Michael Dell, founder of Dell Technologies, and his wife, Susan Dell, have pledged more than $6 billion to support President Donald Trump’s “Trump Accounts,” a new investment program for children set to launch in 2026.
Michael, 60, and Susan announced their $6.25 billion commitment on Tuesday, Dec. 2. Michael, who built his company by selling computers directly to customers rather than through retailers, said the donation reflects the same “direct” philosophy that powered his early business strategy.
“When I started a company 41 years ago, we created the direct model,” he said, according to The New York Times. “This is sort of the direct model philanthropy.”
Trump Accounts were created under Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” According to the White House, they will be available to every U.S. citizen born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028, with each eligible child receiving a one-time $1,000 government contribution to start their account.
Families will be able to contribute up to $5,000 per year, and the White House says the money “will be invested in a broad stock-market index.” The funds will remain inaccessible to the child until age 18 and will follow standard IRA-style withdrawal rules. According to projections cited by the White House, an account that is fully funded and left untouched “could grow to as much as $1.9 million by age 28.”
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The Associated Press reported that the Dells’ gift ranks among the largest charitable commitments in recent history; only a handful of donations, such as Bill Gates’ $20 billion contribution to his foundation in 2022, have exceeded $1 billion.
In a joint statement, Michael and Susan said their $6.25 billion pledge will “seed 25 million additional accounts with $250 each.” Their contribution is aimed at children 10 and under who live in ZIP codes with a median income of $150,000 or less and who are ineligible for the Treasury’s $1,000 government seed money because they were born before the program’s official start date.
“Children older than 10 may benefit, too, if funds remain available after initial sign-ups,” they added.
The Dells told AP they believe their commitment is the largest individual private donation ever made on behalf of children in the United States.
According to The New York Times, the Trump Accounts concept originated in 2021 when Brad Gerstner, chief executive of Altimeter Capital, was discussing investing with his children. Gerstner later founded a nonprofit, Invest America, to promote the idea of government-funded investment accounts seeded with $1,000 for each child at birth.
When Gerstner approached Michael Dell with the proposal, both Michael and Susan supported it. Michael then brought the idea to Trump, and Sen. Ted Cruz introduced legislation to create Invest America accounts, which were later rebranded as Trump Accounts, the Times reported.
Bloomberg estimates Michael Dell’s net worth at over $150 billion, placing him among the 10 richest people in the world. Susan told the Times that the couple has given about $3 billion over the past 26 years; their Trump Accounts pledge, the outlet noted, would “vault them into the ranks of the nation’s top givers.”
At the White House on Tuesday, Trump publicly praised the couple’s philanthropy, calling their gift “truly one of the most generous acts in the history of our country,” according to AP. He added that he expects additional companies and friends to contribute to the accounts as well, saying, “I’ll be doing it, too.”
That morning, Trump also posted about the couple on Truth Social, writing, “TWO GREAT PEOPLE. I LOVE DELL!!! President DJT.”
