‘World’s Youngest Venture Capitalist’ Shares Story

Alex Banayan, a 22-year-old who was called the world’s youngest venture capitalist by Business Insider when he was 19, shared his stories and entrepreneurial strategies in a question-and-answer sponsored by Harvard Ventures, an undergraduate entrepreneurship club, on Wednesday evening.

Banayan urged the audience of around 40 people to pursue the ideas that inspire them and offered tips ranging from interview advice to his own methods for overcoming failure.

“If you’re trying to do really big things, you’re going to fail a lot more than you succeed. The opposite of success is not failure; it’s apathy. It’s not trying,” he said.

Banayan’s venture capital career began in his freshman year at the University of Southern California, with an idea for a book in which successful businesspeople gave advice to the next generation’s entrepreneurs. Then, two days before final exams, Banayan obtained tickets to the game show "The Price Is Right." Instead of studying, he spent the night before the show figuring out how to beat the game. The next day, he said he won a sailboat that he sold for $20,000.

With the money, Banayan began work on his book, which he has spent the past four years writing and will include interviews with Bill Gates, Lady Gaga, and Warren Buffet, among others.

Banayan used the experiences and contacts he gained through writing the book to earn a job at venture capital firm Alsop Louie Partners at age 19.

Speaking from his own experience as a young venture capitalist, he urged members of the audience to see their youth as an asset.

“Being in college is the biggest advantage ever. You’re surrounded by smart people,” he said.

Banayan connected with Harvard Ventures through Alexander A. Wirth ’15, co-founder of political analytics startup Quorum, who met Banayan at a conference.

“I thought it might be interesting for him to come to Harvard and share the experiences he’s collected with students interested in startups,” Wirth said. “He’s our age and can relate to where we’re coming from and the problems we’re facing, but he’s also had professional experience on the VC side.”

Curren A. Iyer ’17, Harvard Ventures director of community events, added, “[Banayan] has the sort of drive that you see a lot at Harvard, so he seemed a natural fit to come here.”

Founded in 2011, Harvard Ventures aims to connect students to the startup and venture capital worlds.

“We want to create the most innovation-friendly environment on campus,” said Ben I. Pleat ’17, Harvard Ventures vice president. “We want to empower students who are trying to start companies.”

For her part, Cindy Han, a member of the audience and a visiting student from Hong Kong, said she “never expected the talk would be so inspiring. He really showed me that if you have an idea, you should just follow it.”