US startup CTO's Green Card application rejected citing job at Apple as reason, but he 'NEVER worked at Apple!'

In a surprising and controversial move, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has denied the green card application submitted by Yuchen Jin, a prominent computer scientist and Chief Technology Officer of the AI startup Hyperbolic Labs. The rejection has sparked significant discussion in the tech community over the evaluation criteria used by immigration officials.

Jin, who co-founded Hyperbolic Labs and successfully secured $20 million in funding for the company, was informed that his contributions were deemed to lack the necessary impact "beyond that of Apple, Inc." In an unusual error, the USCIS mistakenly identified Jin as Apple’s Chief Technology Officer - a position he has never held.

After over a year of anticipation for a decision, Jin expressed his frustration on social media platform X, criticising the agency’s reasoning as "careless and inconsistent." He stated, "WTF? I have NEVER worked at Apple! I got my CS PhD, cofounded an AI startup, and raised USD 20M. Yet, after waiting an entire year, I’m rejected with this absurd reasoning."

Despite acknowledging Jin's substantial contributions to advanced technology, USCIS ultimately determined that his work did not satisfy the economic and national impact criteria necessary for the green card category. This decision has raised alarms among business leaders, who pointed out that the agency’s rationale appears vague and potentially formulaic.

In response to the rejection, Jin has appealed to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a federal initiative launched by President-elect Donald Trump aimed at reforming the high-skilled immigration system. DOGE is composed of notable figures, including Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, and is focused on streamlining government processes and reducing regulatory burdens.

Jin has called for a revamp of the high-skilled immigration system, arguing that America's competitiveness relies heavily on its ability to attract talented immigrants. He stated, "High-skilled immigrants are America's secret weapon. It should be merit-based—not left to some USCIS officer carelessly reviewing documents and copy-pasting rejection reasons!"

One user commented on Jin's post asking, "Are you considering an appeal? This is so blatantly wrong that you might succeed (success rate is below 2%)."

To this he replied, "@deedydas told me the chances for the appeal are slim, and some people said a pending appeal may affect refiled applications, so I decided to just refile. I hope this time the system matches me with a better officer."