SAN FRANCISCO (Business 2.0 Magazine) - Any list of the most important people in business has to start with Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and a bunch of folks named Walton, right? They're the richest people on the planet, for Pete's sake. Just break out the rubber stamps and be done with it.

Sorry, not this list. The names presented here weren't selected on the basis of fame, net worth, or the accomplishments of yesteryear.

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(Click here to see a photo gallery of the full list.)

Instead, our goal was to identify people whose ideas, products, and business insights are changing the world we live in today - those who are reshaping our future by inventing important new technologies, exploiting emerging opportunities, or throwing their weight around in ways that are sure to make everyone else take notice.

In assembling this list, we emphasized one key question: What have you done for us lately? We also considered its important corollary: What will you do for us tomorrow?

To nominate and ratify the 50, we drew on the collective wisdom of our entire editorial staff: people with deep knowledge of the important players and latest trends in management, entrepreneurship, biotech, big iron, and just plain counterintuitive thinking. It was a contentious exercise marked by the frequent raising of voices and much stamping of feet.

But when the dust settled, our highly subjective exercise revealed a remarkable who's who of contemporary business. Many of the names and rankings will be surprising. Some will no doubt be controversial.

But in the end, we hope you'll agree that the people profiled here tell us a lot about the world we live in today, and the challenges and opportunities we'll all confront in the years ahead.

See the full list and a photo gallery.

Related:

• 10 People who don't matter
• Quiz: Do you know who matters?

Did we miss anyone? Tell us who you think matters.