Who Is Austin Russell? How ‘The Next Elon Musk’ Made Billions

By: Ashley Palya

Photo by: Luminar

A new young billionaire has taken the mantle as the “world’s youngest self-made billionaire” after his self-driving technology company Luminar Technologies Inc. (LAZR) went public in December 2020. Some have taken to calling 26-year-old Austin Russell the “next Elon Musk.”

The Newport Beach, California, native applied for his first patent at 13 and worked at a laser institute at the University of California at Irvine instead of going to high school. Luminar has a market capitalization of just over $6 billion. Shares of Luminar have taken a hit in the past year. On Dec. 29, 2020, shares of Luminar closed at $32.36. On Tuesday, shares of Luminar closed at $17.10.

Click here for the full article.