30-year-old AI founder who followed the FIRE movement is now a billionaire

Fortune

Tech entrepreneur Lucy Guo has officially dethroned Taylor Swift to become the youngest self-made woman billionaire at only 30 years old, according to Forbes. In 2023, the Passes founder and Scale AI co-founder told Fortune she followed the FIRE movement to build her wealth.

Transcript

00:00I tried to live very cheaply until I made my first 10 million.

00:04I was getting in trouble in kindergarten for selling Pokemon cards and colored pencils.

00:08And I was mowing lawns for money.

00:10But it wasn't until second grade that I actually figured out how to make money on the internet.

00:13I noticed that people were selling pets, neopoints, etc.

00:17And everyone was receiving the money inside PayPal.

00:20This is a way that I can have money digitally.

00:22In high school, I bought a lot of Bitcoin.

00:25That Bitcoin is theoretically worth several million, but I left it on the exchange and

00:29never put in a wallet.

00:30So I didn't actually make that first million.

00:32My first five million on scale series B, I did a small secondary and then invested it.

00:38Honestly, I invested it pretty well and that turned into more money.

00:41I would go into Reddit and look up leanfire and fatfire forums because it really does teach

00:47you a lot about money management and wealth.

00:50How can I extend my lifestyles as much as possible?

00:52I managed to get a buddy pass for free flights.

00:54I was eating for free because I would just book a cancelable ticket on Southwest and then

00:58go through airport security, go to the Amex lounge, eat and go back.

01:02I got a place that was only, I guess I got this like $70,000, $75,000 in Vegas that was

01:07right next to the airport.

01:08So I could just ride a skateboard there, get there in five minutes.

01:11I reduced my spending to near zero dollars per month.

01:15I love McDonald's and I also like my Michelin star restaurants.

01:18I could eat very cheaply.

01:19Amex has good food and lounges.

01:20So I think I was living a phenomenal lifestyle while spending no money.

01:24I was like, Oh, this is great.

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Transcript

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