Meet The 24-Year-Old Who Just Sold A $70 Million Company To Google

The story of how a 24-year-old named Nat Turner sold his startup to Google for $70 million starts three years ago at the University of Pennsylvania. Back then, Nat and his friend Zach Weinberg, sophomores, were trying to decide what kind of company they wanted to start next.

The story of how a 24-year-old named Nat Turner sold his startup to Google for $70 million starts three years ago at the University of Pennsylvania.

Back then, Nat and his friend Zach Weinberg, sophomores, were trying to decide what kind of company they wanted to start next.

The pair had just sold an online food delivery website called EatNow.com, and were eager to begin something new.

A portrait of the entrepreneur as a young man.

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Turner had a chance to meet his childhood hero, Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, when he was in his early 20s. Nat Turner/Facebook

Did they want to build Facebook apps? An ad-server for video? Social media analytics tools?

Finally, in January 2007, Nat and Zach – along with two more friends, Scott Becker and Michael Provenzano – just started coding. In the summer of 2007, they took some angel funding from First Round Capital, where Nat had held an internship the year before.

Then, in 2008, Nat and Zach's company, Invite Media, finally became what it is today: a “demand-side platform," or DSP, that helps ad-buyers use ad exchanges.

Today, the news broke that Invite Media will sell-out to Google (GOOG) for a price around $70 million.

Turning an idea into $70 million in three years is an impressive feat for any entrepreneur, let alone a 25-year-old one. But get to know Nat a little, and you'll see that this was always coming.

A source close to Googlers tell us that Nat is "Preternaturally mature for a kid of 25" and that he "acts like he's been in business for 20 years, in a very charming way."

Nat founded his first business, a reptile breeding company, at age 10

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At 12, Nat became an eBay power user, selling Basketball cards traveling to conferences around the country

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At 13, Nat started at Web design firm

At 15, he started CertificateSwap.com, a marketplace for gift certificates.

Nat sold the company before going to University of Pennsylvania's business school, Wharton

There, Nat and a friend founded – and sold – EatNow.com, a popular but not commercial success (too much fraud).

After meeting Nat for a 30 minute meeting at Wharton, Half.com founder and First Round Capital VC Josh Kopelman offered Nat an internship

During the summer of 2006, Nat and Zach had an internship at VideoEgg. That's when they started thinking about Invite Media

BusinessWeek

In January 2007, they started coding. By summer, First Round Capital came with funding.

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In 2008, Nat and Zach's company, Invite Media, finally became what it is today: a company that helps ad-buyers use ad exchanges.

Today, Google bought Invite Media for $70 million

Want to keep up with Nat?

He used to keep a blog, but these days, he mostly tweets. You can follow what music he's listening to on Last.fm.

Here are the blogs Nat reads…

Like Nat, Foursquare CEO Dennis Crowley is an entrepreneur worth keeping tabs on…

O'Reilly Conferences

The Fabulous Life Of Dennis Crowley, The Most Wanted Man In Silicon Valley

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