Simons No. 82 on Forbes World Billionaires List

Jim Simons of East Setauket, a former Stony Brook University professor who founded Renaissance Technologies in 1982 and later became an influential philanthropist, is the No. 82 richest man in the world, according to the Forbes list of the world's wealthiest people.

His net worth in 2013 is $11.7 billion; he shares the No. 82 rank with a Malaysian telecommunications executive, a Colombian beer industry leader, and a Thai drink industry creator, according to Forbes.

In 2012 Simons, 74, was also the No. 82 richest man in the world at a net worth of $10.7 billion. In 2011, he announced a $150 million gift to Stony Brook University.