Short answers, pulled from the story.
Red Bull GmbH was co-founded in 1984 by Austrian entrepreneur Dietrich Mateschitz and Thai businessman Chaleo Yoovidhya, with each partner investing US$500,000. The product launched publicly in Austria on the 1st of April 1987. The company is headquartered in Fuschl am See, a small village near Salzburg, Austria.
Red Bull is derived from Krating Daeng, a Thai energy drink introduced by Chaleo Yoovidhya in 1976. The name Krating Daeng means "red gaur" in English. Mateschitz adapted the formula for Western tastes by carbonating it and adjusting the flavour, while the flavouring is still produced in Bangkok and exported worldwide.
More than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwide since the drink launched in 1987. In 2025 alone, over 13.9 billion cans were sold. Red Bull held a 13 percent share of the global energy drink market in 2023.
A standard 250 ml can of Red Bull contains approximately 40 to 80 mg of caffeine, though the exact amount varies by country due to local regulations. The drink also contains taurine, B vitamins, glucuronolactone, and simple sugars.
In 2014, Red Bull agreed to a US$13 million settlement to resolve consumer class action lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The plaintiffs claimed Red Bull made performance-enhancing claims unsupported by scientific studies. The court approved the settlement on the 1st of May 2015, offering claimants US$10 cash or US$15 in Red Bull products.
Red Bull entered the United States market in 1996, initially via California. It had already expanded into Germany and the United Kingdom in 1994, and reached the Middle East in 2000 and the Philippines in 2012.