Julian Assange joins pro-Palestine protest on Sydney Harbour Bridge; one year after return to Australia, what’s his net worth and life like now?

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was among the tens of thousands who marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday, August 3, as part of a “Humanitarians for Gaza” protest in Australia.

The pro-Palestine demonstration called for an end to the war in Gaza and featured Assange walking alongside former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr and his own family members.

Assange, who returned to Australia last year after his release from a British prison, did not speak at the event.


His name gained global recognition after 2006, when Assange launched WikiLeaks, a platform for publishing classified and sensitive information to promote transparency. It gained international attention for exposing major government and corporate secrets.

From 2007 to 2010, Assange traveled extensively for WikiLeaks. The site released controversial information such as internet censorship lists, documents on drone strikes, and details of political unrest in China and Yemen.

In 2008, WikiLeaks drew headlines after publishing bank documents from the Swiss firm Julius Baer. During the 2008 US presidential race, the contents of a hacked Yahoo! account belonging to Sarah Palin also appeared on WikiLeaks. Here is a closer look at his life, wealth, education and career.

Julian Assange’s net worth

Julian Assange is known globally as a journalist, computer programmer, and activist. According to Celebrity Net Worth, his estimated net worth is around $300,000. He has received several recognitions, including the 2009 Amnesty International Media Award and the Readers’ Choice for TIME magazine's 2010 Person of the Year.

Early life

Julian Assange was born Julian Paul Hawkins on July 3, 1971, in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. His parents separated before his birth. He took the surname Assange from his stepfather, actor Brett Assange, whom he regards as his father.

From an early age, Assange showed an interest in computers. By age 16, he had begun hacking under the pseudonym "Mendax" and co-founded a group called "The International Subversives."

Julian Assange’s education

Julian Assange's educational path was unconventional and shaped by his early interest in computers and hacking. He enrolled at the University of Melbourne in 2003 to study programming, physics, and mathematics. However, he did not complete his degree.

At the university, he was known to keep a low profile and was deeply focused on computer science.

By the time he began formal studies, Assange had already built a reputation as a skilled hacker. During his teenage years, he was involved in several high-profile intrusions.

While incomplete, his formal education contributed to the technical foundation that would later support his work with WikiLeaks and his role as a global advocate for transparency and information freedom.

Legal trouble

In 1991, Assange was caught hacking into the Melbourne master terminal of Nortel, a Canadian telecom firm.

In 1994, he was charged with 31 hacking-related crimes. He pleaded guilty to 24 charges in 1996 and was released on a good behavior bond.

Return to Australia

Julian Assange returned to Australia in June 2024 after striking a plea deal with the US government that ended a 14-year legal battle.

He pleaded guilty to a single charge of unlawfully obtaining and disclosing national defense information and was sentenced to time already served.

Assange had spent nearly five years in a British high-security prison after being removed from Ecuador’s London embassy in 2019, where he had sought asylum since 2012 to avoid extradition.

How is his life now?

Since returning to Australia in June 2024, Julian Assange has focused on rebuilding a quieter, ordinary life after 14 years of legal battles and incarceration. His wife, Stella, described how he plans to "rediscover normal life", swimming in the ocean daily, sleeping in a real bed, and enjoying real food, an experience he has long denied.

According to The Daily Guardian, Assange is spending time with his family in a private setting, gradually adjusting to renewed freedom while avoiding the public eye.

More than six months after his release, supporters and family say he is slowly reclaiming everyday life: watching his young sons grow, appreciating quiet moments, and stepping into Australian coastal life near the shoreline