Meet This 28-Year-Old MIT Dropout With Rs 31,000 Cr Net Worth — And Why Meta Is Chasing Him For Its Big AI Dream

At just 28, Alexandr Wang has become one of the most important names in artificial intelligence. As of June 13, 2025, Forbes estimates his net worth at $3.6 billion (about Rs 30,960 crore), making him one of the youngest self-made billionaires in the world.

In a major deal, Meta (the parent company of Facebook) has invested $14.3 billion (Rs 1.23 lakh crore) to buy a 49% stake in Wang’s company, Scale AI. This investment values the startup at $29 billion (Rs 2.49 lakh crore), according to Reuters.

This is Meta’s second-biggest deal ever after WhatsApp, and it places Alexandr Wang right at the centre of Meta’s big plans for artificial intelligence.

From Small Town to Silicon Valley

Born in Los Alamos, New Mexico, to Chinese immigrant physicists, Wang showed early signs of brilliance. He excelled in math and science competitions, becoming a finalist in the US Physics Team and USACO (USA Computing Olympiad).

He started working as a software engineer in Silicon Valley during his teenage years, with stints at Addepar and Quora, before briefly attending MIT.

But Wang had bigger plans. In 2016, at just 19, he dropped out of MIT to launch Scale AI through the Y Combinator accelerator. His goal? To help companies turn raw data into valuable AI training inputs.

Today, Scale helps giants like General Motors and the US military with data labelling, model evaluation, and AI safety.

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Building a Billion-Dollar Empire

In less than a decade, Wang transformed Scale into one of the most important companies powering AI development. The company uses platforms like Remotasks to manage thousands of gig workers who label massive amounts of data — a crucial step for training AI models like ChatGPT.

By 2024, Scale was already valued at $14 billion, with backing from tech titans like Nvidia, Amazon, and Meta.

Now, with this latest Meta deal, Wang’s influence is set to grow even further. While he remains on Scale’s board, he and a few top team members are moving to Meta to work on its superintelligence efforts, a strategic shift as Meta tries to compete with the likes of OpenAI and Google.

A Leader in AI — and on the Global Stage

Wang isn't just a tech builder; he's also a recognised voice in AI policy. He has testified before the US Congress, helped shape AI strategy for the Pentagon, and even attended global forums like the World Economic Forum.

In February 2025, Alexandr Wang met with several world leaders, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, French President Emmanuel Macron, and US House Speaker Mike Johnson. He spoke with them about the need for global cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence.

Wang also made headlines with his strong stance on merit-based hiring. He introduced MEI (Merit, Excellence, and Intelligence) hiring at Scale, positioning it as an alternative to traditional DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) models.