Patagonia founder (whose name I have already forgotten) will be written about fewer than 10 times in significant distribution in the two decades from 2025 to 2044. Whereas the giving pledge type of billionaires will be written about more than annually on a per capita basis.
It's the same reason I think that politicians are reluctant to quickly deliver on their promises. Because those promises represent pain points which represent the power to get them (and their party) elected in the next election as well. That power goes away if the pain point is solved.
Wealth doesn't typically sit under the mattress doing nothing. While the person is alive, they can control how that wealth is invested, and do good that way. Giving it away while still alive would take it out of their control, and perhaps they think that keeping control will do better from a philanthropic perspective.
MacRumors reveals that Cook last week donated 10,715 shares to an undisclosed charity. As of the date of the transaction, August 20, 2020 that would put their value at a little over $5M. The gain in value since then means that the shares were worth almost $5.4M as of yesterday’s close.
Cook revealed in 2015 that he plans to give away all of his wealth during his lifetime.
Cook says that he has already begun donating money quietly, but that he plans to take time to develop a systematic approach to philanthropy rather than simply writing checks.
He regularly donates AAPL shares to undisclosed charities.
Amazing PR scam.
Also note that the pledge is only to give away "at least half" which is pretty unambitious for a multi-billionaire. If you have $10 billion and give away $5 billion, you've made no impact on your own life and sacrificed nothing. It is not comparable to someone with $100,000 giving away $50,000.
So instead of promoting redistribution of wealth while they’re alive, they make sure they get all the power, status, influence, and benefits of their wealth, and only once they’re dead or near it do they plan on giving it away.
Why can't that be done by whatever organization he gives it all away to?
The Ford Foundation was founded in 1936 and is now worth $16 billion.
The Rockefeller Foundation was started in 1913. By the end of 2016, assets were tallied at $4.1 billion with annual grants of $173 million.
Everyone does that, pledge or no.