Eric Yuan

Eric Subrah Yuan[3] (Chinese: 袁征; pinyin: Yuán Zhēng; born 1970) is a Chinese-born American billionaire businessman, and the CEO and founder of Zoom Video Communications, of which he owns 22%.[4]

In this Chinese name, the family name is Yuan (袁).
Eric S. Yuan
Born (1970-02-20) 20 February 1970[1]
Tai'an, Shandong, China
CitizenshipUnited States[2]
Alma materShandong University of Science and Technology (BS)
China University of Mining and Technology
OccupationBusinessman
Net worthUS$15 billion (January 2021)[2]
TitleFounder and CEO, Zoom Video Communications
Spouse(s)Married since 1991 or 1992
Children3
Eric Yuan
Chinese袁征

Early life

Yuan is the son of geology engineers.[5] He was born and raised in Tai'an, Shandong Province, China.[6][7] In 4th grade, Yuan collected construction scraps to recycle copper for cash.[6]

As a first-year university student in 1987, he was inspired to develop videotelephony software while he took 10-hour train rides to visit his girlfriend and was looking for an easier way to "visit" her.[8][7] He earned a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics with a minor in computer application from Shandong University of Science and Technology,[9] and a master's degree in geology engineering from China University of Mining and Technology in Beijing.[10][11] Yuan completed a Stanford University executive program in 2006.[6][12][13]

Career

After earning his master's degree, Yuan lived in Beijing,[14] and attended a training program in Japan for four months.[11] Inspired by Bill Gates, who spoke in Japan in 1995, he moved to Silicon Valley in 1997 to join the tech boom.[8][15] At the time, Yuan spoke very little English, and applied nine times before being granted a visa to the United States.[7][16]

Upon arriving in the US, Yuan joined WebEx, a web conferencing startup, where he was one of the first 20 hires.[6][5] The company was acquired by Cisco Systems in 2007, at which time he became vice president of engineering.[7] In 2011, Yuan pitched a new smartphone-friendly video conferencing system to Cisco management.[17] When the idea was rejected, Yuan left Cisco to establish his own company, Zoom Video Communications.[7]

In 2019, Zoom became a public company via an initial public offering,[18] at which time Yuan became a billionaire.[6][2] His wealth has increased during COVID-19 pandemic, as Zoom has benefited from the shift to online work and teaching.[19] On September 1, 2020, Yuan's net worth was estimated to be US$16.4 billion, a figure 360% higher than his net worth at the beginning of the year.[20]

Personal life

Yuan married his girlfriend Sherry at age 22, while he was a master's student at China University of Mining and Technology in Beijing.[6] They have three children. Yuan and his family live in Santa Clara, California.[2] In 2007, Yuan became a naturalized American citizen.[21]

Yuan chose the middle name "Subrah" after Subrah Iyar, cofounder of WebEx.[3]

Recognition

Yuan was named the 2020 Time Businessperson of the Year,[22] and was included in the Time 100 Most Influential People of 2020.[23]

References
  1. "Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Eric Yuan". Bloomberg. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  2. "Forbes profile: Eric Yuan & family". Forbes. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  3. FE Bureau (8 August 2020). "India is Zoom's second-largest market after US: CEO Eric Yuan". www.financialexpress.com.
  4. Pendleton, Devon (21 March 2020). "The rise of social distancing during coronavirus pandemic pushes Zoom founder's net worth up by $2 billion in 2020". www.fortune.com.
  5. Sarlin, Jon (22 May 2020). "Everyone you know uses Zoom. That wasn't the plan". CNN. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  6. Konrad, Alex (May 31, 2019). "Zoom, Zoom, Zoom! The Exclusive Inside Story Of The New Billionaire Behind Tech's Hottest IPO". Forbes.
  7. Weiner, Yitzi (October 2, 2017). "The Inspiring Backstory of Eric S. Yuan, Founder and CEO of Zoom". Medium.
  8. Huddleston Jr., Tom (April 18, 2019). "A Bill Gates speech inspired Zoom founder to start an internet business—now he's a billionaire". CNBC.
  9. Rogers, Bruce (24 April 2017). "Eric Yuan Builds Cloud Conferencing Company Zoom To Create Satisfied Customers". Forbes. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  10. Waters, Richard (5 June 2020). "Eric Yuan, a tech boss riding a geopolitical storm". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  11. "2020 Great Immigrants Recipient: Eric Yuan". Carnegie.org. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  12. Stone, Brett (2020-03-29). "A Biography of Eric Yuan, Founder and CEO of Zoom". Medium. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  13. "Lunar New Year Social Mixer with Eric Yuan, CEO/Zoom". Stanford.edu. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  14. High, Peter (6 March 2017). "Zoom CEO's Promise To His Wife Helped Inspire A $1B Company". Forbes. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  15. "Zoom's Blank Check: What To Do When You Have An Expensive Stock And No Moats". Seeking Alpha. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  16. Levy, Ari (April 19, 2020). "Zoom's CEO emigrated from China 22 years ago and spoke little English — now he's worth almost $3 billion". CNBC.
  17. Rogers, Taylor Nicole (April 1, 2020). "Meet Eric Yuan, the founder and CEO of Zoom, who has made nearly $4 billion in 3 months as usage of his video conferencing software skyrockets amid the coronavirus pandemic". Business Insider.
  18. Griffith, Erin (18 April 2019). "I.P.O. Day for Pinterest and Zoom Ends With Shares Sharply Higher". New York Times. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  19. Grant, Nico (31 August 2020). "Zoom CEO's Wealth Jumps $5.2 Billion After Sales Crush Estimates". www.bloomberg.com.
  20. Rogers, Taylor Nicole (2020-09-02). "Zoom billionaire Eric Yuan made $5 billion in one day as the videoconference company reports record earnings". Business Insider Australia. Retrieved 2020-09-02.
  21. Yuan, Eric. "Navigating a New Chapter for Zoom". Zoom Blog. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  22. Chow, Andrew. "Businessperson of the Year: Eric Yuan". Time. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
  23. "Eric Yuan: The 100 Most Influential People of 2020". Time. Retrieved 2020-09-23.
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