As of December 2024[update], she has a net worth of US$42.1 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index; owning a 4% stake in Amazon.

[10] Scott made $5.8 billion in charitable gifts in 2020, one of the largest annual distributions by a private individual to working charities.

[15] She was named after her maternal grandfather, G. Scott Cuming, who worked as an executive and general counsel at El Paso Natural Gas.

[17] She also worked in New York City in an administrative role for hedge fund D. E. Shaw, where she met Jeff Bezos.

She said that the book took her ten years to write as she was helping Bezos build Amazon and raising her family.

[20] Toni Morrison, her former professor, reviewed the book as "a rarity: a sophisticated novel that breaks and swells the heart".

[26] By September 2020, Scott was named the world's richest woman, and by December 2020, her net worth was estimated at $62 billion.

"[40] Scott's 2020 charitable giving totaled $5.8 billion, one of the largest annual distributions by a private individual to working charities.

[51] Scott has also made donations to organizations in Kenya, India, Brazil, Micronesia, and Latin America.

[15] In September 2022, Scott donated two of her Beverly Hills homes, worth a combined $55 million, to the California Community Foundation (CCF), which provides grants to mission-based nonprofits in Los Angeles.

The organization intended to sell both homes and use 90% of the earnings to fund affordable housing initiatives and direct the other 10% to an immigrant integration program.

[14] In March 2023, Scott announced an "open call" for community-focused nonprofits with annual budgets between $1 and $5 million[55] that she could fund.

[63] Forbes reported, "the unrestricted and ultimately more trusting nature of Scott's philanthropy is the exception, not the norm in their world.

"[64] Scott stated she believed "teams with experience on the front lines of challenges will know best how to put the money to good use.

"[40][65] According to a report from the Center for Effective Philanthropy, slightly more than half of the 277 nonprofit organizations surveyed stated that their grant from Scott has made fundraising easier, with some saying they are able to use it as leverage with other donors and the large gift "has enabled organizations to focus funds where they were most needed to achieve their mission.

"[14] According to Senior Vice President of the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, Renee Karibi-Whyte, competitions like Scott's open call can help organizations who do not have connections with a specific funder get considered.

[55] In December 2021, Scott faced backlash for a Medium post when she stated she would not reveal how much money she has donated or to whom.