Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Mark Zuckerberg

From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Mark Zuckerberg made an impact.

Mark Zuckerberg is an American businessman best known as the co-founder, chairman, CEO, and controlling shareholder of Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook). He launched Facebook in 2004, revolutionizing social networking and connecting billions globally. Zuckerberg has led Meta through significant acquisitions like Instagram and WhatsApp, expanding its reach and influence. He is also known for his philanthropic endeavors through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, focusing on health, education, and scientific research. Despite facing scrutiny regarding data privacy and the impact of social media, Zuckerberg remains a prominent figure in the technology industry.

Sections (7)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Challenges & Struggles Controversies & Scandals Legacy & Impact

1984: Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution Published

In 1984, Steven Levy wrote the book Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution, which was used to describe Zuckerberg as a hacker in 2010.

Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution - 25th Anniversary Edition

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January 1, 2004: Domain Name thefacebook.com Registered

On January 1, 2004, Zuckerberg registered the domain name thefacebook.com.

January 2004: Zuckerberg Begins Writing Code for Facebook

In January 2004, Mark Zuckerberg began writing code for what would become Facebook.

February 4, 2004: Thefacebook Launched

On February 4, 2004, Mark Zuckerberg launched "Thefacebook" (originally located at thefacebook.com) in partnership with his roommates.

February 2004: Launch of i2hub

A month after Zuckerberg launched Facebook, in February 2004, Wayne Chang launched i2hub, another campus-only service, focusing on peer-to-peer file sharing.

February 2004: Facebook Launched at Harvard

In February 2004, Mark Zuckerberg, along with his roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz, and Chris Hughes, launched Facebook at Harvard College.

August 2004: Launch of Wirehog

In August 2004, Mark Zuckerberg, Andrew McCollum, Adam D'Angelo, and Sean Parker launched Wirehog, a competing peer-to-peer file sharing service.

2004: Zuckerberg Moves to Palo Alto

In 2004, Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard and moved to Palo Alto, California with Moskovitz and other co-founders. They met Peter Thiel who invested in the company and established their first office.

2007: Launch of Facebook Platform Applications

In 2007, Facebook Platform applications was launched.

2007: Named Top Innovator by MIT Technology Review

In 2007, Mark Zuckerberg was added to MIT Technology Review's TR35 list as one of the top 35 innovators in the world under the age of 35.

2007: Zuckerberg Interview on Open Information Flow

In a 2007 interview, Mark Zuckerberg explained his reasoning for not selling Facebook to major corporations, stating that creating an open information flow for people was more important than the amount of money.

2008: Zuckerberg Becomes Youngest Self-Made Billionaire

In 2008, Mark Zuckerberg became the world's youngest self-made billionaire at the age of 23.

2008: Most Influential Person

Time named Zuckerberg one of the most influential people in the world in 2008.

April 2009: Zuckerberg Seeks Financial Advice

In April 2009, Mark Zuckerberg sought the advice of former Netscape CFO Peter Currie regarding financing strategies for Facebook.

2009: Ranked on Vanity Fair 100 List

In 2009, Mark Zuckerberg ranked number 23 on the Vanity Fair 100 list.

July 21, 2010: Facebook Reaches 500 Million Users

On July 21, 2010, Mark Zuckerberg reported that Facebook had reached the 500-million-user mark.

September 2010: Donation to Newark Public Schools

In September 2010, Zuckerberg donated $100 million to Newark Public Schools. Critics noted the timing was close to the release of The Social Network, which painted a negative portrait of Zuckerberg.

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September 2010: Zuckerberg's pledge to Newark Public Schools

In September 2010, Zuckerberg pledged US$100 million to Newark Public Schools with the support of Governor Chris Christie.

2010: Zuckerberg as a Hacker

In 2010, Steven Levy, who wrote the 1984 book Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution, wrote that Zuckerberg "clearly thinks of himself as a hacker". Zuckerberg said that "it's OK to break things" "to make them better".

2010: Named Most Influential Person by Vanity Fair

In 2010, Vanity Fair magazine named Mark Zuckerberg number 1 on its list of the Top 100 "most influential people of the Information Age".

2010: Time Person of the Year

In 2010, Zuckerberg was named the Time Person of the Year, coinciding with Facebook reaching over half a billion users.

2010: Zuckerberg Signs The Giving Pledge

In 2010, Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and investor Warren Buffett signed The Giving Pledge, committing to donate at least half of their wealth to charity.

2011: Zuckerberg Receives Advice From Steve Jobs

In a 2011 interview with PBS shortly after the death of Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg said that Jobs had advised him on how to create a management team at Facebook that was "focused on building as high quality and good things as you are".

2011: Most Influential Person

Time named Zuckerberg one of the most influential people in the world in 2011.

May 2012: Facebook Goes Public

In May 2012, Mark Zuckerberg took Facebook public with majority shares.

October 1, 2012: Zuckerberg Meets with Russian Prime Minister

On October 1, 2012, Mark Zuckerberg met with then-Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow to stimulate social media innovation in Russia and to boost Facebook's position in the Russian market.

December 2012: Zuckerberg and Chan Pledge Majority of Wealth to Charity

In December 2012, Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan said they would give the majority of their wealth to "advancing human potential and promoting equality" in the spirit of The Giving Pledge.

December 2012: Donation to Silicon Valley Community Foundation

In December 2012, Zuckerberg donated 18 million shares to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, which supports education.

April 6, 2013: Facebook Home Promotional Campaign

On April 6, 2013, Facebook's head of consumer marketing, Rebecca Van Dyck, said that 85 million American Facebook users were exposed to the first day of the Home promotional campaign.

April 11, 2013: Launch of FWD.us Lobbying Group

On April 11, 2013, Zuckerberg initiated the FWD.us lobbying group, aimed at immigration reform and improving education but also criticized for supporting oil and gas development.

June 20, 2013: Engagement with Facebook users on FWD.us Video

On June 20, 2013, Zuckerberg engaged with Facebook users, commenting on the FWD.us organization's goals regarding immigration.

September 2013: Expanding Internet Coverage to Developing Countries

In September 2013, at the TechCrunch conference, Zuckerberg raised the goal of expanding Internet coverage into developing countries.

December 2013: Donation of Facebook Shares to Silicon Valley Community Foundation

In December 2013, Zuckerberg announced a donation of 18 million Facebook shares to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, totaling $990 million in value. This was the largest charitable gift on public record for that year.

2013: Internet.org Project

At the 2013 TechCrunch Disrupt conference, Mark Zuckerberg stated that he was working towards registering the 5 billion people who were not connected to the Internet as of the conference on Facebook, which is intertwined with the aim of the Internet.org project.

2013: Launch of Internet.org

In 2013, Mark Zuckerberg launched Internet.org, an initiative to provide Internet access to the five billion people without it at the time of the launch.

March 2014: Keynote Speaker at Mobile World Congress

In March 2014, Mark Zuckerberg was the keynote speaker at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, focusing on the future of mobile technology.

October 2014: Donation to Combat Ebola Virus Disease

In October 2014, Zuckerberg and his wife donated $25 million to combat the Ebola virus disease, specifically the West African Ebola virus epidemic.

October 23, 2014: Q&A Session at Tsinghua University

On October 23, 2014, Mark Zuckerberg participated in a Q&A session at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, conversing in Mandarin Chinese.

December 8, 2014: Zuckerberg Hosts Chinese Politician

On December 8, 2014, Mark Zuckerberg, along with other American technology figures, hosted visiting Chinese politician Lu Wei at Facebook's headquarters.

December 11, 2014: Zuckerberg Hosts Live Q&A Session

On December 11, 2014, Mark Zuckerberg fielded questions during a live Q&A session at Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, addressing concerns about Facebook being a waste of time.

February 2015: Endowment to San Francisco General Hospital

In February 2015, the couple endowed the foundation of the San Francisco General Hospital with $75 million, which was the biggest individual donation to a U.S. public hospital. The hospital was renamed as The Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.

December 1, 2015: Pledge to Transfer Facebook Shares to Chan Zuckerberg Initiative

On December 1, 2015, Zuckerberg and his wife pledged to transfer 99% of their Facebook shares, then valued at $45 billion, to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI).

February 24, 2016: Internal Memo on "Black Lives Matter"

On February 24, 2016, Zuckerberg sent a company-wide memo rebuking employees who overwrote "Black Lives Matter" phrases on company walls, calling the practice "malicious".

June 2016: Named a Top Business Visionary

In June 2016, Business Insider named Mark Zuckerberg one of the "Top 10 Business Visionaries Creating Value for the World" due to his and his wife's pledge to give away 99% of their wealth.

December 2016: Ranked Tenth on Forbes List

In December 2016, Zuckerberg was ranked tenth on the Forbes list of the World's Most Powerful People.

2016: Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Creation and Facebook's Support for Local Journalism

In 2016, CZI provided $600 million to establish the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, a research center designed to encourage collaboration among scientists. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Zuckerberg also announced $25 million in grants to support local journalism and $75 million in advertisement purchases in local newspapers via Facebook, Inc.

2016: Co-founds Breakthrough Starshot

In 2016, Zuckerberg co-founded the solar sail spacecraft development project Breakthrough Starshot with Yuri Milner and Stephen Hawking.

May 25, 2017: Receives Honorary Degree from Harvard

On May 25, 2017, Mark Zuckerberg received an honorary degree from Harvard after giving a commencement speech at the university's 366th commencement day.

2017: Call for Action on Global Warming

In 2017, Zuckerberg called for action to stop global warming in a commencement speech at Harvard University.

2018: Zuckerberg Testifies Before the Senate

In 2018, Mark Zuckerberg testified before the United States Senate Committee regarding the usage of personal data by Facebook in relation to the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal.

January 2019: Plans for Encrypted System Integration

In January 2019, Mark Zuckerberg laid plans to integrate an end-to-end encrypted system for Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

2019: Most Influential Person

Time named Zuckerberg one of the most influential people in the world in 2019.

August 14, 2020: Integration of Chat Systems

On August 14, 2020, Facebook integrated the chat systems for Instagram and Messenger on both iOS and Android devices.

October 1, 2020: Subpoenas Issued to Tech CEOs Including Zuckerberg

On October 1, 2020, the US Senate Commerce Committee unanimously voted to issue subpoenas to the CEOs of three top tech firms, including Zuckerberg, to testify about the legal immunity the law affords tech platforms.

March 25, 2021: Zuckerberg Testifies Before House Committee

On March 25, 2021, Zuckerberg testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee regarding Facebook's role in the spread of misinformation and hate speech on the platform.

2023: Forbes 400 Ranking

In 2023, Zuckerberg was ranked eighth on the Forbes 400 list of wealthiest Americans with a personal wealth of $106 billion.

January 2024: Zuckerberg Apologizes at Senate Hearing on Child Safety

In January 2024, Zuckerberg, along with other tech CEOs, were questioned at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on child safety and social media platforms. During the hearing, he apologized to the families of children who were victims of online abuse and harm.