Qasar Younis

Qasar Younis
Born	Pakistan
Education	Kettering University (BS) Harvard University (MBA)
Known for	Applied Intuition, Y Combinator, Google
Title	CEO of Applied Intuition
Website	qy.co

Qasar Younis is a Pakistani American entrepreneur and venture capitalist, and the CEO of Applied Intuition, a technology company that builds AI and advanced software for vehicle manufactures. Prior to Applied Intuition, he was the COO of Y Combinator during Sam Altman’s tenure as President.[1] He was also the co-founder and CEO of Talkbin (acquired by Google).

Early life and education

Younis was born on a farm in Pakistan, and emigrated to the United States in 1988.[2] He grew up in the Detroit area. After graduating with an engineering degree from Kettering University, he then went on to complete his MBA at Harvard Business School.[3]

Career

Younis started his career as an engineer at General Motors and then Bosch in Japan. After completing his MBA at Harvard Business School, he started Cameesa.com.[4] In 2010, he moved to the San Francisco bay area to start his second startup TalkBin, a platform for customers to send messages to businesses. The company graduated from Y Combinator and was acquired by Google in 2011.[5] After the acquisition, Younis joined Google for 3.5 years as a product lead on Google Maps.[6]

Y Combinator

After the TalkBin acquisition, Younis continued advising other startups, particularly through Y Combinator. In early 2013, he became a part-time partner at YC. In early 2014, he became a partner at Y Combinator. In 2015 he was promoted to COO.[7][1]

In his time at Y Combinator, the firm invested in OpenAI, Cruise, Scale AI, DoorDash, GitLab, Coinbase, Flexport, Checkr, and others. He also helped start and create some of the most important initiatives inside the accelerator including raising the $700m Continuity Fund, starting the software team, and creating Investor Day.[8]

Applied Intuition

In January 2017, Younis started Applied Intuition, along with co-founder Peter Ludwig, a former Google product manager and software engineer[9][10] and an engineering graduate of the University of Michigan.[11] Marc Andreessen joined also as a board member in 2017. [12]

Applied Intuition builds software tooling to support the development of autonomous vehicles, and cites work with 18 of the 20 largest global OEMs, autonomy startups, and defense companies to accelerate autonomy programs.[13]

Applied Intuition is currently valued at $6 billion after its Series E fundraise,[14] having raised over $600 million to date from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Lux Capital, General Catalyst, Ray Dalio, Henry Kravis, Mary Meeker, Reid Hoffman and Mustafa Suleyman.[15][16]

References

1. Altman, Sam. "A new role for Qasar". Y-Combinator Blog. Y-Combinator. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
2. Rao, Leena (26 August 2015). "Meet Y Combinator's New COO". Fortune.
3. "Making an impact in Silicon Valley, He now lives in Los Altos, and has two kids" (PDF). Kettering Magazine. Fall 2016.
4. White, April (September 2016). "3 MINUTE BRIEFING: Y COMBINATOR'S QASAR YOUNIS". Retrieved 19 March 2018.
5. Kincaid, Jason (26 April 2011). "Google Acquires TalkBin, A Feedback Platform For Businesses That's Only Five Months Old". TechCrunch. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
6. "Kettering engineering graduate success in Silicon Valley". 7 November 2016.
7. Yeung, Ken (26 August 2015). "Y Combinator names partner Qasar Younis as its first COO". VentureBeat. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
8. "Inside Silicon Valley's most grueling ritual: Raising cash". Washington Post. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
9. "Applied Intuition: Powering Autonomy". Harvard Business School. 2024-02-12. Retrieved 2024-09-23.
10. "Applied Intuition raises $40 million for autonomous vehicle simulation tools". VentureBeat. 2019-09-12. Retrieved 2024-09-23.
11. "Self-Driving Cars — Where Are We, Really?". Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
12. "Andreessen Horrowitz". 2025-02-05.
13. Geron, Tomio (12 September 2019). "Applied Intuition, Whose Software Tests Self-Driving Cars, Grabs $40 Million". Wall Street Journal.
14. "Applied Intuition lands $6B valuation for AI-powered autonomous vehicle software". TechCrunch. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 2024-04-07.
15. "Announcing $250 Million in Series E Funding at a $6 Billion Valuation". Applied Intuition. Retrieved 2024-04-07.^[non-primary source needed]
16. PR News Wire https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/applied-intuition-closes-over-300m-in-secondary-round-and-welcomes-new-investor-fidelity-management--research-company-302206859.html. Retrieved 2025-02-05. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)