VOI World/ Desk
Indian-American entrepreneurs Adarsh Hiremath and Surya Midha have made history by becoming the world’s youngest self-made billionaires at just 22 years old. Along with their high-school friend Brendan Foody, they co-founded Mercor – an AI-powered hiring platform headquartered in San Francisco – which recently raised $350 million in a funding round, pushing its valuation to $10 billion.
Mercor connects companies with skilled experts for AI-training tasks and has rapidly emerged as a global force in the tech-recruitment space. Hiremath and Midha, both of Indian origin, leveraged their backgrounds in debate, computer science and foreign studies, dropping out of college to build their company.
Their achievement overtakes the milestone previously held by Mark Zuckerberg, who became a self-made billionaire at 23 in 2008, underscoring a generational shift in innovation and wealth-creation.
The milestone holds broader significance for India and the Indian-diaspora ecosystem. It highlights the role of Indian heritage in global tech entrepreneurship, as well as the convergence of education, startup culture and capital in producing impactful innovation. For India, the story aligns with ambitions under Indian PM Modi to nurture global talent and deepen the country’s presence in the international tech-economy.
This narrative may inspire a new wave of Indian entrepreneurs eyeing global technology markets – proving that at 22, ambition backed by vision can also conquer billions.
