Austin Russell (entrepreneur)

Russell grew up in Newport Beach, California.[2] At age 15, Russell applied for his first patent for a ground water recycling system to reuse water from sprinklers.[5] When he was 15, Russell's parents introduced him to laser entrepreneur Jason Eichenholz, who became Russell's mentor and later joined Luminar as co-founder[6] and chief technology officer.[7]

He graduated from St. Margaret's Episcopal School in 2013.[8] He also studied at the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California, Irvine[9] while in high school.[9] Russell has said that he often teaches himself new skills from Wikipedia articles and YouTube videos.[10]

Russell founded Luminar in 2012[11] while he was still in high school,[12] shortly before turning 17.[2] After graduating from high school, he attended Stanford University for three months,[13] taking courses in applied physics.[14] Russell won $100,000 from the Thiel Fellowship in 2013, leading him to drop out[15][11] and focus on Luminar full-time.[16]

The company spent its first five years in stealth mode.[17] Rather than purchasing components, Russell engineered and manufactured Luminar's lidar components himself.[18][19]

On December 3, 2020, Luminar went public,[20] trading on the Nasdaq as LAZR.[12] Russell's 104.7 million shares, roughly one-third of Luminar's equity, were worth $2.4 billion at the close of trading on December 3,[21] making Russell the world's youngest self-made billionaire.[22][23] He also became chairman of the company at this time.[20]

In May 2023, Russell entered into negotiations to acquire an 82 percent stake in Forbes in a deal valuing the company at $800 million.[24] If the transaction proceeds, his majority stake would include the remaining portion of the company owned by the Forbes family, which was not previously sold to Hong Kong-based investor group Integrated Whale Media.[25] A Kremlin-connected tycoon has claimed to be behind the purchase, according to The Washington Post,[26] and has suggested a variety of motives; and the intent to conceal his involvement.

On January 1, 2022, Russell donated $4 million to Team Seas, allowing the fundraiser to reach its goal of $30 million raised.[27] In 2021, he donated $70 million to the Central Florida Foundation, ranking him among the top 50 philanthropists globally, that year.[28]

• In 2017, MIT Technology Review named Russell an "Innovator Under 35".[29]
• In 2018, Forbes named Russell to its "30 Under 30" list for founding and leading Luminar.[30]
• Russell appeared on the Fortune magazine 40 Under 40 list in 2021.[31]
• Motor Trend ranked Russell #41 on its 2022 Power List.[32]