"In April 2025, Lucy Guo became the youngest female self-made billionaire after Meta paid $14.3 billion for a 49% stake in Scale AI, the company she cofounded with Alexandr Wang in 2016. Though Guo had left the company-which builds infrastructure and software to create AI applications-over disagreements with Wang in 2018, she retained her 5% stake in the business, which skyrocketed in value after Meta's investment."
"In 2022 she reemerged with Passes, a platform that helps creators monetize their social media followings by selling access to exclusive offerings-from products and merch to pay-by-the-minute private phone calls.As of February, the company has raised a total of $49 million. Guo tells me that Passes is growing-its payments to creators have totaled nine figures so far-and profitable. But its expansion has come with some controversy."
Lucy Guo held a 5% stake in Scale AI, co-founded in 2016 with Alexandr Wang, and that stake surged in value after Meta purchased a 49% stake for $14.3 billion in April 2025. Guo left Scale AI in 2018 over disagreements but retained her ownership. In 2022 she launched Passes, a platform that lets creators monetize followings by selling access to exclusive offerings, including products, merch, and pay-by-the-minute private calls. Passes had raised $49 million by February and has paid creators nine-figure sums while reporting profitability. The platform faces legal challenges, including a 2024 suit alleging anti-competitive practices and a class-action accusing distribution of child pornography. Guo states the platform's main differentiator is that her long-term vision for Passes isn't just engagement, it's . . .
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