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Inside Stanford's Billion-Dollar Fraternities, Where Famous And Successful Tech Founders Get Their Starthttps://www.businessinsider.in/inside-stanfords-billion-dollar-fraternities-where-famous-and-successful-tech-founders-get-their-start/my-uberx-driver-dropped-me-off-one-mile-from-my-destination-there-werent-cabs-around-just-a-red-campus-bus-so-i-had-to-hike-through-the-quad-to-start-my-adventure-/slidelist/27192793.cms2017-08-20T03:00:29+05:30

Inside Stanford's Billion-Dollar Fraternities, Where Famous And Successful Tech Founders Get Their Start

Aug 20, 2017, 03:00 IST

My UberX driver dropped me off one mile from my destination. There weren't cabs around, just a red campus bus. So I had to hike through the quad to start my adventure.

The first thing I noticed were all the bikes. I was dodging bikers left and right. Many had character to them, like home-made bike seats, fake flower add-ons and baskets.

Really, they were everywhere.

I walked through a small quad, past the engineering center and to the other side.

Past a strange park with totem poles.

And caught my first sign of Greek life.

I kept on going, winding to the left and up some steep hills.

And I started hitting the frats. Many of the fraternities look like this. They're low, flat gray buildings that are deceivingly large inside.

A red solo cup and bails of hay. I wonder what frat brothers do with those?

Gold lions greeted me at SAE, which is near Kappa Sigma. Fun fact: actor Fred Savage (The Wonder Years) was a member here.

You can also follow the trash trail. Everything from bottles of ketchup to beer cans to pizza boxes were strewn in yards. Pretty typical.

There it was, Kappa Sigma. The fraternity that housed Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel, Snapchat CTO Bobby Murphy, and the friend they ousted who is now suing them, Reggie Brown. It's the same house they pledged at, even though the frat was kicked off campus while they were at school. It's since been reinstated.

A red lion flag hangs outside. Inside there are rooms with red doors to the left and a cafeteria to the right. There was a Christmas tree with ornaments made of cut-up beer cans and a piano. Lacrosse gear was strewn on the back porch; many of the brothers play for the college team. I met with the fraternity's president but out of respect for the guys, I didn't photograph inside.

After lunch I wandered down the road to Sigma Nu, where Lucas Duplan started payment company Clinkle and raised $25 million — the largest seed round of financing in Silicon Valley history.

It's also the fraternity of Instagram co-founder, Kevin Systrom. Out front there were picnic tables and a hammock.

I snuck around back and found a full-length basketball court, as well as a golf cart.

And a pretty clean back porch.

Last on my list was Kimball Hall.

Kimball Hall is where Reggie Brown and Evan Spiegel once lived and where Brown first shared his billion-dollar idea, Snapchat, with Spiegel.

Like what you see? Then you should take this quiz to see if you're good enough to get in to Stanford.

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