David Ellison orchestrated Hollywood's boldest move with a $111bn takeover of Warner Bros Discovery, following his earlier $120bn Paramount acquisition. The 43-year-old tech heir beat out Apollo and Sony in an eight-month battle for Paramount, then gatecrashed Netflix's deal with WBD. Ellison now faces the monumental task of integrating these media giants while managing a $79bn debt pile.

Ellison's Hollywood gamble comes as cable networks lose viewers and revenue, with box office sales declining. Despite these challenges, he has backing from his billionaire father Larry Ellison, who has personally guaranteed the acquisition. Elsewhere, Estée Lauder combines with Puig to create a $40bn beauty powerhouse, while Gilead Sciences acquires Ouro Medicines for $2.2bn to bolster its autoimmune disease portfolio.

Berkshire Hathaway doubled down on Japan with a $1.8bn investment in Tokio Marine, insuring the Japanese insurer's business and seeking global collaboration. Meanwhile, Hummingbird Ventures raised $800mn to back "unreasonable" founders, betting on entrepreneurs who are "almost unemployable" but have built their own theories of the world. The firm's previous funds returned 10x investors' capital through bets on Lovable and Kraken.