In a groundbreaking moment for Silicon Valley, three 22-year-old entrepreneurs — Brendan Foody, Adarsh Hiremath, and Surya Midha — have become the world’s youngest self-made billionaires after their artificial intelligence (AI) recruiting startup, Mercor, achieved a staggering $10 billion valuation. This milestone not only redefines the boundaries of youthful ambition in the tech world but also dethrones Mark Zuckerberg, who became a billionaire at 23, two decades ago.
The Rise of Mercor: From a College Project to a $10 Billion Powerhouse
Founded in 2023, Mercor began as a platform designed to connect talented engineers in India with U.S.-based companies looking for freelance coders. However, as the AI revolution gained momentum, the trio quickly pivoted the company’s focus toward data labeling and AI talent recruitment — two of the most critical yet overlooked aspects of AI development.
Today, Mercor serves as a key partner for major AI labs, helping them find and train human data labelers who refine machine learning models. The platform uses AI avatars to conduct interviews with applicants, optimizing the hiring process while maintaining scalability.
In October 2025, Mercor announced a $350 million funding round led by Felicis Ventures, with participation from Benchmark, General Catalyst, and Robinhood Ventures. The investment pushed the company’s valuation to $10 billion, instantly placing each of its three founders on Forbes’ list of the youngest billionaires — each holding approximately 22% equity in the startup.
The Young Minds Behind the Revolution
All three founders — Foody, Hiremath, and Midha — hail from the Bay Area and share a common origin story rooted in friendship and intellectual curiosity. The trio first met while competing together on their high school debate team. Each of them grew up in tech-centric families — their parents were software engineers, startup advisors, and tech professionals who shaped their early understanding of innovation.
Their academic paths were similarly ambitious. Adarsh Hiremath attended Harvard, where he researched labor markets under the guidance of Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary and current OpenAI board member. Summers later became one of Mercor’s early investors. Surya Midha and Brendan Foody, meanwhile, were accepted into Peter Thiel’s Fellowship program, receiving $100,000 grants to drop out of college and build their company full-time.
“The thing that’s crazy for me is, if I weren’t working on Mercor, I would have just graduated college a couple months ago,” Hiremath told Forbes. “My life did such a 180 in such a short period of time.”
The Fast Lane to Billionaire Status
Mercor’s explosive growth has been nothing short of meteoric. Within just two years, the startup grew its annual revenue run rate from $100 million to $500 million, reflecting the massive demand for AI talent and data-labeling services.
The company’s success comes at a time when the AI industry is undergoing dramatic shifts. In mid-2025, Meta made headlines by acquiring 49% of Scale AI — one of Mercor’s biggest rivals — for $14 billion. The move sent shockwaves across the industry and motivated smaller firms like Mercor to capture market share from companies perceived as “too tied” to corporate interests.
Mercor quickly became known for its agility, innovative hiring models, and unmatched speed of scaling. Its clients reportedly include major AI labs such as OpenAI and Anthropic, who rely on the platform for skilled data annotators and engineers.
Success, Scrutiny, and a Legal Battle
With rapid success, however, came controversy. In September 2025, Scale AI filed a lawsuit against Mercor, alleging that the company stole trade secrets and confidential data through a former Scale employee who joined Mercor. The suit accused the startup of receiving over 100 internal documents from the ex-employee.
Despite the allegations, CEO Brendan Foody has remained unfazed. “It’s not something we spend a lot of time thinking about,” he said. “Our focus has always been on innovation and building the best possible team.”
Legal experts suggest that the lawsuit could become one of the most-watched cases in the AI industry, as it highlights the increasing tension between fast-scaling startups and established tech giants.
The Next Generation of Tech Billionaires
Mercor’s founders have officially surpassed not only Mark Zuckerberg’s record but also those of other young billionaires such as Alexandr Wang of Scale AI (who reached billionaire status at 28) and Lucy Guo, who became the youngest self-made woman billionaire at 30.
What makes their story even more remarkable is their grounded attitude toward success. Despite their immense wealth, all three founders claim to live modestly. “I leave the office around 10:30 p.m. most nights,” Foody said. “There’s not much time to be distracted by anything outside of the business.”
Their work ethic mirrors that of early tech icons like Elon Musk and Zuckerberg, whose obsessive focus on innovation helped define previous tech eras. But unlike their predecessors, the Mercor founders are part of a generation that grew up immersed in the age of AI — giving them a unique advantage in understanding its potential and pitfalls.
The Future of Mercor and the AI Industry
Mercor’s rise represents more than just a success story — it’s a symbol of a new phase in Silicon Valley where AI-native entrepreneurs are replacing the software and social media pioneers of the past.
With global AI spending expected to surpass $400 billion by 2030, Mercor’s position as a leading recruiter and data-labeling firm puts it at the center of the industry’s growth. Its next challenge will be maintaining innovation while scaling responsibly amid rising competition and regulatory scrutiny.
For now, however, Foody, Hiremath, and Midha stand as symbols of a generational shift — young, brilliant, and unafraid to disrupt the world’s most powerful industry before they’ve even turned 23.
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