LinkedIn’s Unicorn Startup Story
The infographic below states the story behind the success of LinkedIn.
- 1993 – Entrepreneur Reid Hoffman’s, while studying at Oxford thought of starting a software company
Approached venture capitalists for funding and got rejected.
Got a job at Apple – worked on eWorld, Apple’s version of AOL
After Apple, worked at Fujitsu for product management
- 1997 – Resigned job at Fujitsu for starting a business
- 2002 – Sold PayPal, an electronic payment service to eBay for 1.5 billion USD
Met friends Peter Theil and Max Levchin.
- 2003 – Launched LinkedIn. Attracted investment from sequoia
- 2005 – Revenue introduced first business lines: jobs and subscription.
- 2007 – Dan Nye took the position as chief executive officer.
- 2009 – Jeff Weiner joined LinkedIn as president and CEO.
- 2014 – LinkedIn launched officially in China, in Chinese
- 2015 – Became one of the top 10 most popular website in the world.
- 2017 – LinkedIn has 500 million users, 10 million job postings.
LinkedIn’s Story of Success: How It Progressed Over The Years FAQ
How profitable is LinkedIn?
LinkedIn is a social network service with a revenue of US$ 3 billion, net income of US$166 million and about 9,732 employees.
Who is Reid Hoffman?
Reid Garrett Hoffman was born on August 5, 1967. He is the co-founder and executive chairman of the social network service, LinkedIn. Hoffman was ranked at number 630 on the 2017 world’s billionaires.
What business did Reid Hoffman want to venture?
While studying at Oxford, Hoffman thought of starting a software company.
Where was Hoffman first got employed?
Hoffman got a job at Apple in 1993 and worked on eWorld, Apple’s version of AOL
What is Fujitsu?
Fujitsu is specialized in delivering solutions for information technology field and communication technology as well. Hoffman worked at Fujitsu for product management after quitting at Apple.
When did he resign at Fujitsu?
He resigned at Fujitsu in 1997 and decided to start his own job instead.
Why did he sell PayPal for 1.5 billion USD to eBay?
He sold PayPal to eBay on 2002. eBay paid him 1.5 billion USD.
Who is Peter Theil?
Peter Theil was the co-founder of PayPal and worked as a chief executive officer until it was sold to eBay. He became friends with Hoffman and Max Levchin.
Who is Max Levchin?
Max Levchin is a computer scientist who made various contributions to the PayPal’s anti-fraud campaign. He also co-founded the CAPTCHA challenge.
When did he launch LinkedIn?
2003 when Hoffman first launched LinkedIn. He also attracted investment from Sequoiacapital.
What is Sequoia capital?
Sequoia Capital is in the venture capital industry and was founded by Don Valentine.
Who is Dan Nye
Dan Nye became the chief executive officer of LinkedIn in 2007.
Who is Jeff Weiner?
Jeff Weiner became the president and CEO of LinkedIn in 2009.
When was LinkedIn launched in China?
LinkedIn was officially launched in China in 2014, using the Chinese language.
What year did LinkedIn become one of the top 10 most popular websites in the world?
In 2016, LinkedIn became one of the top 10 most popular websites in the world.
