Volozh is a serial entrepreneur with a background in computer science. He studied applied mathematics at Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, graduating in 1986. After working at a state pipeline research institute, he started a small business importing personal computers from Austria. He went on to co-found several IT enterprises besides Yandex, including a Russian provider of wireless networking technology InfiNet Wireless, and CompTek International, one of the largest distributors of network and telecommunications equipment in Russia.

Volozh co-founded CompTek in 1989. He also started working on search in 1989, which led to him establishing Arkadia Company in 1990. The company was developing search software. In 1993, Arkady Volozh and Ilya Segalovich developed a search engine for “non-structured information with Russian morphology”.

As of 2013, he is worth an estimated US$1.15 billion.

Summary

• Arkady Volozh is the principal founder and largest individual shareholder of publicly traded search engine Yandex, Russia’s Google.
• He cofounded the business with Ilya Segalovich who died of cancer in 2013.
• Volozh started working on search in 1989, which led to him establishing Arkadia Company in 1990, a company that developed search software.
• His early achievements include the development of electronic search for use in patents, Russian classical literature and the Bible.
• Volozh is head of the Department of Data Analysis at MIPT, one of the leading Russian universities.

Source:

1. wikipedia
2. forbes