James Goodnight
CEO, SAS Institute
$11.07B
as of 05/18/25
About James Goodnight
James Goodnight cofounded the analytics software firm SAS in 1976 with John Sall, whom he met while a PhD student at North Carolina State University.
Goodnight has been at the helm since the company's inception, when it developed software to analyze agricultural data.
SAS products are used by more than 80,800 organizations around the world; 2022 revenues were more than $3 billion.
Goodnight and Sall, who is also a billionaire, founded private school Cary Academy together and co-own a country club and a hotel.
Personal stats
Citizenship
United States of AmericaSource of wealth
SoftwareResidence
Cary, North CarolinaMarital status
MarriedBirth date
01/06/43 (age 82)Number of children
3Education
Bachelor of Arts/Science, North Carolina State University; Doctorate, North Carolina State University; Master of Science, North Carolina State UniversitySelf-made
self-madeJames Goodnight’s fortune is worth
184K
troy ounces of gold
170K
median U.S. household
111K
median U.S. income
0.221%
U.S. credit card volume
0.044%
GDP of the United States
0.033%
United States debt
Net worth history
Annual ranking
Related people
Did you know?
SAS is best known for its employee-friendly programs like sports leagues, day care and an on-site pharmacy.
Net worth over time
Real-time ranking
Financial assets
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