Who is 28-year-old billionaire Austin Russell, new owner of Forbes
Media powerhouse Forbes Global Media Holdings has a new owner: 28-year-old billionaire Austin Russell. He acquired the company that publishes the famous Forbes Magazine in a deal that values it at $800 million. Forbes was owned by Hong Kong-based Integrated Whale Media, which acquired the firm from the Forbes family in 2014. Let's take a look at who the young owner of Forbes is.
Why does this story matter?
Russell has acquired Forbes at a time when media companies around the world are struggling. The slowdown has affected some of the biggest names in the industry, including Disney, Vice Media, and BuzzFeed. The acquisition, however, is a relief for Integrated Whale Media, which has been trying to sell Forbes for many years. It needs to be seen how it pans out.
Russell got his first patent at 15
Born on March 14, 1995, in Newport Beach, California, United States, Russell's love for science started at an early age. At 11, he turned his family's garage into an optics and electrical research laboratory. Two years later, he made his first invention—a technology to recycle groundwater coming through sprinklers. Russell patented the technology when he was 15.
Dropped out of Stanford soon after joining
Russell made his biggest move when he was a little shy of 17 and still in high school. He founded a company called Luminar to help self-driving cars avoid collisions. In 2013, a year after founding Luminar, he joined Stanford University. His stint there was shortlived, as he dropped out after winning $100,000 from the Thiel Fellowship.
Luminar went public in 2020
Dropping out of Stanford helped Russell focus on Luminar full-time. The company specializes in developing vision-based LiDAR (light detection and ranging) and machine perception technologies. The two-year Thiel Fellowship allowed him to focus on developing a high-powered LiDAR scanner. Luminar Technologies spent its first five years in stealth mode. In 2020, the company was taken public through a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC).
Youngest self-made billionaire in the world
Luminar and Russell had a dream debut in the market. The company was valued at $3.4 billion when it hit Wall Street. Russell, who owned one-third of Luminar's equity, soon became a billionaire. Interestingly, Forbes Magazine itself described him as the world's "youngest self-made billionaire" in 20121 According to the Hurun Global U40 list, he is still the youngest self-made billionaire in the world.
His $83M Los Angeles mansion appeared in 'Succession'
Russell's experience in the media world precedes his acquisition of Forbes. In 2021, he bought an $83M mansion in Los Angeles, which has since been featured in the hit HBO series Succession. He is also interested in philanthropy. Last year, the Luminar CEO donated $4 million to Team Seas, an international fundraiser started by American YouTubers MrBeast and Mark Rober, to help conserve oceans.
