Neal Blue Net Worth

Neal Blue has an estimated net worth of $7.1 billion, according to Forbes Real-Time Billionaires, Neal Blue profile (figures as of October 20, 2026). That is up from $4.1 billion in 2020.

Neal Blue is an American business leader who runs General Atomics in San Diego as chairman and CEO. He is best known for building wealth in defense manufacturing. The company became widely known for making the Predator drone, one of the first drones to fly over Afghanistan after 9/11. Before that, Blue studied at Yale and served in the U.S. Air Force as a nuclear weapons custodian, giving him early ties to aerospace and defense work.

His path to major wealth took shape in 1986, when he and his brother Linden bought General Atomics from Chevron for a reported $60 million. The business grew into the largest private government contractor in the U.S., with customers that include Italy, Spain, and the UAE. Blue is self-made, according to Forbes. Forbes currently puts his net worth at $7.1 billion on its real-time billionaires tracker as of October 20, 2026.

How Neal Blue built his fortune

Blue’s money comes mainly from General Atomics, the defense company he leads in San Diego. He and Linden Blue acquired the company in 1986, and it expanded into research, development, and manufacturing across defense, energy, and other advanced technology work. General Atomics became especially famous for the Predator drone. Its work with governments in the U.S. and abroad helped turn the company into a major private contractor and the center of Blue’s fortune.

Long before that deal, Blue and his brother were already taking on ambitious projects. In 1956, when Neal was 21 and Linden was 20, they raised $3,000 to fly a single-propeller plane across Central and South America, and Life Magazine put them on its cover. In the 1970s, the brothers also owned Colorado and Western Properties in Colorado. That mix of risk-taking, business deals, and aerospace interest set up Blue’s later success at General Atomics.

What Forbes says about his net worth

Forbes has tracked Blue’s fortune through several swings. It estimated his wealth at $4.1 billion in 2020, then $3 billion in 2022. After that, the estimate moved back up to $4.4 billion in 2023 before dipping to $3.2 billion in 2025. Those changes line up with the value tied to his stake in General Atomics, the defense manufacturer that anchors nearly all of his wealth.

The latest Forbes numbers show a sharp jump. Forbes valued Blue at $5.5 billion on its 2026 World’s Billionaires list, and later at $7.1 billion on its real-time billionaires tracker in October 2026. General Atomics remains the key reason. The company’s identity is closely tied to military aircraft systems, including the Predator drone and a prototype unmanned fighter jet called the YFQ-42A, also known as Dark Merlin.