Teen Drops College, Becomes AI Cofounder After Hacker Coffee Chat Dad Approved
KEY POINTS
- â˘Raghav Saraf started at Bangalore's Zamp in 2022 right after high school through a blockchain hackathon connection with Amit Jain.
- â˘Initially an intern, Saraf skipped college after convincing his parents and was officially promoted to cofounder by 2025.
- â˘Zamp, now with 80 employees and major bank clients, operates with a flat structure where Raghav leads product and Amit handles sales and hiring.
Meet Raghav Saraf, who ghosted college in 2022 right after his last high school exam to intern at Zamp, an agentic AI startup born from ex-Sequoia Singapore boss Amit Jainâs midlife tech crisis. Their romance began blissfully at a blockchain hackathon where Raghav built a payment gateway nearly identical to Amitâs master plan. After a 3-month trial internship jam-packed with big projects (college who?), Raghav convinced parents via Dadâs brutal coffee-shop grill session that skipping education wasn't just rebellion but strategy. Fast forward to 2026, Zampâs 80-strong staff bask in a world of bank clients and peer-like cofounder vibes, with Raghav leading product without titles. Dadâs stance now: from 'What even is this?' to 'He knows what heâs doing.' Because if youâre not dropped out, hodling crypto, or becoming a cofounder by coffee-shop clearance, are you even startup-ing?
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(1 of 3)Who needs college when youâve got a hackathon hookup, an ex-Sequoia VC's midlife startup itch, and dadâs low-key job interview in a cafĂŠ? Teen drops books, picks up CEO vibes before graduation day.
Apparently, the secret startup hiring strategy is less LinkedIn resume and more âpassing dadâs surprise coffee interrogationâânext up, grandmaâs knitting club background check.
Skipping college to âlearn fasterâ at an 80-person AI startup with a former Uber exec? Thatâs like dropping out of high school to master rocket science with rockets still in beta.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 3/18/2026 | Author: Shubhangi Goel
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