Particle.news
Download on the App Store
4 ARTICLES
·
yesterday

Mercor’s $10 Billion Valuation Makes Its 22-Year-Old Founders the Youngest Self-Made Billionaires

The surge follows a pivot from recruiting to data-labeling work for leading AI labs.

Adarsh Hiremath and Surya Midha, both 22, are high school friends who have become billionaires with Mercor.
Image
Image
Image

Overview

  • Mercor raised $350 million in a round led by Felicis Ventures with Benchmark, General Catalyst, and Robinhood participating, valuing the company at $10 billion.
  • Forbes reports that CEO Brendan Foody, CTO Adarsh Hiremath, and chairman Surya Midha are each about 22% owners at age 22, making them the world’s youngest self-made billionaires.
  • Founded in 2023 to match engineers in India with U.S. companies using AI avatar interviews, the startup shifted into data-labeling and training services for top AI developers, including work reported with OpenAI.
  • Mercor’s leadership says annualized revenue run rate climbed from $100 million in March to $500 million by September, figures disclosed by the company and reported by Forbes.
  • A September lawsuit by Scale AI accuses Mercor of trade-secret theft and alleges a former Scale executive shared more than 100 confidential documents after joining the startup.