Luana Lopes Lara Age, Family, Biography

Bio/Wiki
Profession	Entrepreneur
Known for	Becoming the world's youngest self-made female billionaire in 2025 after her prediction market startup, Kalshi, reached an $11 billion valuation
Physical Stats
Eye Colour	Blue
Hair Colour	Light Ash Blonde
Career
Awards	• Fellow by Fundação Estudar (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) (2014) • Gold medal in the Brazilian Astronomy and Astronautics Olympiad by Bolshoi Theatre School, Brazil (2013) • Bronze Medal in the Santa Catarina Mathematics Olympiad by Bolshoi Theatre School, Brazil (2013)
Personal Life
Date of Birth	Year, 1996
Age (as of 2025)	29 Years
Birthplace	Santa Catarina, Brazil
Nationality	Brazilian
Hometown	Santa Catarina, Brazil
School	Classical Ballet from Bolshoi Theatre School, Brazil (2011-2013)
College/University	• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts • Y Combinator, United States
Educational Qualification(s)	• Graduation in Computer Science and Mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts (2014-2018) • W19 Batch from Y Combinator, United States (2019) • Master of Engineering in Computer Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2018)
Food Habit	Non-vegetarian
Social Media	• Instagram • Facebook • Twitter • LinkedIn
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Unmarried
Family
Parents	Father- (Engineer) Mother- (Math's Teacher)
Siblings	Sister- 1

Some Lesser Known Facts About Luana Lopes Lara

• While practising as a ballerina in Rio, Luana Lopes Lara reportedly worked hard, often for 13 hours a day, as her ballet teachers were strict.

• At Bolshoi Theatre School in Brazil, her teachers held lit cigarettes under her thigh to see how long she could keep them near her ear without getting burned.

• According to her, Luana Lopes Lara attended academic classes from 7 a.m. to 12 noon. After that, she trained in ballet from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m.

• She faced strong competition from other dancers, who would hide glass pieces in each other’s shoes to cause trouble.

• In 2013, she graduated from MIT.

• After that, in January 2014, Luana Lopes Lara began working as a ballerina at the Salzburg State Theatre in Salzburg, Austria. She worked there till April 2014.

• From September 2014 to May 2015, she worked as an undergraduate researcher at MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

• In June 2015, Luana Lopes Lara began working as a business development manager at Anheuser-Busch, an American brewing company in New York City, United States. She served in the position till September 2015.

• From June 2016 to August 2016, she attended a Summer Startup Accelerator Program at ZX Ventures in New York City.

• In February 2016, Luana Lopes Lara began working as a teaching assistant at MIT School of Engineering in Boston. She served in the position till December 2016.
  

  Luana Lopes Lara during her period at MIT

• In June 2017, she began working as a Software Engineer at Bridgewater Associates in Westport, Connecticut. She served in the position till August 2017.

• From September 2016 to December 2016, Luana Lopes Lara served as a Researcher at Julia Group, MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) in Boston, United States.

• During her college days at MIT, she met Tarek Mansour, who started sitting next to her in class to learn from her. After that, they became close friends.

• Luana Lopes Lara worked as an intern at Bridgewater Associates and Citadel Securities during her summers.

• In January 2017, she began working as a Researcher at Genesis Group, MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) in Cambridge, United States. She served in the position till February 2018.

• From January 2018 to February 2018, Luana Lopes Lara served as a Quantitative Trader Intern at Five Rings Capital in New York City, United States. She completed this internship with Tarek Mansour.

• This internship helped build a strong friendship between them, which also led to them becoming business partners in the future.

• In June 2018, Luana Lopes Lara joined Citadel Securities as a Quantitative Trader in New York City. She served in the position till August 2018.

• In May 2018, she began working as a Researcher at MIT Brain and Cognitive Sciences in Cambridge. She served in the position till December 2019.

• In 2018, one night, while walking home to their intern apartments, they got an idea to start a prediction market business, which allows people to bet on the results of events such as elections, sports, and pop culture.

• After that, they made a successful pitch to Y Combinator, a startup accelerator.

  

  Luana Lopes Lara posing at Y Combinator

• In January 2019, Luana Lopes Lara and Tarek Mansour cofounded Kalshi, an American financial exchange and prediction market, in New York, United States.

• In 2020, their company, Kalshi, became the first prediction market platform regulated by the government.

• After that, Kalshi faced legal challenges while operating. The company then sued the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and in September 2024, Kalshi won the court case.

• They then got approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
  

  Luana Lopes Lara with Tarek Mansour at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)

• In 2025, after six years of its establishment, Kalshi raised $1 billion in funding and was valued at $11 billion. Luana Lopes Lara and Tarek Mansour each own about 12% of the company.

• That same year, both cofounders made headlines for becoming billionaires before they turned 30.
  

  Luana Lopes Lara with Tarek Mansour

• Luana Lopes Lara likes travelling to distant places in her free time.
  

  Luana Lopes Lara during a trip to London