# Paul Gu

> Paul Gu is the co-founder and CEO of Upstart, the AI lending marketplace he started in 2012 with Dave Girouard and Anna Counselman. A former Yale economics and computer science student and inaugural Thiel Fellow, he led product, engineering and machine learning before succeeding Girouard as CEO on May 1, 2026.

- **Role:** Co-founder and CEO at Upstart
- **Organizations:** Upstart, D. E. Shaw Group, Thiel Fellowship
- **Education:** Studied economics and computer science; left without completing a degree, Yale University
- **Known for:** Selected for the inaugural Thiel Fellowship class in 2011., Co-founded Upstart in 2012 and helped build its credit-underwriting technology., Named to Silicon Valley Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 in 2013.

## Career timeline

- **2011** — Joined the inaugural Thiel Fellowship class and worked in risk analysis at D. E. Shaw.
- **2012** — Co-founded Upstart with Dave Girouard and Anna Counselman.
- **2014** — Upstart shifted from income-share agreements to personal loans.
- **2015** — Joined Upstart’s board of directors.
- **2020** — Upstart completed its Nasdaq IPO in December.
- **2025** — As CTO, presented Upstart’s machine-learning approach at its May AI Day.
- **2026** — Succeeded Dave Girouard as CEO on May 1; Girouard became executive chairman.

## Achievements

- Selected for the inaugural Thiel Fellowship class in 2011.
- Co-founded Upstart in 2012 and helped build its credit-underwriting technology.
- Named to Silicon Valley Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 in 2013.
- Became CEO of Upstart on May 1, 2026, after leading product, engineering and machine learning.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Discussed his first months as CEO, the proposed Upstart Bank and AI in loan verification with Peter Renton on Fintech One-on-One.
- **2026-07** — Upstart announced conditional OCC approval to establish Upstart Bank; the announcement said FDIC and Federal Reserve applications remained pending.
- **2026-05** — Became Upstart’s CEO on May 1 following the succession announced in February.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gupaul
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/paulxgu

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/paul-gu
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-21