Limerick Teenagers Earn Millions in Software Deal
Posted on Thursday, March 27, 2008Two local lads, Patrick and John Collison, have become millionaires after selling their share in the web-based application they founded. You might remember Patrick (19) from the BT Young Scientist Competition in 2005, when his development of a web programming language won him first prize. John (17) is still in school.
They amalgamated their start-up company with another similar project developed by the Taggar cousins from Britain, and now all four have been bought out by Live Current Media for a figure in the region of $5 million, which isn’t bad for a couple of kids. Or, indeed, for a couple of ancient guys, if they were ancient, which they aren’t.
Not old. Young.
Their project, Auctomatic is aimed at heavy users of eBay and helps them to keep track of stock and transactions. I don’t understand anything this hard or complicated but I’m full of admiration for these young fellas.
Well done, guys.
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March 27th, 2008
Well done lads.
A credit to Limerick.Its about time we started having some good press.
March 27th, 2008
You’ve gotta love the way the web can make overnight millionaires out of ordinary folk with good ideas. For the rest of us, there’s always the lotto…
March 27th, 2008
Fair play to them, and them only chisellers! Mind you one of them has form - he was young scientist of the year.
Anyhow, what do you make of this, Bock:
http://skinflicks.blogspot.com/2008/03/death-by-thousand-cuts.html
March 27th, 2008
I think it is fantastic and getting a business organised to the point it can be sold to another commercial operation is no mean feat for any entrepreneur - a really, really good thing.
Patrick came across like a seasoned business man talking about capital access and the quality of supports made available to him by the incubator in California.
What really is depressing though is that he now leaves the country to work in Canada as their head of engineering - this country, because of its inability to create an environment that first of all supports such entrepreneurial activity and secondly, has no means by which the businesses created can grow, means that we are now on the brink of witnessing the next wave of emigration and a very dangerous one - our best brains and talent on the go.
I think we are truly f**ked if Ireland Inc continues to let this happen - no doubt you will see Martin or some other shortsighted political f**kwit taking credit for the great achievement of these guys!
March 28th, 2008
I notice they were unable to get funding from Enterprise Ireland. Too busy playing golf?
March 28th, 2008
Darwin - they turned down the funding from EI. EI have several mechanisms for funding start-ups. The one Paul talked to EI about was the shared contribution mechanism, i.e., you put in up tp €20k and we’ll give you €20k - this might sound funny now but - where the f**k is any 18 year old going to get €20k!
The conditions that EI put on the money acted as a disincentive to them taking the money and what’s pathetic is that the incubator in California that did fund them started them on €15k (I may have heard that wrong and it may be €50k) - pathetically small amounts for the return the lads got in the sale of the business. Also, if the state agencies had downstream supports, the lads could have potentially sold the business for €10m in a couple of years!
I think EI has improved but they need to get up to speed much quicker.
March 28th, 2008
My God, they could retire before they were 20! The 17-year-old is too young to even celebrate with a pint legally.
Well done those whipper-snappers.
March 28th, 2008
Sam: I wouldn’t mind retiring before I’m 25.
Darwin: Nail-on-head Award to you. Remind me to tell you a true story about that very subject.
March 28th, 2008
Jeepers that education thing is proving really dangerous. With all that reading, writing and s’puters where will all the footballers come from now?
March 28th, 2008
Bock, I interviewed a bloke a couple of years ago who had retired a multi-multi millionaire at 29. He was living in Spain, spending days on the beach at his home in the south or at his gaff in Barcelona.
He was bored shitless! Got back into business after a year out.
March 29th, 2008
I’ve just seen them on the Late Late - fine intelligent articulate but yet modest young fellas - fair play to them.