At the young age of 27, Vitalik Buterin became the world's youngest crypto billionaire, thanks to his co-founding of Ethereum, a blockchain platform designed for decentralized financial applications. Ethereum's native cryptocurrency, Ether, initially surpassed $3,000 per coin in May 2021, contributing to Buterin's wealth.

In 2014, he was awarded the Thiel Fellowship, which offers a $100,000 grant to young individuals under 23 years old to explore their passions outside of academia. A year later, Buterin and the development team launched Ethereum, which has since become one of the most popular blockchain platforms globally.