Birthright ruling puts focus on immigrant roots of major founders

The Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld birthright citizenship, preserving automatic U.S. citizenship for children born in the country regardless of their parents’ immigration status. The ruling blocked an executive order by President Donald Trump that sought to end the long-standing constitutional rule, according to Fortune.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for a 6-3 majority, according to Fortune. Roberts described citizenship as “the right to have rights” and said the framers of the Fourteenth Amendment extended that protection to “every free-born person in this land.”

The decision also renewed attention on the role played by U.S.-born children of immigrants in building some of the country’s largest companies. Fortune identified a group of Fortune 500 founders and company builders, including Steve Jobs, Henry Ford and William Boeing, whose parents or family backgrounds traced to immigration.

Founders tied to major U.S. companies

Steve Jobs, who co-founded Apple, was born in San Francisco to a Syrian immigrant father and was later adopted, according to Fortune. Apple reported $416 billion in revenue in its most recent fiscal year, Fortune said.

Costco co-founder Jim Sinegal was the son of Canadian immigrants whose family had emigrated from Romania, according to Fortune. Costco posted $269.9 billion in net sales in fiscal 2025, Fortune reported.

Ray Kroc did not found McDonald’s, but Fortune described him as the son of Czech immigrants who settled in Illinois and credited him with turning the chain into a globally recognized fast-food brand. Marc Randolph, Netflix’s co-founder and original chief executive, was born in New York and is the son of an Austrian immigrant, according to Fortune.

William Boeing was born in Detroit to a German immigrant father and founded Boeing, which Fortune said still makes more commercial aircraft than any other company. Bernie Marcus, born in Newark to Russian Jewish immigrants, co-founded Home Depot, according to Fortune.

Fortune also cited Herman Hollerith, the son of German immigrants, whose punch card tabulator became the technological base for IBM. At Ace Hardware, two of the five Chicago founders were sons of German and Swiss immigrants, respectively, according to Fortune.

Henry Ford, born in Michigan, was the son of an Irish immigrant father and a mother whose family came from Belgium, Fortune reported. Fortune credited the Ford Motor founder with major contributions to industrial innovation, including steps tied to the 40-hour workweek and the growth of the middle class.

Immigrant-linked companies and revenue

A 2025 analysis by the American Immigration Council found that 122 Fortune 500 companies were founded by U.S.-born children of immigrants. The council said those founders were birthright citizens whose parents came from countries including Syria, Romania, Ireland, Germany and Austria.

The American Immigration Council also found that 231 Fortune 500 companies founded by immigrants or their children generated $8.6 trillion in combined revenue in fiscal 2024. The council said that total would rank behind only the United States and China if measured as a national economy.

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.