18-Year-Old Entrepreneur Faces Rejection from Top Universities Despite Success
18-Year-Old Entrepreneur Faces Rejection from Top Universities Despite Success
Nvidia founder tells Stanford students their high ...
Zach Yadegari, an 18-year-old high school student with a 4.0 GPA, co-founded the viral Cal AI app, which allows users to track calories by taking pictures of their food. Despite his impressive academic record and entrepreneurial success, Yadegari faced rejection from 15 out of 18 top universities he applied to, including prestigious institutions like Harvard, Yale, and Stanford.
Yadegari and his co-founder spent a summer at a hacker house in San Francisco developing the prototype for Cal AI, which has since generated $30 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR). His application included a 34 ACT score, a strong résumé, and a college essay detailing his journey from teaching himself to code at age seven to launching successful tech ventures by his mid-teens.
Despite the rejections, Yadegari was accepted by Georgia Tech, the University of Texas, and the University of Miami. He expressed that his motivation for attending college is to have a social experience, stating, "I’m not seeking skills. I’m seeking the ‘best four years of my life.’"
His story has sparked widespread discussion on social media, with many expressing surprise at the rejections and questioning the admissions processes of top universities. Notable figures, including Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, have commented on the situation, with some suggesting that Yadegari's achievements far exceed those of many full-time professionals.
Invite Gmail Contacts
