How a Teen Dropout Turned into the First Private Spacewalker: The Jared Isaacman Story

Other
Sep 16 2024 01:24 PM
P C Thomas

Jared Isaacman, who once dropped out of high school and lived in his parents' basement, has become a tech billionaire and space enthusiast. His remarkable journey from humble beginnings to becoming a key figure in space exploration is truly inspiring.

Recently, Isaacman and SpaceX engineer Sarah Gillis took part in the Polaris Dawn mission, where they completed a spacewalk to test new spacesuits. This five-day mission was notable as it marked the first time nonprofessional astronauts from a private company performed such an experiment in space.

A Journey from Basement to Billionaire

At just 16, Isaacman left high school to start Shift4 Payments, a payment processing company. With a $10,000 check from his grandfather, he began the venture in his family’s basement. His initial team included his father, who worked in sales, and his friend Brendan Lauber, the former chief technology officer of Shift4.

Today, Shift4 Payments is a major player in its field, valued at $7.4 billion and employing over 2,000 people. Reflecting on those early days, Isaacman said, "There's no way, at that age, you could imagine the company would be worth billions. Some of the best times were when it was just eight of us in the basement, sharing knowledge, Chinese food, and learning from both our successes and failures."

Breaking New Frontiers

Isaacman's success in business allowed him to pursue his passion for space. He funded and led the first civilian mission to space aboard SpaceX's Dragon capsule, setting a record for the longest civilian spaceflight.

His achievements extend beyond space. In 2009, Isaacman set a world record by flying a Cessna Citation CJ2 around the globe in under 62 hours, beating the previous record by nearly 20 hours. He also founded Draken International, a company that trains U.S. Air Force student pilots, which he sold to Blackstone Group in 2020.

Despite his extraordinary success, Isaacman remains modest. Before his spacewalk, he shared, "I feel incredibly lucky. I started out as a teenager in a basement, just trying to buy pizza for the weekend, and now it's turned into quite the empire."