How Adam Neumann co-founded WeWork – and why he had to step down

Oct 24 , 2019

WeWork’s Adam Neumann said he would be stepping down from his role as CEO. Photo: Eduardo Munoz/Reuters; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

The Israeli-born businessman whose wife, Rebekah, is actor Gwyneth Paltrow’s cousin, has been scrutinised for his lavish spending, excessive partying and dodgy work ethic

Israeli-born Adam Neumann, 40, has come a long way from the shoe-box-sized New York city flat he first lived in in the early 2000s. –

But his co-working company – valued just a few months ago at US$47 billion – has been rocked by criticism and controversy since it filed its IPO paperwork in mid-August and revealed spiralling losses. Since the paperwork was released, WeWork has suffered from a lack of investor interest, and has since announced it is shelving its plans to go public.

In the aftermath, attention turned to Neumann. Scrutiny was placed on his business investments and his complex web of personal connections within WeWork that could pose conflicts of interests. WeWork announced some changes, but it wasn’t enough to get the IPO (international public offering) back on track.

In response, Neumann announced last month he was stepping down as CEO in the company's “best interest”, saying he was becoming “a significant distraction” to WeWork's IPO plans. He is reportedly now leaving the company's board of directors, The Wall Street Journal reported, and he will get US$1.7 billion as part of a buyout deal to do so.

Here's everything you need to know about Adam Neumann, the WeWork co-founder and ousted CEO:

Adam Neumann was born is Israel in 1979. His parents got divorced when he was 7, and he moved around a lot as a child with his mother – he reportedly lived in 13 different homes by the time he was 22.

WeWork’s Adam Neumann will get US$1.7 billion as part of a buyout deal.

As a child, Neumann lived for some time on an Israeli kibbutz, called Nir Am, one of the collective community settlement across the country. Neumann attended school near the Gaza Strip while his mother worked as a doctor at a nearby hospital.

Kibbutz Nir Am in Israel, where Neumann lived as a child. Photo: Amir Cohen/Reuters

Neumann is severely dyslexic, and couldn't read or write until he was in third grade.

As is customary for Israeli citizens, Neumann served in the Israel Defence Forces after grade school. He served in the navy for five years, although only three years of service is required.

“That’s where I got to know a lot of my best friends,” Neumann told Haaretz in 2017.