Elon Musk brushed off Kairan Quazi’s exit from SpaceX: How netizens reacted?

Elon Musk brushed off 16-year-old boy Kairan Quazi’s exit from SpaceX, saying he had barely heard of him.

The remark came as a surprise to many, given that the Bangladesh-origin prodigy’s academic journey and early pro level milestones have drawn significant attention on social media.

His ladder from Elon Musk-led SpaceX to Citadel Securities has only fueled the buzz online.

Let's break it down who Kairan Quazi is and how netizens are reacting?

Elon Musk brushing off remark surprised many. The controversy sparked when Elon replied to an article by fortune about 16-year-old Kairan Quazi on X and wrote, “First time I’ve ever heard of him.”

How netizens reacted?

Although, many pointed out that it is nothing more than a PR stunt. Some even went to the extent of accusing Fortune of fake news.

One such user wrote, “Seems like a PR thing. Gonna guess that he has a rich dad.”

Another took a dig at the humiliation and wrote, “imagine getting roasted this hard.”

Who is Kairan Quazi? The 14-year-old software engineer’s journey

Kairan Quazi was born in 2009 Pleasanton, California, and from his early childhood he was identified as having unusually advanced emotional and intellectual intelligence by the age of two.

His mother works at the Wall Street and father is a chemical engineer, he grew up surrounded by numbers and technology.

He began college at just 10, graduated from Santa Clara University with a degree in computer science and engineering at 14 and joined SpaceX’s Starlink division as a software engineer the same year.

That speaks volume of his pro level talent.

When he turned 16, Kairan transitioned to Citadel Securities as a quantitative developer.

Another feather in his cap is his tenure as a senator in the Associated Student government from 2021 to 2023.

Drawn to fast paced challenges, Quazi shares why he made the move on being asked about his decision of taking up Citadel’s offer over leading AI labs and technology firms. 

He told Business Insider,“Quant finance offers a pretty rare combination: the complexity and intellectual challenge that AI research also provides, but with a much faster pace.”

“At Citadel Securities, I’ll be able to see measurable impact in days, not months or years like many research environments,” he further explained.