From Homeless to Billionaire: The Extraordinary Rise of Crypto Entrepreneur Luka Netz

Luca Netz was already thinking about how to turn a startup into a billion-dollar company at the age of 16. As a homeless youth, he witnessed firsthand how a company truly creates wealth while working in the warehouse of a smart doorbell company. This experience gave him a deep understanding of how startups operate, laying the foundation for his future success.

Nate's childhood was filled with uncertainty. He and his mother lived a nomadic life, moving between several countries. This life experience cultivated his adaptability and keen intuition for seizing opportunities. Despite the difficult circumstances, Nate viewed it as a valuable education.

During high school, Nitz demonstrated a business acumen. He started reselling food at school, taking advantage of his classmates' willingness to pay for convenience. At the age of 16, he dropped out and secured a job with a smart doorbell company. There, he observed the rapid growth process of a startup up close.

Nitz's first entrepreneurial attempt stemmed from his keen observation of hip-hop culture. He noticed that fans had difficulty distinguishing between real and fake jewelry, so he began selling high-quality imitation accessories. Through clever social media marketing strategies, he achieved a million-dollar income by the age of 18 and eventually sold the business for 8 million dollars.

Subsequently, Nets ventured into multiple fields, including serving as the Chief Marketing Officer of a well-known clothing brand and an investor in a toy company. These experiences have provided him with valuable management and marketing expertise.

In early 2022, Nance made a bold decision: to acquire the Pudgy Penguins NFT series for $2.5 million. Despite the NFT market about to enter a bear market at that time, Nance saw the potential to build a lasting brand. Under his leadership, Pudgy Penguins transformed from mere digital collectibles into a diversified brand, encompassing physical products, content creation, and gaming among other areas.

Pudgy Penguins' physical toys have achieved remarkable success, widely sold among major retailers, generating over $10 million in revenue within a year. This strategy of combining digital assets with physical products has built a bridge between traditional retail and Web3 technology.

At the end of 2024, Nets launched the PENGU token, which is one of the largest airdrops in the history of the Solana chain. Although it initially sparked controversy, the performance of the PENGU token confirmed Nets' vision. By mid-2025, the market capitalization of PENGU had surpassed $2.5 billion, attracting the attention of institutional investors.

In early 2025, Netz launched his most innovative project - the Abstract blockchain. This platform aims to eliminate the barriers for users in using encryption technology, making it more user-friendly for the average consumer. Abstract has received support from top investors and had a large number of applications in development at the time of its launch.

Nitz's vision is to create a new type of brand participation model that allows consumers to become stakeholders in the brand's success. His goals are not limited to short-term profits but are focused on long-term development, including expanding into the Asia-Pacific market and further enhancing the Pudgy World experience.

As a billionaire entrepreneur at the age of 25, Nitz has successfully combined the innovation of encryption with the stability of traditional retail. His success is not only reflected financially but also in the way he has created a new business model that seamlessly merges digital with physical, community with commerce, and innovation with accessibility.

The story of Nitz demonstrates how to turn the limitations of the industry into advantages. He not only created a company but also established a new category of existence, making digital ownership as natural as owning physical toys, with complex technology hidden behind a simple user experience. His success has pointed the cryptocurrency industry towards a new development path, bringing it into a broader mainstream market.