Meet the 22-Year-Old College Dropouts Who Became the World’s Youngest Self-Made Billionaires
At just 22 years old, Brendan Foody, Adarsh Hiremath, and Surya Midha have done what most can only dream of — join the billionaire ranks before finishing college. The trio behind Mercor, an AI-powered recruitment startup, have officially become the world’s youngest self-made billionaires, surpassing Mark Zuckerberg’s record by a year. Their company recently hit a staggering $10 billion valuation following a $350 million funding round, as reported by Forbes.
From School Friends to Startup Founders
The story of Mercor’s founders traces back to Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose, where Hiremath and Midha met as debate partners. Their shared passion for innovation and technology eventually brought them together with Foody, whom they met at Georgetown University. What started as academic collaboration soon evolved into a vision that would transform the recruitment landscape through artificial intelligence.
The Leap of Faith: Dropping Out to Build a Dream
While most of their peers were preparing for finals, these three took a leap of faith. Hiremath, of Indian origin, left Harvard University, where he was studying computer science. Midha, majoring in international relations at Georgetown, and Foody, an economics student at the same university, both decided to drop out when Mercor began gaining traction. “If I weren’t working on Mercor, I would have just graduated college a couple of months ago,” Hiremath told Forbes. “My life did such a 180 in such a short time.”
The Power of the Thiel Fellowship
All three founders are Thiel Fellows, recipients of billionaire Peter Thiel’s $100,000 grant that supports young entrepreneurs who choose to forgo traditional education to pursue groundbreaking ideas. The fellowship gave them not only financial backing but also access to mentorship, resources, and a global network of innovators — accelerating Mercor’s path from a dorm-room project to a multi-billion-dollar company.
Mercor’s Vision: AI Meets the Hiring World
Mercor’s mission is simple yet revolutionary — use AI to redefine how companies hire talent. The platform leverages advanced machine learning to match job seekers with employers based on skillsets, performance patterns, and behavioral data. Its algorithm can assess compatibility faster and more accurately than conventional recruitment models, saving companies time and money while expanding opportunities for candidates worldwide.
The startup’s approach has been hailed as a game-changer in a post-pandemic world where hiring efficiency and remote talent pools dominate corporate priorities. With major venture capital firms backing its recent round, Mercor is positioning itself as the “OpenAI of recruitment.”
Surpassing Zuckerberg: The New Face of Gen Z Billionaires
By achieving billionaire status at 22, the Mercor founders have outpaced Mark Zuckerberg, who joined the club at 23 after Facebook’s early success. Their story is part of a broader shift in Silicon Valley — one where Gen Z entrepreneurs are challenging norms, experimenting with bold ideas, and leveraging AI as their central growth engine.
The rise of Foody, Hiremath, and Midha also follows a growing trend of young innovators reshaping the tech industry, joining names like Shayne Coplan of Polymarket and Alexandr Wang of Scale AI. But unlike others, the Mercor trio’s journey stands out for its collaborative spirit — three minds working as one, building an empire from a shared belief in the power of technology to connect people and opportunity.
What’s Next for Mercor and Its Founders
With a $10 billion valuation and a fresh influx of capital, Mercor plans to scale its AI hiring solutions globally, targeting both enterprise clients and emerging startups. Insiders say the company is developing a next-gen conversational AI layer that will enable recruiters to interact with the system naturally, further automating the hiring process.
As for the trio, they’ve shown no sign of slowing down. For them, Mercor isn’t just a business — it’s a movement. Their vision echoes a new era of entrepreneurship where youth, technology, and courage converge to rewrite what success looks like.
