Jan Koum is an American technology entrepreneur of Ukrainian descent who co-founded the mobile messaging app WhatsApp with Brian Acton. In 2014, Facebook Inc. paid a whopping US$19 billion for the immensely popular mobile application. He is now a millionaire and one of America’s wealthiest people, yet he was once so destitute that he had to rely on food stamps. He was born into a poor household in Ukraine and immigrated to the United States with his mother and grandmother when he was a teenager. His early years in the new country were arduous, and his family battled to get by. When his mother was diagnosed with cancer and died, their condition became even worse. Jan Koum, a tenacious person, pushed his way through high school and landed a position as an infrastructure engineer at Yahoo while still in college. He struck up a friendship with Brian Acton, another Yahoo employee with whom he would later create a long-term partnership. After several years at Yahoo, both Koum and Acton decided to leave to pursue other opportunities in social media. Their shared passion for social media spurred the two men to create WhatsApp, a mobile messaging program that has now grown to become the world’s most popular messaging network.
Childhood and Adolescence
Jan Koum was born on February 24, 1976, as the sole child of Jewish parents in Kyiv, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union. He led a normal life in a tiny village that was shattered by the country’s volatile political climate and anti-Semitism.
The family opted to travel to the United States to escape the harsh conditions in their home country. Jan, his mother, and grandmother relocated to the United States in 1992, with his father planning to join them later. However, his father became ill in Ukraine and was unable to go to the United States. In 1997, he passed away.
Jan, who was 16 at the time of his immigration, had a difficult time adjusting to his new nation. Jan’s mother began babysitting to supplement her income, and he began working as a cleaner at a supermarket.
While in high school, he grew interested in programming and discovered that he had a natural talent for it. He was a talented self-taught computer network engineer by the time he finished high school at the age of 18.
He began his studies at San Jose State University. To assist pay for his studies, he obtained a job as a security tester with worldwide accountants Ernst & Young while still a student.
Career of Jan Koum
Jan Kuom was assigned to the new Yahoo search engine to examine security levels in the company’s advertising system as part of his employment. He met Brian Acton, one of Yahoo’s first workers, while working on this project. The two men had a lot in common, and they hit it off right away since they both had a no-nonsense approach to business.
While still a student at San Jose State University, Koum joined Yahoo as an infrastructure engineer after a few months. A few days after joining Yahoo, a system failure occurred, and Koum, who was in class at the time, was quickly summoned to assist with the situation. At this point, Koum knew he had to pick between the university and Yahoo, and he went with the latter.
For nine years, Koum and Acton worked together at Yahoo. They not only became good friends at this time, but they also found they shared a common interest in the rapidly emerging social media realm. However, because Yahoo would not provide them with the opportunity to investigate social media, they left in 2007 to pursue other opportunities.
Koum and Acton both took a year off to explore through South America. When they returned to the United States, they both applied for positions at Facebook and Twitter, but were both turned down by both businesses.
Koum purchased a new iPhone in 2009. He saw the potential of the market for iPhone compatible applications after visiting one of the first App Stores to open. This inspired him to create a low-cost, convenient communication app.
Excited by the concept, he enlisted Acton’s help, and the two men formed WhatsApp Inc. on Koum’s birthday, February 24, 2009. One of their core values was that they would never accept advertising revenue.
In early 2010, the duo released WhatsApp Messenger. The early messengers kept crashing, and the men had a difficult time spreading the word about the software. After a few months of frustration, Koum was on the verge of quitting up until Acton persuaded him to try again.
There were few alternative instant messengers available at the time, therefore WhatsApp grew in popularity over time. Because of the app’s growing popularity, the founders were able to raise more venture financing.
WhatsApp’s user base rose steadily throughout the months, reaching about 200 million active users in February 2013. WhatsApp’s growing popularity drew the attention of social media behemoth Facebook, which bought it for US$ 19 billion in 2014. With one billion users by 2016, WhatsApp had become the most popular messaging program.
Major Projects of Jan Koum
Jan Koum and Brian Acton co-founded WhatsApp Messenger (a subsidiary of WhatsApp Inc.), which was first published in 2010. In 2016, the most popular messaging app for smartphones was the instant messaging client. It was purchased for US$19 billion by Facebook Inc. in 2014.
Achievements & Awards
Jan Koum and Brian Acton were runners-up in the Founder of the Year category at the 8th Annual Crunchies Awards in 2015.
Personal History and Legacy
In state court in San Jose, a restraining order was issued against Koum in 1996. He was accused of threatening an ex-girlfriend verbally and physically. He recently expressed regret for acting in such a manner.
In the year 2000, he lost his mother to cancer.
Estimated Net Worth
Jan Koum is an internet entrepreneur from Ukraine with a net worth of $10 billion. He is the former CEO and co-founder of WhatsApp, a prominent messaging app. In February 2014, Koum and his co-founder Brian Acton sold WhatsApp to Facebook for $19 billion in cash and equity.