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Venus Wang, who once managed software quality and operations at Google, shifted her focus towards artificial intelligence (AI).
She faced many challenges when she moved to the US in 2013. (Photo Credits: X)
Venus Wang, a former Google employee, turned her life around by increasing her earning from $300,000 (approximately Rs 2 Crore) to nearly $1 million (approximately Rs 2 Crore) a year after her divorce. During the time of the separation, Wang had only $10,000 (approximately Rs 8 Lakh) in savings and was unemployed for a year while caring for her daughter. Wang described the divorce as a “wake-up call” she needed to make changes in her life. She felt her identity shift, as she went from being “someone else’s wife to a single mom.” Wang, who once managed software quality and operations at the tech giant, shifted her focus towards artificial intelligence (AI). With a clear financial plan, Wang not only rebuilt her future but also tripled her income.
Wang, who was born and raised in Kaifeng, China, told CNBC, “There was a lot of expectation put on me from teachers, family and later from my boss at work,” who wanted her to live life “in a certain way, by a certain age” and that they had “certain criteria of what success looks like. I didn’t feel like I had enough of the freedom to live the life that I wanted, which pushed me to have this idea of moving abroad and living in a different environment.”
Venus Wang faced many challenges when she moved to the US in 2013 to study MBA at Duke University. When she first arrived, she struggled to converse in English, but after a lot of practice, her language skills improved. After completing her studies in 2015, Wang secured a well-paying job in Seattle, which she had to leave in 2020 when she moved to New York to support her husband’s career. She planned to take a break to focus on raising her daughter. But in 2021, her marriage ended and she became a single mom, unemployed and unsure about her future.
“When we were splitting up, I took a hard look at my finances. I had less than $10,000 (approximately Rs 8 Lakh) in cash and roughly $40,000 (approximately Rs 34 Lakh) in my IRA. And that’s pretty much it. It was pretty shocking for me to come to that realisation. I started to realise that up until that point, I had managed my finances terribly,” Wang explained.
Venus Wang moved to San Francisco and began working at Google, where she earned around $300,000. This job gave her the financial security she needed to take care of her daughter and start fresh. After nearly a year, she felt she wasn’t growing in her career and started exploring opportunities in AI. In 2024, she left Google to work at a startup and later joined a major tech company, where her salary increased significantly. With bonuses and stock options, she now earns $970,000 (approximately Rs 8 Crore).
- Location :
Delhi, India, India
