Eric Yuan is the founder and CEO of Zoom, a video communications platform. (Image credit: Zoomtopic Opening Keynote video/screenshot
It’s not easy to be Eric Yuan, the CEO of Zoom Technologies, the company that’s behind the most popular video chat app during the pandemic. Over the past few weeks, Zoom’s market cap has risen to $32 billion and Yuan’s personal wealth is now estimated to be $6.48 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire index.
But we bet you know little about Yuan and how he accomplished so much in a matter of nine years. Whether it’s about his childhood, his days at Cisco, his risk-taking ability, there’s a lot to learn about the 49-year-old founder and CEO of Zoom.
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Here are some facts you may not have known about Eric Yuan
*Eric was born in China (Tai’An City, Shandong Province). He has a master’s degree in engineering. His parents were mining engineers, according to Forbes. At age 22, Eric got married to his long time girlfriend while he was still completing his masters.
*Yuan decided to settle in the US, when he was 27 years old. His visa applications were denied 8 times in a row, according to Forbes. On his 9th attempt, he was successful and got the visa.
Zoom is currently the most popular app on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
*Yuan wasn’t fluent in English when he landed in the US, CNBC reported. “For the first several years, I was just writing code and I was extremely busy,” Yuan said. Asked if he never took formal English training, he said: “I just learned it from my teammates.”
*In 1997, Yuan was hired as a software engineer at a small video conferencing company called WebEx. In 2007, the firm WebEx was acquired by Cisco Systems for $3.2 billion. Yuan rose to the rank of Vice President before he left Cisco in June 2011.
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*Yuan’s wife initially raised doubt about leaving Cisco and starting something of his own. “I told her, ‘I know it’s a long journey and very hard, but if I don’t try it, I’ll regret it,'” Yuan told Forbes.
Yuan’s Zoom is facing questions about the security and privacy of the users on the platform. (Image credit: Zoom)
*Yuan got the idea of starting Zoom during college in China, when he was a 10-hour train ride away from his girlfriend, according to Forbes. “ I was only able to see her twice a year and it took more than 10 hours to get there by train. I was young then—18 or 19 years old—and I thought it would be fantastic if in the future there was a device where I could just click a button and see her and talk to her,” Yuan told Forbes in 2017.
*Yuan is unconventional and slightly different from other Silicon Valley CEOs. He started Zoom when he was 41. While that’s not too late to start a company, it’s not your typical age to start a tech start-up in Silicon Valley. Mark Zuckerberg co-founded Facebook out of his college dorm room at Harvard University.
*In the early days of Zoom, Yuan used to spend money where it was needed and curtail spending on plush office interiors and furnishings. “If I were to spend investor money on nice furnishings and so forth, particularly early on, I might not have it for opportunities that can really grow our business,” Yuan told Entrepreneur magazine.
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Before starting Zoom, Yuan was working at Cisco. (Image credit: Zoom Story video/Screenshot)
*Yuan rarely travels for work and instead attends all his meetings on Zoom. He says he only travels for business twice a year in order to spend time with family, according to The Financial Times.
*Yuan’s advice to young entrepreneurs who are passionate about starting a company is to establish a culture in the firm from Day 1. “Company culture is my number one priority. It’s more important than the team, the product, the business model, or the investors. All of those things can be fixed and made better over time. But culture has to be established on Day 1. Once you have a culture problem, it’s very hard to fix,” Yuan told Sequoia, a venture capitalist firm.
*Yuan doesn’t shy in replying to customers personally whenever they face any trouble using the platform. “We have awesome, passionate customer success and social media teams, but when I see a customer who needs help or is unhappy, I take that personally, Yuan told Entrepreneur magazine.
Anuj Bhatia is a seasoned personal technology writer at indianexpress.com with a career spanning over a decade. Active in the domain since 2011, he has established himself as a distinct voice in tech journalism, specializing in long-form narratives that bridge the gap between complex innovation and consumer lifestyle.
Experience & Career: Anuj has been a key contributor to The Indian Express since late 2016. Prior to his current tenure, he served as a Senior Tech Writer at My Mobile magazine and held a role as a reviewer and tech writer at Gizbot. His professional trajectory reflects a rigorous commitment to technology reporting, backed by a postgraduate degree from Banaras Hindu University.
Expertise & Focus Areas: Anuj’s reporting covers the spectrum of personal technology, characterized by a unique blend of modern analysis and historical context. His key focus areas include:
Core Technology: Comprehensive coverage of smartphones, personal computers, apps, and lifestyle tech.
Deep-Dive Narratives: Specializes in composing longer-form feature articles and explainers that explore the intersection of history, technology, and popular culture.
Global & Local Scope: Reports extensively on major international product launches from industry titans like Apple and Google, while simultaneously covering the ecosystem of indie and home-grown tech startups.
Niche Interests: A dedicated focus on vintage technology and retro gaming, offering readers a nostalgic yet analytical perspective on the evolution of tech.
Authoritativeness & Trust
Anuj is a trusted voice in the industry, recognized for his ability to de-jargonize trending topics and provide context to rapid technological advancements. His authority is reinforced by his on-ground presence at major international tech conferences and his nuanced approach to product reviews. By balancing coverage of the world's most valuable tech brands with emerging startups, he offers a holistic and objective view of the global technology landscape.
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