Youngest Self-Made Billionaires from Silicon Valley

In a remarkable achievement, three 22-year-old friends from Silicon Valley have become the world's youngest self-made billionaires. Brendan Foody, Adarsh Hiremath, and Surya Midha, co-founders of the AI recruiting platform Mercor, reached this milestone after their company secured $350 million in funding, bringing its valuation to $10 billion. This accomplishment surpasses that of Meta co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, who became a billionaire at the age of 23.

Each founder holds approximately 22 percent of Mercor, resulting in a net worth exceeding $2 billion for each of them. Foody serves as the CEO, Hiremath, whose parents are from Karnataka, is the CTO, and Midha, whose family hails from New Delhi, is the board chairman.

The trio's journey began at Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, where they developed their skills through national debate tournaments. "We were always arguing about the future of work," Foody shared in a recent interview. After high school, they attended prestigious universities: Foody at Georgetown for economics, Hiremath at Harvard for computer science, and Midha at Georgetown for foreign service. They reunited in Silicon Valley to launch Mercor in early 2023, even while studying.

Initially, Mercor aimed to connect skilled software engineers in India with U.S. startups needing remote assistance. However, the company quickly pivoted to focus on the growing demand for AI services, automating recruitment and providing a global network of vetted contractors. Mercor now has over 30,000 specialists in various fields, including law, medicine, finance, and engineering, who assist in tasks that require human judgment.

Major clients, such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind, utilize Mercor to find the talent necessary for advancing AI technology. The company operates with a lean team of 30, with a median age of just 22. Hiremath envisions a unified global labor marketplace by 2035, aiming to match every individual with suitable jobs seamlessly.

Mercor's growth has been rapid, with annualized revenue soaring from $100 million to $500 million in just a few months. The founders, who received the Thiel Fellowship's $100,000 grant for skipping college, have accelerated their funding rounds significantly. Following a $32 million Series A in September 2024 and a $100 million Series B in February 2025, the company was recognized as one of the fastest-growing startups in Silicon Valley. The recent acquisition of Scale AI by Meta further boosted Mercor's growth potential, leading to the latest $350 million Series C funding, solidifying their status in the billionaire's club.