The yacht industry reinvents itself: Silicon Valley billionaires are replacing the oligarchs as buyers - and are demanding a new layout for their ships.

Sometimes it really depends on the size. In Monaco, every meter counts, where until Saturday at Port Hercules the yachting industry let their muscles play. There are many festivals for floating treasures. But none is as dazzling as that in the Principality on the Côte d'Azur.

121 super yachts worth a total of € 3 billion will be anchored during the Monaco Yacht Show with an average length of 51 meters. In the three years before, it was constantly at 49.5 meters.

There are not only changes in size, but also in the buyer's shifts. By 2040, according to a study carried out by the University of Monaco (IUM) on behalf of the Italian manufacturer Rossinavi, the average age of the yachts' owners from the current 45 to 55 years will rejuvenate to 35 to 45 years. Already today, 20 percent of the currently almost 1,250 billionaires are under 50 - and thus ten to fifteen years younger than in the nineties.

The demographic change shakes many constants that have determined the yacht building so far. The Millennials do not just want to lie in a sun lounger in the sun or smoke cigars on heavy, leather club chairs. For customers increasingly coming from Silicon Valley or the tech industries of Asia have very different interests than the oligarchs who have distinguished themselves for decades as yacht owners: they want to be active with friends, doing fitness and yoga exercises both indoors and outdoors Outdoor area.

The Yachtshow itself is and remains an impressive event in Monaco.