# PalmDrive, Inc.

> PalmDrive (棕榈大道) is an education-technology company that connects students - mostly Chinese students aiming for top overseas universities - with a network of thousands of mentors who have themselves attended those schools. Founded by Stanford, Berkeley, and Harvard alumni in 2013, PalmDrive pairs one-on-one mentorship in admissions, cultural integration, and career planning with an online platform that has drawn a community of more than a million students. The company operates across China and Silicon Valley and has raised over US$10 million in venture funding.

- **Founded:** 2013
- **Headquarters:** San Jose, California, United States
- **Founders:** Frank Zhu (Co-Founder & CEO), Tina Sheng (Co-Founder & CEO, PalmDrive USA)
- **Team size:** 201-500 employees (reported ~250)
- **Products:** One-on-one mentorship, Study-abroad application services, Online mentorship platform, Essay editing & writing support, Career and cultural-integration coaching
- **Notable:** Built a community of over one million students seeking international education information, Delivered 20,000+ one-on-one consultations, Assembled a mentor and editor network of 4,000+, ~90% from top-30 universities

## Products & services

- **One-on-one mentorship** — Personalized guidance from mentors who attended top universities, covering admissions strategy, academic planning, and applications.
- **Study-abroad application services** — End-to-end support for high school, undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral applications to overseas universities.
- **Online mentorship platform** — A web platform (palmdrive.cn) for student-mentor matching, registration, essay support, and application management.
- **Essay editing & writing support** — A network of 4,000+ academic mentors and editors, roughly 90% from top-30 universities, providing writing and essay review.
- **Career and cultural-integration coaching** — Guidance on adapting to life overseas and planning careers after graduation.

## Achievements

- Built a community of over one million students seeking international education information
- Delivered 20,000+ one-on-one consultations
- Assembled a mentor and editor network of 4,000+, ~90% from top-30 universities
- Raised over US$10M in venture funding since incorporation
- Expanded from Silicon Valley to offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Hangzhou

## Latest updates

- **2017-07** — Reported angel funding round of approximately US$3 million.
- **2017** — Established Beijing education-technology entity (棕榈大道教育科技(北京)有限公司).

## Links

- Website: https://palmdrive.cn
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/palmdrive-inc-
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PalmDriveUSA

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/palmdrive-inc
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-03