Categories
Self-Help

Naval Ravikant: Entrepreneur, Investor, Philosopher

Description
Human Profile
Name:Naval Ravikant
Birthday:November 5, 1974 (age 51 years), Born in New Delhi, India
Height:5'7" (170 cm)
Education:Stuyvesant High School (Diploma) Dartmouth College (BS), Computer Science and Economics
Subscribers:972K
Views:24,743,912
YouTube Revenue:$24.7K - $123.7K
Videos:241
Channel Created:February 2019

Overview

Naval Ravikant is an Indian-American entrepreneur, investor, and philosopher, best known as the co-founder of AngelList, an early-stage investor in companies such as Uber and Twitter, and for his widely-shared philosophical insights on wealth and happiness, often compiled in “The Almanack of Naval Ravikant.”

Latest News (Dec 28, 2025): The most recent development regarding Naval Ravikant is his mention in Chris Williamson's "3 Minute Monday Newsletter" on December 22, 2025, which highlighted Naval as a past guest on the "Modern Wisdom" podcast, a show that has garnered over 1 billion downloads across more than 900 episodes.

Early Life and Education

Naval Ravikant was born in New Delhi, India, in 1974. At the age of nine, he moved to New York City with his mother and brother, Kamal. His father, a pharmacist in India, had moved to the United States earlier, but his credentials were not recognized, leading the family to face financial hardship. His parents eventually separated, and his mother raised him and his brother while working multiple jobs and attending night school.

Growing up in Queens, Ravikant found a love for reading and spent a significant amount of his time in libraries. He attended Stuyvesant High School, a prestigious public school in New York, graduating in 1991. He then went on to Dartmouth College, where he earned degrees in Computer Science and Economics in 1995. During his time at Dartmouth, he interned at the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell.

Career Beginnings

After graduating from Dartmouth, Ravikant had a brief stint at the Boston Consulting Group before moving to Silicon Valley. In 1999, he co-founded Epinions, a consumer product review website. The company raised $45 million in venture capital from firms like Benchmark Capital and August Capital.

In 2003, Epinions merged with the comparison pricing site Dealtime to become Shopping.com. The merged company later held an initial public offering (IPO) in 2004. However, Ravikant and other Epinions co-founders filed a lawsuit against Benchmark Capital and August Capital, alleging that they were misled into believing their shares were worthless before the company went public. The case was settled in 2005.

Rise to Prominence

Following his experience with Epinions, Ravikant began to focus on investing and sharing his insights into the startup world. In 2007, he started a blog called Venture Hacks with Babak Nivi, which offered advice to entrepreneurs on negotiating term sheets. This blog would later evolve into a much larger platform.

In 2010, Ravikant and Nivi co-founded AngelList, a platform designed to connect startups with angel investors. AngelList aimed to democratize the fundraising process for early-stage companies. The platform has since expanded to include job listings and has become a significant resource in the startup ecosystem. In 2022, AngelList Venture was valued at $4 billion.

Major Work and Projects

Beyond AngelList, Ravikant is a prolific angel investor, with early-stage investments in numerous successful companies, including Uber, Twitter, Yammer, and Postmates. In 2007, he founded a $20 million early-stage venture fund called The Hit Forge, which invested in companies like Twitter and Uber.

In 2017, he launched Spearhead, an investment fund that provides capital to founders to enable them to become angel investors themselves. He also co-founded the social media app Airchat in 2023.

Ravikant is also known for his philosophical thoughts on wealth, happiness, and life, which he shares through his podcast, “Naval,” and his writings. His ideas have been compiled in “The Almanack of Naval Ravikant,” a book that curates his wisdom from various platforms.

Personal Life

Naval Ravikant is a private individual and does not share many details about his personal life. He is married to Krystle Cho, a visual designer. They married in 2013 and have a son. Ravikant has stated that family is very important to him and has credited his upbringing with instilling in him the values of hard work and self-reliance.