Three founders who left college say timing drove their decision

Silicon Valley has seen a wave of founders leaving college. While high tuition, AI, and political shifts are often cited, three young entrepreneurs said their choices came down to timing: each spotted a market opportunity they couldn't pass up and left school to pursue it.

Steven Wang left Harvard eight months in, in June 2021, to build Dub amid a surge in meme stocks and crypto. Dub lets retail investors automatically copy the trades of more experienced investors; the company grew to about 25 people and raised $17 million, including investment from Uber's CEO and Robinhood's founding chief operating officer.

Wang says he sometimes envies friends who stayed in college and has considered returning to study philosophy, but believes he made the right choice. David Kobrosky dropped out twice—first to work for Gary Vaynerchuk and later to start Intros AI in late 2020, at age 21, to help people connect using artificial intelligence.

United States, Silicon Valley

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