eric yuan, born 1970
founder of zoom
Eric Yuan is the Chinese born founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zoom Video Communications. He emigrated to the USA in 1997 after he had made over a period of two years eight unsuccessful attempts to obtain a visa. He was successful on the ninth attempt, and is now a US citizen. As a first-year university student in 1987, he was inspired to develop videotelephony software while he took 10-hour train rides to visit his girlfriend (to whom he is now married) and was looking for an easier way to "visit" her. He earned a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics with a minor in computer application from Shandong University of Science and Technology, and a master's degree in geology engineering from China University of Mining and Technology in Beijing. Yuan attributes the success of Zoom to his single-minded determination to make his customers and his employees happy.