Catalin Acio was raised in Galati, Romania, the fifth biggest city of the country (population 400,000). In 1995 he graduated magna cum laude from CFR High School with a major in computer programming. He attended Dunarea de Jos University, one of Romania's top educational institutions, and studied electromechanical and computer science until he left the country in 1999. He has worked as a database programmer and network admin for two small Romanian software development companies.