Arash Ferdowsi (Persian: آرش فردوسی, born October 7, 1985) is an American billionaire entrepreneur. He is the co-founder of Dropbox.
Arash Ferdowsi | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Ferdowsi in 2023 | |
| Born | October 7, 1985 |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (dropped out) |
| Occupation(s) | Co-Founder, Dropbox |
Early life and education
editFerdowsi was born in Overland Park, Kansas, United States on 7 October 1985. He attended Blue Valley Northwest High School, a public high school in Overland Park, graduating first in his class in 2004.[1] Ferdowsi went on to study electrical engineering and computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), dropping out of his program in his last year to focus on his business.[2]
Family
editFerdowsi is the son of Iranian immigrants Gholam Ferdowsi (b. 1950) and Tahmineh "Tammy" Faridazar (b. 1959). Ferdowsi's father, a mortgage broker, is a native of Tabriz in northwestern Iran.[3] His parents settled in the United States following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, then met and married in 1984 while students at the University of Central Missouri and the University of Missouri–Kansas City, respectively.
Career
editFerdowsi launched Dropbox in June 2007 with his business partner, Drew Houston, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In September 2007, Ferdowsi moved his company to San Francisco and raised venture capital from Sequoia Capital, Accel, Y Combinator, and a handful of individual investors.[2] In March 2018, Dropbox underwent an initial public offering, valuing the company at around US$9.2 billion.[4]
From the company's establishment in June 2007 until October 2016, Ferdowsi served as the chief technology officer (CTO) of Dropbox.[5] In 2020 he left the company.[6]
Awards and highlights
edit- Inc. Magazine named Ferdowsi to its 2011 "30 Under 30" top entrepreneurs list.[2]
- Fortune Magazine named Ferdowsi to its 2011 "40 Under 40" list.[7]
- TechCrunch awarded Ferdowsi a Crunchie for "Founder Of The Year".[8]
References
edit- ^ "Meet the richest area native you've probably never heard of". The Kansas City Star. 9 February 2013. Archived from the original on 8 March 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ a b c Carter, Nicole (2011-06-27). "Inc.com 30under30: Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi, Founders of Dropbox". Inc.com. Mansueto Ventures. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
- ^ "Blue Valley Northwest grad is a billionaire, thanks to the tech company he founded". The Kansas City Star. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Dropbox Priced at $21 a Share in I.P.O., Valuing Company at $9.2 Billion". New York Times. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
- ^ "Dropbox appoints new CTO, Aditya Agarwal, takes over for cofounder Arash Ferdowsi". Venture Beat. 13 October 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Dropbox's Billionaire Co-Founder Arash Ferdowsi, Ex-MIT Student, Leaves Company". 31 December 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-12-31. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
- ^ "40 Under 40 - Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi". money.cnn.com. Fortune. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ Constine, Josh (2014-02-11). "Dropbox's Cloud Storage Kings Drew Houston And Arash Ferdowsi Win Founder Of The Year Crunchie". TechCrunch. Retrieved 22 February 2012.