Meet Indian genius who studied at IIT, Stanford, became youngest S&P 500 CEO with Rs 100 crore salary package, was fired after Elon Musk...

Parag Agrawal, an IIT Bombay graduate, is a well-known Indian name in the global tech world. He gained major attention when he became the CEO of Twitter (now called X), a rare and proud moment for many Indians. However, his time as CEO was short because billionaire Elon Musk bought Twitter in a huge USD 44 billion deal in 2022. Still, Agrawal’s journey remains inspiring.

Parag was born in Ajmer, Rajasthan. His father worked as a senior officer in India’s Department of Atomic Energy, and his mother was a professor of economics. Agrawal’s academic journey was remarkable, he earned an All India Rank of 77 in the IIT entrance exam and graduated from IIT Bombay in 2005. Later, he moved to the U.S. to pursue a PhD in computer science at Stanford University, where he strengthened his skills in advanced technology.

Before joining Twitter in 2011, Agrawal worked as an intern at Microsoft Research and Yahoo. At Twitter, he climbed the corporate ladder quickly. In 2017, he was appointed as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), where he played a big role in improving the company’s technical strategy, especially in artificial intelligence. In 2021, he was promoted to CEO and became the youngest person to lead a company in the S&P 500 list, a major achievement.

His salary package as CEO was more than Rs 100 crore, which included restricted stock units worth around Rs 94 crore. But things changed when Elon Musk took over the company and Agrawal was removed from his position.

Even after leaving Twitter, Agrawal didn’t fade away. Instead, he stepped into the world of artificial intelligence and started working on his own startup. His new company is focused on building software that supports large language models, a technology similar to what powers ChatGPT. His AI venture has already attracted big investments from leading firms like Khosla Ventures, Index Ventures, and First Round Capital, showing that the tech world still believes in his vision.

Agrawal’s story is proof that hard work, talent, and the right opportunities can take someone from Ajmer to Silicon Valley and beyond.