Zach Yadegari, the 18-year-old founder and CEO of a $30 million startup, recently disclosed being rejected by several Ivy League schools and other top American universities.
Despite a 4.0 GPA, a 34 ACT score, and a résumé that includes founding a high-revenue tech company, the young founder of nutrition tracking app, Cal AI, was rejected by several Ivy League colleges, including Harvard, Stanford, and Yale.
Cal AI app allows people to track calories by taking pictures of their food, making $30 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR).
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Cal AI CEO shares on X
In a post on X that has received up to 10 million views, the New York-based millionaire teen listed the prestigious schools that turned him down.
He also revealed being accepted by Georgia Tech, the University of Texas, and the University of Miami.
Many professionals, including Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, were surprised that the colleges rejected Yadegari, whose startup was hailed by Forbes as an app “that's challenging legacy industry giants.”
One user asked, “Wow this is so insane. Also just curious what’s your main motivation to still go to college when you’ve already done more than a lot of full time professionals?”
Yadegari replied, “My motivation of going to college is just to have a social life.”
Another commenter wrote, “Insanity, any institution would be lucky to have you. The admissions officer reading your app was probably jealous.”
Others questioned whether his tone or application essay influenced the outcome.
In response, the 18-year-old CEO shared his college essay online that detailed his journey from teaching himself coding at age seven, to earning $30/hour giving lessons at 10, launching a $60,000-a-year gaming website at 14, and exiting a six-figure business by 16.
He shed light on his decision to skip traditional high school and move to San Francisco to build Cal AI.
Reading the essay, one user commented, “Look man, your essay was worse than the ones that rich parents pay to have written for their kids. Also, they want leadership: building a business that impacts millions of people is nothing compared to saying you created a fake charity."
Responding to one of the many comments that came his way, the young entrepreneur said, “I’m not seeking skills. I’m seeking the ‘best four years of my life.’”
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