max levchin had no country to call home. he fled the soviet union, and ever an entrepreneur, built a new life in america. joining me today is paypal cofounder, max levchin. thanks for joining us. max levchin: thank you for inviting me. emily: you were born in the ukraine. how much of a connection do you still feel? max levchin: anytime i am told -- oh, you are russian, i feel the need to say no, i am a jew who was born in ukraine. it is still a part of what defined me. on occasion, i miss it. emily: what do you miss? max levchin: the people are very genuine. emily: what would you be doing if you were still there today? max levchin: probably some form of coding. i probably would have started a company. emily: have you been following what has been going on their recently? are you worried about a civil war? max levchin: yes, i am very worried. as an engineer, i always think through a solution -- it is not obvious that there is one. it seems to be at least somewhat contained, but it is horrifying. emily: how does that affect you? max levchin: i don't feel like i can help the situation. a shot of cold water in a sheltered, beautiful place to try

max levchin had no country to call home. he fled the soviet union, and ever the entrepreneur, built a new life in america. joining me today on "studio 1.0" is paypal cofounder, max levchin. thanks for joining us. max: t inviting. emily: founder, ceo, mad -- emily: you were born in the ukraine. how much of a connection do you still feel to the people and the country? max: anytime i am told, oh, you are russian, i feel the need to say, no, i am a jew who was born in ukraine. it is still a part of what defined me. i haven't been back in a long time. on occasion, i miss it. emily: what do you miss? max: the people are very genuine. they don't pretend to be anything they're not. emily: what would you be doing if you were still there today? max: probably writing code of some form. i probably would have started a company. more or less. emily: have you been following what has been going on their recently? are you worried about a civil war? max: yes, i am very worried. i do not think it is possible not to follow it. as an engineer, i always think through a solution -- it is not obvious that there is one. it seems to be at least somewhat contained, but it is horrifyi