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Lex Fridman

Lex Fridman

Born 1983 · Age 42

American computer scientist, AI researcher and podcaster best known for the Lex Fridman Podcast and research on human-centered autonomous vehicle systems.

Total Events
38
Career Span
42 years
Peak Net Worth
$4,800,000

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Life & Career Timeline

1983Age 0

Born in Chkalovsk, Tajik SSR

Alexei (Lex) Fridman was born in Chkalovsk, Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic (now Buston, Tajikistan).

8/15/1983Source
Confidence
100%
1994Age 11

Family emigrated to United States (Chicago area)

Shortly after the USSR collapse, Fridman's family moved from Russia to the Chicago area when he was about 11.

1/1/1994Source
Confidence
90%
2001Age 18

Attended Neuqua Valley High School (Naperville, IL)

Fridman attended Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, Illinois (approximate high-school graduation year).

1/1/2001Source
Confidence
40%
2010Age 27

Earned B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science, Drexel University

Fridman obtained B.S. and M.S. degrees in computer science from Drexel University (source states both degrees in 2010).

1/1/2010Net Worth: $5,000Source
Confidence
90%
2014Age 31

Left Google after ~6 months

Fridman departed Google after six months, preferring academic research environments.

1/1/2014Net Worth: $25,000Source
Confidence
95%
2014Age 31

Hired by Google to continue dissertation work

Joined Google to work on deep learning for large-scale behavior-based authentication, continuing his dissertation work.

1/1/2014Net Worth: $20,000Source
Confidence
95%
2014Age 31

Completed Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering, Drexel

PhD dissertation: 'Learning of Identity from Behavioral Biometrics for Active Authentication' under advisors Moshe Kam and Steven Weber.

12/1/2014Net Worth: $8,000Source
Confidence
98%
2015Age 32

Joined MIT AgeLab as researcher

Moved to MIT's AgeLab to work on psychology and big-data analytics to understand driver behavior and human-centered autonomy.

1/1/2015Net Worth: $40,000Source
Confidence
98%
2015Age 32

Led collaboration with Toyota on semi-autonomous vehicle algorithms

At AgeLab, Fridman led engineers developing learning algorithms for semi-autonomous vehicles in collaboration with Toyota.

1/1/2015Net Worth: $45,000Source
Confidence
90%
2016Age 33

DeepTraffic / educational deep RL project (publication/launch)

Work on DeepTraffic — traffic simulation and optimization with deep reinforcement learning to broaden access to hands-on RL study (hosted on personal site).

1/1/2016Net Worth: $50,000Source
Confidence
70%
2017Age 34

CHI 2017 Best Paper Award (What Can Be Predicted from 6 Seconds of Driver Glances?)

Fridman co-authored the paper that won Best Paper at CHI 2017, a top HCI conference.

1/1/2017Net Worth: $70,000Source
Confidence
98%
2018Age 35

CHI 2018 Honorable Mention Award

Fridman received an honorable mention for a different CHI 2018 paper (Cognitive Load Estimation in the Wild).

1/1/2018Net Worth: $80,000Source
Confidence
98%
2018Age 35

Guest lecture at Drexel University

Fridman guest lectured at his alma mater Drexel about AI topics and his research.

1/1/2018Net Worth: $90,000Source
Confidence
95%
2018Age 35

Launched podcast as part of MIT course 6.S099 (Artificial Intelligence Podcast)

Started The Artificial Intelligence Podcast in 2018; later expanded scope and renamed the show.

1/1/2018Net Worth: $100,000Source
Confidence
99%
2018Age 35

Publication: Human-Centered Autonomous Vehicle Systems / MIT advanced vehicle study

Published work and demos on human-centered shared autonomy and a large-scale real-world AI-assisted driving data collection study.

1/1/2018Net Worth: $110,000Source
Confidence
90%
2019Age 36

Left MIT AgeLab; took unpaid role in MIT Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics

After the Tesla study controversy, Fridman left his paid AgeLab position and moved to an unpaid role in MIT AeroAstro.

1/1/2019Net Worth: $120,000Source
Confidence
90%
2019Age 36

Published non-peer-reviewed Tesla Autopilot study

Published a study concluding drivers remained focused while using Tesla's semi-autonomous system; the study was not peer-reviewed.

1/1/2019Net Worth: $130,000Source
Confidence
98%
2019Age 36

Visited Tesla; Elon Musk praised his Tesla study

Following the study, Fridman was flown to Tesla offices and interviewed by Elon Musk; Musk publicly praised the work, raising Fridman's profile.

1/1/2019Net Worth: $160,000Source
Confidence
95%
2019Age 36

Study criticized by AI and safety experts

Researchers such as Missy Cummings and Anima Anandkumar publicly criticized the methodology and sample size; calls made to submit for peer review.

1/1/2019Net Worth: $150,000Source
Confidence
95%
2019Age 36

Study later removed from MIT website

The Tesla Autopilot study was later removed from MIT's website (date unspecified by sources; removal happened after controversy).

1/1/2019Net Worth: $140,000Source
Confidence
60%
2019Age 36

YouTube Creator Award: 100,000 subscribers

Reached 100k YouTube subscribers and earned the Creator Award (Silver Play Button).

1/1/2019Net Worth: $200,000Source
Confidence
90%
2020Age 37

Podcast renamed to 'The Lex Fridman Podcast'

Original 'Artificial Intelligence Podcast' changed name to broaden guest scope; rebranded in 2020.

1/1/2020Net Worth: $300,000Source
Confidence
98%
2021Age 38

YouTube Creator Award: 1,000,000 subscribers

Reached 1 million subscribers and earned the Gold Play Button.

1/1/2021Net Worth: $700,000Source
Confidence
95%
2022Age 39

Research for Center for Complex Engineering Systems (MIT–KACST)

Conducted research as part of a collaboration between MIT and KACST through the Center for Complex Engineering Systems.

1/1/2022Net Worth: $900,000Source
Confidence
90%
2022Age 39

Became research scientist at MIT LIDS

Joined the MIT Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems (LIDS) as a research scientist (role noted as of 2022).

1/1/2022Net Worth: $800,000Source
Confidence
98%
2022Age 39

Interview with Kanye West (Ye)

Published a high-profile interview with Kanye West, covered by major outlets (LA Times coverage dated 25 Oct 2022).

10/25/2022Net Worth: $850,000Source
Confidence
98%
2023Age 40

Featured critical profile in Business Insider

Business Insider published a profile (12 April 2023) critical of his role as a tech figurehead and the podcast's influence and choices of guests.

1/1/2023Net Worth: $1,050,000Source
Confidence
95%
2023Age 40

Interview with Benjamin Netanyahu and related criticism

Hosted Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu (coverage & criticism noted in mid-2023 reporting).

1/1/2023Net Worth: $1,100,000Source
Confidence
90%
2023Age 40

Reported to hold first-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Public profiles and features state Fridman holds a first-degree black belt (reported by articles/profiles by 2023).

1/1/2023Net Worth: $1,150,000Source
Confidence
80%
2023Age 40

Birthday celebrated with Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, Andrew Huberman

On his birthday Aug 15, 2023, Fridman tweeted about celebrating with notable friends including Elon Musk, Joe Rogan and Andrew Huberman.

8/15/2023Net Worth: $1,250,000Source
Confidence
95%
2023Age 40

Thanksgiving at Ivanka Trump & Jared Kushner's house (reported)

Fridman stated in a LinkedIn post that he had spent Thanksgiving 2023 at their house and watched 'The Godfather' with them.

11/1/2023Net Worth: $1,200,000Source
Confidence
85%
2024Age 41

Profiled by The Boston Globe as MIT's highest-profile science ambassador

Boston Globe published a profile (Feb 14, 2024) chronicling Fridman's prominence as a science communicator and podcaster; reported 3.6M subscribers at that time.

1/1/2024Net Worth: $3,000,000Source
Confidence
90%
2024Age 41

Interview with Donald Trump (2024) and ensuing criticism

In 2024 Fridman interviewed Donald Trump; coverage criticized Fridman for not challenging false claims during the interview (The Atlantic coverage 2024).

1/1/2024Net Worth: $3,200,000Source
Confidence
90%
2024Age 40

Reported relocation to Texas while still paid by MIT

As of February 2024, Fridman was reported by the Boston Globe to be living in Texas and still receiving pay from MIT.

2/1/2024Net Worth: $3,200,000Source
Confidence
90%
2024Age 40

Bloomberg article on podcast environment and tech-CEO favorability

Bloomberg (29 Mar 2024) noted that tech CEOs view Fridman's podcast as a friendlier alternative to adversarial interviews.

3/29/2024Net Worth: $3,300,000Source
Confidence
90%
2025Age 41

Public persona & media commentary: ongoing critique and praise

Multiple outlets continue to debate Fridman's balance between academic rigor and accessible public-facing interviewing; both praise (e.g., Frank Wilczek) and criticism persist.

1/1/2025Net Worth: $4,800,000Source
Confidence
90%
2025Age 41

Reported agreement: Zelenskyy agrees to record podcast

News item reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to record a podcast with Lex Fridman (retrieved Jan 24, 2025).

1/24/2025Net Worth: $3,500,000Source
Confidence
90%
2025Age 41

YouTube stats snapshot: 4.6M subscribers and 829M views (SocialBlade)

SocialBlade summary (retrieved Mar 17, 2025) lists Fridman's channel at ~4.6M subscribers and ~829,180,572 views.

3/17/2025Net Worth: $4,600,000Source
Confidence
95%

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