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Eric Wu (founder)

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Eric Wu
EducationUniversity of Arizona (BA)
Known forOpendoor

Eric Wu is an American investor and entrepreneur. Since 2008, Wu has founded several companies having to do with real estate, such as RentAdvisor and Movity; in 2014, he co-founded Opendoor, an iBuyer company, and served as its CEO until 2024. He has also invested in dozens of companies such as Airtable and Roofstock.

Early life and education

Wu grew up in Glendale, Arizona as the son of Taiwanese immigrants. His father passed away when he was four. At the time, his mother worked as a social worker.

While studying economics at the University of Arizona, at the age of 19, Wu bought his first house, aroind 1,600 square feet, for around $100,000 using his college scholarship money. He then turned its garage into two studio apartments and rented them out. Eventually, he amassed around 25 houses by the time he graduated college in 2005. Wu also learned how to program and build websites while in college—skills which he would combine with his real estate experience with his companies later on.

After graduating, Wu moved to San Francisco.

Career

Startups

In 2008, Wu co-founded RentAdvisor, a company that reviewed rentals. The idea for the company had come to Wu following difficulties he faced during his move to San Francisco. RentAdvisor raised around $7 million before getting acquired by Apartment List in 2013.

In 2010, Wu co-founded Movity, a real estate website that collected and analyzed neighborhood data. That same year, it was accepted to Y Combinator. It was acquired by Trulia one year later. Wu then worked at Trulia for two years. Around then, fellow Y Combinator peer Keith Rabois raised the idea of Opendoor to Wu, though it would take Wu a few more years to eventually sign on.

OpenDoor

In 2014, Wu co-founded Opendoor with Ian Wong and Rabois in 2014. Shortly after, the San Francisco-based company had a Series A funding round of $10 million led by Khosla Ventures. In 2017, Opendoor was called a "fat start-up" by The New York Times. By then, it had raised over $300 million, with investors like SoftBank, and was spending upwards of $100 million a month to buy properties. By March of 2019, it had a $3.5 billion pre-money valuation and raised around $1.3 billion in equity funding, as well as around $3 billion in debt financing for home purchases. After raising billions of dollars in funding, Opendoor went public in 2020. Opendoor's IPO made Wu into a billionaire.

Wu served as the CEO of Opendoor up until 2022, after which he stepped down to serve as the president of marketplace until 2023. In the latter role, he oversaw the company's Exclusives Marketplace, a platform where users can directly buy and sell homes. (Carrie Wheeler, who was formerly Opendoor's chief financial officer, assumed Wu's position as CEO after 2022.)

On December 14, 2023, Wu announced that he would be stepping down from the company, although he has remained an advisor to the company and its board. He specifically stated: "After ten years, I am called to get back to my startup roots and create and build again. I’m humbled by this accomplishment and grateful for all my teammates who helped shape the product, culture, and company." News of Wu's departure was followed by a drop of over 10% in Opendoor stock. His resignation was effective January 1, 2024.

Investing

Throughout his career, Wu has invested in several companies such as Airtable, Roofstock, Echo Chunk, and others.

References

  1. ^ Feldman, Amy. "Silicon Valley Upstart Opendoor Is Changing The Way Americans Buy And Sell Their Homes". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  2. ^ "How Opendoor founder Eric Wu got started in real estate". The Real Deal. 2019-05-26. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  3. ^ "How Opendoor founder Eric Wu got started in real estate". The Real Deal. 2019-05-26. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  4. "Opendoor Wants to 'Win' the $1.6 Trillion Real Estate Industry. To Get There, It Needs to Grapple With Realtors, Squatters, and an Unpredictable Economy". Inc.com. Archived from the original on 2025-01-05. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  5. Jr, Tom Huddleston (2019-05-22). "This millennial used scholarship money to buy property in college—now his real estate company is worth $3.8 billion". CNBC. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  6. "How Eric Wu, The Founder Of Opendoor, Entered The Real Estate Business | Online Marketplaces". www.onlinemarketplaces.com. 2019-06-06. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  7. ^ Han, Brooklee. "Eric Wu to leave Opendoor at the end of the year". HousingWire. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  8. "Eric Wu Steps Down As CEO To Focus On Marketplace Play As Opendoor Tries To Turn Around Its Financial Fortunes | Online Marketplaces". www.onlinemarketplaces.com. 2022-12-02. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  9. "Opendoor CEO pays $32M for Bel-Air "propeller home"". The Real Deal. 2022-04-25. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  10. Manjoo, Farhad (2017-05-24). "The Rise of the Fat Start-Up". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  11. Azevedo, Mary Ann (2022-12-02). "When one door closes ... Opendoor CEO Eric Wu steps down, CFO Carrie Wheeler steps in as new chief executive". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  12. ^ Azevedo, Mary Ann (2023-12-15). "Opendoor co-founder Eric Wu is stepping down to return to his startup roots". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  13. Kirsch, Noah. "New Billionaire: Opendoor's Public Debut Is A Big Win For CEO Eric Wu". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  14. Solomont, E. B. (2021-01-05). "Here are the big winners from Opendoor's IPO". The Real Deal. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  15. "Opendoor "Proud" Of Q2 Performance Despite $92 Million Net Loss | Online Marketplaces". www.onlinemarketplaces.com. 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  16. "Proptech, brokerage execs selloff eight- and nine-figures in company stocks". The Real Deal. 2024-04-28. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  17. Azevedo, Mary Ann (2022-12-02). "When one door closes ... Opendoor CEO Eric Wu steps down, CFO Carrie Wheeler steps in as new chief executive". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  18. "Opendoor CEO Eric Wu Steps Down Amid US Housing Slowdown". Bloomberg.com. 2022-12-01. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  19. Samtani, Hiten (2022-12-02). "Opendoor CEO Eric Wu steps down". The Real Deal. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  20. "Opendoor Co-Founder Eric Wu is Stepping Down at the End of the Year". Yahoo Finance. Archived from the original on 2024-03-14. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  21. "Opendoor's Eric Wu is leaving the iBuyer". The Real Deal. 2023-12-15. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  22. "Opendoor co-founder Eric Wu is leaving the company". RealEstateNews.com. 2023-12-15. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  23. Mehta, Ivan (2024-07-16). "A company building Wordle for chess raises money from a16z Speedrun, Mark Pincus and Eric Wu". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
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