Austin Russell (entrepreneur) explained

Austin Russell
Birth Date:14 March 1995[1]
Birth Place:Newport Beach, California[2]
Education:Stanford University (dropped out)

Austin Russell (born March 14, 1995) is an American entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Luminar Technologies.[3] Luminar specializes in lidar and machine perception technologies, mainly used in autonomous cars. Luminar went public in December 2020, making him a billionaire at the age of 25.[4] Beween May and November 2023, Russell was negotiating a contract to become the majority owner of Forbes.

Early life and education

Russell grew up in Newport Beach, California.[5] At age 15, Russell applied for his first patent for a groundwater recycling system to reuse water from sprinklers.[6] When he was 15, Russell's parents introduced him to laser entrepreneur Jason Eichenholz, who became Russell's mentor and later joined Luminar as co-founder[7] and chief technology officer.[8]

He graduated from St. Margaret's Episcopal School in 2013.[9] He also studied at the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California, Irvine[10] while in high school.[10] Russell has said that he often teaches himself new skills from Wikipedia articles and YouTube videos.[11]

Luminar

Russell founded Luminar in 2012[12] while he was still in high school,[13] shortly before turning 17.[2] After graduating from high school, he attended Stanford University for three months,[14] taking courses in applied physics.[15] Russell won $100,000 from the Thiel Fellowship in 2013, leading him to drop out[16] [12] and focus on Luminar full-time.[17]

The company spent its first five years in stealth mode.[18] Rather than purchasing components, Russell engineered and manufactured Luminar's lidar components himself.[19] [20]

On December 3, 2020, Luminar went public,[21] trading on the Nasdaq as LAZR.[13] Russell's 104.7 million shares, roughly one-third of Luminar's equity, were worth $2.4 billion at the close of trading on December 3,[22] making Russell the world's youngest billionaire.[23] [24] He also became chairman of the company at this time.[21]

Despite early criticism from Elon Musk, who previously referred to lidar technology as a "fools errand," Tesla spent around $2 million on lidar tech, according to a 2024 quarterly earnings report from Luminar.[25]

Forbes

In May 2023, Russell entered into negotiations to acquire an 82percent stake in Forbes, valuing the company at $800million.[26] If the transaction had proceeded, his majority stake would have included the remaining portion of the company owned by the Forbes family, which was not previously sold to Hong Kong-based investor group Integrated Whale Media.[27] According to The Washington Post, a Kremlin-connected tycoon has claimed to be behind the purchase [28] and has suggested a variety of motives, including the intent to conceal his involvement.https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/10/20/forbes-sale-musaev-russia/ In November 2023, it was revealed the deal had collapsed due to Russell’s failure to secure the necessary funds.

Philanthropy

On January 1, 2022, Russell donated $4 million to Team Seas, allowing the fundraiser to reach its goal of $30 million raised.[29] In 2021, he donated $70 million to the Central Florida Foundation, ranking him among the top 50 philanthropists globally, that year.[30]

Recognition

Notes and References

  1. Web site: This 22-Year-Old CEO Wants To Help Make Self-Driving Cars Affordable. live. April 16, 2022. Forbes. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20220416085740/https://www.fastcompany.com/40406052/this-sensor-technology-ceo-wants-to-be-in-self-driving-cars-by-his-26th-birthday . April 16, 2022 .
  2. News: Where a Young Billionaire Learned Some Old Lessons . live. April 16, 2022. Wall Street Journal. March 20, 2021 . en. https://web.archive.org/web/20220416085933/https://www.wsj.com/articles/where-a-young-billionaire-learned-some-old-lessons-11616212826. April 16, 2022 . Lublin . Joann S. .
  3. Web site: How The World's Youngest Self-Made Billionaire Built His Fortune. live. January 2, 2022. Forbes. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20220102205449/https://www.forbes.com/video/6214914248001/how-the-worlds-youngest-selfmade-billionaire-built-his-fortune/?sh=6d6e95c36c6d . January 2, 2022 .
  4. Web site: Austin Russell. live. January 2, 2022. Fortune. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20220102205449/https://www.forbes.com/video/6214914248001/how-the-worlds-youngest-selfmade-billionaire-built-his-fortune/?sh=6d6e95c36c6d . January 2, 2022 .
  5. News: Where a Young Billionaire Learned Some Old Lessons . live. April 16, 2022. Wall Street Journal. March 20, 2021 . en. https://web.archive.org/web/20220416085933/https://www.wsj.com/articles/where-a-young-billionaire-learned-some-old-lessons-11616212826. April 16, 2022 . Lublin . Joann S. .
  6. Web site: World's Youngest Billionaire, 26-Year-Old Owes It All To Wikipedia & YouTube. live. January 5, 2022. Indiatimes. April 8, 2021 . en. https://web.archive.org/web/20210408112118/https://www.indiatimes.com/technology/news/worlds-youngest-billionaire-austin-russell-wikipedia-youtube-537847.html . April 8, 2021 .
  7. News: McFarland . Matt . Volvo is the latest automaker to bet on this 23-year-old's startup . January 2, 2022 . CNNMoney . June 14, 2018.
  8. News: Soderstrom . Alex . Luminar to go public following multibillion-dollar merger . January 2, 2022 . Orlando Business Journal . August 25, 2020.
  9. Web site: 2013 top graduate: Austin Russell. Elysse. James. June 16, 2013. Orange County Register. August 8, 2020.
  10. News: Ohnsman . Alan . A 22-Year-Old CEO Has A Vision For Making Self-Driving Cars A Reality . April 16, 2022 . Forbes . April 13, 2017 . en.
  11. News: Khanna . Monit . World's Youngest Billionaire, 26-Year-Old Owes It All To Wikipedia & YouTube . December 7, 2021 . IndiaTimes . April 8, 2021 . en-IN.
  12. News: Vogel . Mike . Orlando's self-driving startup, Luminar Technologies . April 16, 2022 . Florida Trend . August 26, 2019.
  13. News: Rosenbaum . Eric . Luminar going public makes 25-year-old Austin Russell one of world's first, and youngest, self-driving billionaires . December 7, 2021 . CNBC . December 3, 2020 . en.
  14. News: Luminar thinks its lidar for driverless cars can leave Waymo's and Uber's in the dust . December 7, 2021 . Los Angeles Times . Associated Press . April 13, 2017.
  15. News: Said . Carolyn . Luminar makes lidar sensors to help self-driving cars see farther . December 8, 2021 . SFGate . April 13, 2017.
  16. Web site: Peter Thiel Is Giving These 20 Teenagers $100,000 To Drop Out Of School And Start A Company. Megan Rose Dickey. May 9, 2013. Business Insider. August 8, 2020.
  17. News: Blasi . Weston . This 25-year-old is now a billionaire, after his self-driving car company Luminar went public . December 7, 2021 . MarketWatch . December 4, 2020 . EN-US.
  18. Book: Gilder, George. Life after Google: The Fall of Big Data and the Rise of the Blockchain Economy. 2018. Simon & Schuster. 9781621575764. July 17, 2020.
  19. Web site: 22-Year-Old Lidar Whiz Claims Breakthrough. Phillip E. Ross. May 19, 2017. IEEE Spectrum. July 17, 2020.
  20. Web site: This 22-Year-Old CEO Wants To Help Make Self-Driving Cars Affordable. Captain, Sean. April 14, 2017. Fast Company. July 17, 2020.
  21. Web site: Luminar Rises in Market Debut, Making 25-Year-Old Founder a Billionaire. Matt . Grossman. December 3, 2020. Wall Street Journal. January 5, 2021.
  22. Web site: Meet The World's Newest—And Youngest— Billionaire: Luminar's Austin Russell. Ohnsman. Alan. Sternlichtsher. Alexandra. December 3, 2020. Forbes. January 4, 2021.
  23. News: Patel . Nilay . The 25-year-old billionaire building the future of self-driving cars . December 7, 2021 . The Verge . March 2, 2021 . en.
  24. News: Ohnsman . Alan . How Austin Russell Became The Youngest Billionaire . December 8, 2021 . Forbes . April 9, 2021 . en.
  25. Web site: Altchek . Ana . Tesla quietly spent $2 million on a technology Elon Musk previously trashed as a 'fool's errand' . 2024-05-22 . Business Insider . en-US.
  26. Web site: Fischer . Sara . May 12, 2023 . Forbes acquired by Luminar Technologies' Austin Russell . Axios.
  27. News: Bruell . Alexandra . May 12, 2023 . Automotive Tech Billionaire Austin Russell to Acquire Majority Stake in Forbes . The Wall Street Journal.
  28. News: Belton . Catherine . Frankel . Todd C. . Dwoskin . Elizabeth . October 20, 2023 . Russian tycoon claims he is behind Forbes purchase, audiotapes show . en-US . Washington Post . October 24, 2023 . 0190-8286.
  29. News: Singh . Vitasta . MrBeast's TeamSeas Reaches Its 30 Million Target Thanks to a Surprise Benefactor . January 6, 2022 . Full Spectrum Services LLP . EssentiallySports . January 2, 2022.
  30. Web site: 26-Year-Old's $70 Million Donation Puts Him on the List of Top Donors of 2021 . The Chronicle of Philanthropy . July 6, 2023.
  31. Web site: Pioneers. Jamie Condliffe. 2017. MIT Technology Review. August 8, 2020.
  32. Web site: 30 Under 30 Youngest. Forbes Staff. 2018. Forbes. August 8, 2020.
  33. News: Austin Russell – 2021 40 Under 40 . December 14, 2021 . Fortune . 2021 . en.
  34. News: Priddle . Alisa . The 2022 MotorTrend Power List Is Here! . December 14, 2021 . MotorTrend . December 13, 2021 . en.

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