 "Quicksplained: Who is Ankush Sachdeva, youngest entrepreneur on the Hurun U-35 India list?")
Ankush Sachdeva, the 31-year-old tech wizard, has made waves as the youngest Indian to feature on Hurun’s Under-35 Entrepreneurs List. His success, however, was far from an overnight story.
The IIT-graduate tech entrepreneur didn’t just stumble a few times—he encountered 17 failures before finally hitting gold with his 18th venture. Today, his persistence has paid off, making him one of the most celebrated names in Indian entrepreneurship.
Sachdeva now leads ShareChat, a company valued at a staggering Rs 40,000 crore, showcasing his rise from setbacks to massive success.
But who is Ankush Sachdeva, and how did he become one of India’s top entrepreneurs? Let’s take a closer look at his inspiring journey to the top.
1. Born and raised with an affinity for technology, Sachdeva’s passion led him to pursue a degree in Computer Science from IIT Kanpur, one of India’s top institutes. During his studies, he gained crucial industry experience through a 2014 internship at Microsoft, which offered him valuable insights into the tech world. However, unlike many of his peers who opted for corporate careers, Ankush decided to chase his entrepreneurial dream.
2. In 2015, fresh out of college, Sachdeva, along with Bhanu Pratap Singh and Farid Ahsan, co-founded ShareChat. Their initial attempts met with failure, but the trio remained undeterred, making several attempts before hitting their breakthrough on the 18th try.
3. The key idea behind ShareChat was to create a platform tailored for Indians who faced language barriers on mainstream platforms like Facebook. ShareChat was designed to offer a user-friendly experience in 15 Indian languages, allowing users to share trending videos, connect via chat rooms, and engage in regional content.
4. As co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Sachdeva eventually stepped into the role of CEO in 2017, steering the company toward massive growth. Under his leadership, ShareChat garnered global attention, including investment from Google.
It was a pleasure to have breakfast with @sundarpichai today. It was interesting to know that India is now the top country in terms of usage for most Google products pic.twitter.com/ugOeggOjPi
— Ankush Sachdeva (@AnkushSach) March 8, 2019
5. Today, it stands as one of India’s most popular social media platforms, with over 500 million downloads on Google Play Store.
6. In 2021, Mohalla Tech, ShareChat’s parent company, achieved a $2.1 billion valuation after raising $502 million in a funding round led by Lightspeed Ventures and Tiger Global. By June 2022, that valuation had skyrocketed to $5 billion.
7. Sachdeva’s next big success was Moj, India’s answer to the banned TikTok, which has already crossed 100 million PLaystore downloads, further cementing his position as one of India’s leading tech entrepreneurs.
8. This is not the first accolade to Sachdeva’s name. Earlier, he was also featured in Forbes’ 30 under 30 Asia list in 2018 along with Bhanu Pratap Singh and Farid Ahsan.
9. Sachdeva along with Alakh Pandey (32) of Physics Wallah, and Akash Ambani (32) of Reliance Jio Infocomm, all feature in the inaugural edition of the ‘Hurun India Under35s’ which lists 150 exceptional entrepreneurs across India, all aged 35 or younger.
10. The list also mentions women entrepreneurs such as Parita Parekh (32) of Toddle and Isha Ambani (32) of Reliance Retail who are the youngest women entrepreneurs on the list. The release also mentions Ghazal Alagh (35) of MamaEarth, Aneesha Tiwari (33), and Anjali Merchant (34), who are carrying forward their family legacies as the next generation of women entrepreneurs. It also lists self-made entrepreneur Saloni Anand (34) from Traya Health, who has been revolutionising hair care solutions in the country.
With input from agencies
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