While many often assume that technology isn’t a creative field, every new invention is the product of someone’s imagination. Everyday items from smartphones to drones once existed only as an idea.
And while anyone can come up with a new idea, convincing big corporations or legacy institutions to bet on new concepts is often a very hard sell, given how risk-averse these large organizations usually are. This is why many tech creatives are particularly drawn to the entrepreneurial pursuits as it gives the flexibility and freedom to explore innovation.
These creative new venture have huge economic benefits too. The global startup economy creates nearly $3 trillion in value. Entrepreneurial activity helps to create new jobs, fosters innovation, and drives market competition. In turn, they attract investment and create wealth that has a positive cascading effect in other areas. Startups are also agile, meaning they have the ability to respond market evolutions extremely quickly.
In the U.S. an average of 476,000 new startups are formed annually. In 2023, individuals filed nearly 2.7 million applications to start a business between January and June, a 5 percent increase over 2022.
This means we’re likely to see even more dynamic ideas hitting the market in the years to come. Here we present The Sociable’s list 40 innovators under 40 from around the world who are working to further innovations in everything from cybersecurity and the blockchain to transportation and marketing.
Lucas Bonatto , Director of AI at Semantix
Lucas’s technology expertise and passion for machine learning allowed him to develop the first generation of large-scale machine learning platforms. His enthusiasm for technology fueled the creation of Marvin AI, one of the first open-source ML Ops platform and Elemeno, a comprehensive solution for artificial intelligence development.
Currently, he’s the Director of AI at Semantix a prominent leader in artificial intelligence and analytics solutions that offers innovative and disruptive services, including one-stop-shop Generative AI platform for quickly implementing AI-native apps within businesses.
Danish Ahmed, Founder of Startuptools.ai
Over the past 14 years, Danish has led product development across mobile, web, and hardware platforms which makes him an experienced product leader in the AdTech industry. This entrepreneur started his career at a venture incubator, where he gained valuable experience in rapidly validating and iterating on products to achieve problem-solution fit. Over the past three years at Nativo, he has led the product direction for their media and insights platforms.
His company, Startuptools.ai is an application built to help entrepreneurs through the key stages of establishing a new business; generating ideas, formulating plans, and executing launches. It aims to empower and enable entrepreneurs, even those without a technical background, to take advantage of AI as a partner in building their businesses.
Camilo Martinez, Co-founder of Leal.co
Camilo’s entrepreneurial journey began when he launched Impulse Travel, Colombia’s first e-commerce travel company. His expertise in the startup industry expanded when he worked as an analyst and associate at Bancolombia, leading the mergers and acquisitions transaction team for the food, beverage and retail sectors. With both startup and corporate finance expertise he co-founded Leal.co, a loyalty platform startup with offices across Latin America.
Dan Berges, Founder and CEO of Berges Institute
Based in NYC, Dan is a multifaceted entrepreneur, teacher, writer, programmer, podcaster and musician originally from Madrid, Spain. In 2013 he founded Berges Institute, the fastest-growing Spanish language school for adults in the U.S.
Dan holds a Master’s degree in Teaching, has a background in experimental semantics and he authored The Graf Method for Spanish Language and contributed to outlets including Forbes and MultiLingual.
Nenad Zaric, CEO and Co-founder of Trickest
Nenad is a cybersecurity expert who has worked uncovering critical vulnerabilities in top-tier companies like Uber, Adobe, Spotify, Twitter, Snapchat, Airbnb, and Daimler Truck. He co-founded Trickest, a pioneer in enterprise security automation that lets security teams (companies, security providers, ethical hackers) create automated attack simulations, from testing to real-world use.
With more than a decade of experience in penetration testing, bug bounty hunting, biotech and security automation, he has been a driving force in shaping the future of digital security.
Samantha Goniea, Director of Global Marketing at Nisum
With over 15 years of strategic and creative experience freelancing with start-ups, launching new brands and activations, and helping established brands take their marketing initiatives to the next level, Samantha is a seasoned marketing professional and entrepreneur.
She is also the co-founder of Desert Fox Creations, a top 5% shop on Etsy, and the owner of Markify, a performance-driven marketing agency.
Alejandro Perez, Co-founder of Fracttal
Alejandro is a senior programmer expert in a diversity of languages and technologies. His expertise is further enhanced by his deep knowledge of security practices and product development. innovative Colombian electronics engineer.
He launched his first entrepreneurial initiative in 2008 in the biomedical field and ever since, Alejandro has established himself as a distinguished entrepreneur and a leading innovative product and hardware researcher. His entrepreneurial journey led him to co-found Fracttal with Christian Struve in 2014, a pioneering company offering a fully mobile maintenance management software solution, which quickly positioned itself as one of the most prominent worldwide. Fracttal has managed to capture US$10 million in investment and its client portfolio includes industrial giants such as Renault, Burger King, Acciona, Unilever, Iberostar, Veolia, FedEx, Oxxo, 3M and Coca-Cola.
Mike DeKock, Founder, & CEO of MJD Advisors
Mike’s professional path started at a large CPA firm where he was a financial statement auditor. He developed a passion for process improvement and became a subject matter expert in applying the audit and attestation standards. He then founded MJD Advisors after spending much of his career as a general practitioner and experiencing himself the huddle of slow processes and what it meant to provide low value to clients.
In 2017 he began focusing on SOC reports and then in 2021 his startup was created with the goal of leveraging expertise and modern technology to elevate client relationships and automate anything that doesn’t require a conversation.
Ruth Álvarez, Founder and Executive Director of Mercado Global
Ruth has received recognition on both national and global platforms for her work as a social entrepreneur. She was named one of the “World’s Best Emerging Social Entrepreneurs” by Echoing Green and was featured on the cover of Newsweek magazine as one of “15 People Who Make America Great.”
Álvarez has been a pioneer in the field of ethical fashion. What started as a small nonprofit working with a dozen Indigenous women artisans in Guatemala has now become a social enterprise that supports Indigenous women across the Americas in gaining income and empowerment through access to international markets. Together with Ruth’s vision and leadership, Mercado Global has made major contributions to promoting fair trade practices in the global fashion industry and in advancing this movement within major fashion corporations including Nordstrom, Levi’s and Bloomingdale’s.
Tucker F. Cohen, Founder & CEO of Smoov
Tucker has an extensive background in sales and marketing. For over 10 years, he has cultivated a passion for crafting innovative solutions that address real-world problems experienced by everyday people. In his role as founder and CEO of Smoov, he has set his sights on streamlining the way couples manage joint expenses without a shared bank account.
Tucker has an impressive track record of effectively leading and scaling teams and partnerships across different industries, including software and sports. He has leveraged his expertise in communication, leadership, and creative approach to problem-solving to advise and invest in several startups.
Madhav Srinath, Founder of NexusLeap
Madhav is obsessed with distilling complex technical topics into bite-sized and concise briefs that leave his audience with tangible takeaways. He has even made a career out of this with his startup, NexusLeap, an analytics consulting company that specializes in scalable decision-making tools.
His expertise in data warehousing, BI, and cloud apps has allowed him to serve on Microsoft’s AI advisory board and even to hold analytics leadership roles in consulting and product companies. He mentors at USC’s incubator, is a Forbes Council member, and has lectured at UT Austin on AI.
Taylor Hersom, Founder of Eden Data
Taylor has experience advising Fortune 500 companies at Deloitte and as a former CISO, Taylor has emerged as one of the youngest executive-level security experts in the field.
As a prominent voice on global security, Taylor enhances his professional brand through ventures like Eden Data, Millennial CISO, and as the inaugural member of CompTIA’s Cybersecurity Advisory Council. Staying on top of the latest developments allows him to deliver optimal solutions to clients.
Ted Ko, President at Techko Group
With a degree in Electrical Engineering and a minor in Chinese from Harvard University, Ted’s expertise is very diverse including business strategy, brand, UI/UX design and web development. He is currently the President of Techko Group, a consumer electronics company.
He co-founded the startup Coral Robots, launching the world’s first 2-in-1 robot and handheld vacuum. Previously, Ted built products at Yieldmo, a USV-backed ad tech startup that delivered hundreds of millions of impressions daily on CNN, The New York Times and more. He also worked as a designer at IDEO, prototyping new business units on blockchain and Bitcoin applications, partnering with companies like Citi and Nasdaq.
Edward Cullen, CEO of Crescite
Edward Cullen is a technology entrepreneur with more than 15 years of experience. The co-founder and CEO of Crescite was a leading New York City mayoral candidate in 2021 after working on the Biden campaign.
Edward was the first employee at Company.co, where he supported over 150 startups that created 2,174 jobs and raised over $1 billion in VC funding. In 2020, he launched the second Harlem Tech Summit, drawing 2,000+ attendees and featuring leaders from Google, The Vatican, MIT, and more.
Daniela Gutierrez, Project Manager at Source Meridian
Daniela Gutiérrez is a certified Project Manager and Product Owner with over 10 years of experience in medical data and software development. She was key in establishing Source Meridian, a software company focused on life science and health tech.
Gutiérrez has been vital in growing and maintaining client partnerships for Source Meridian. Daniela has the skills needed to build strong relationships with stakeholders. Her specialized expertise makes her an asset in managing complex software projects in the medical and health technology space.
Fabio Richter, Founder of Hot Meal Challenge
A younger entrepreneur on this list, Fabio is an entrepreneur at heart. During college, he built several ventures including Laulau, Studyhero, Studyhuman, and Discofetch.
He also founded the Hot Meal Challenge, a charity that provides hot meals to families facing food poverty across London, in partnership with Sufra. This initiative has served hundreds of people across the city. Fabio’s side interest is writing. He likes to explore topics around technology, culture, and economics, with articles in Inc. Magazine, Investment Monitor, South China Morning Post, and more.
Abdulla Basha, VP of Growth Marketing at Prezent
Basha leads the Growth Marketing team at Present, a remote-first communication productivity platform. He was recently named as one of the winners in the 2023 APPEALIE awards in the SaaS Marketing Leader category thanks to his exceptional work.
His expertise includes data analytics, customer behaviors, customer acquisition strategies, and testing of new growth strategies and tactics.
Matt Farrell, Vice President at Mortgage Lending Done Right
Matt is a former professional basketball player. He played in Turkey, Israel and Germany. He was also part of the Miami Heat, The Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL).[10] On September 23, Rytas Vilnius and Matt Farrell parted ways. Currently he’s the Vice President at MLO, a lending family-owned company that assists with sales and marketing along with back office operations.
Matt has a Bachelor’s degree in Communication from The University of Notre Dame.
Kendall Embs, Marketing and Platform Director at Cybernetix Ventures
Embs is a marketing and communications expert with experience in the startup and venture capital space. She worked at a venture-focused family office, Spring St. Group, where she was a founding team member. At SSG, Kendall evolved the firm’s brand, advised portfolio companies on marketing, and led marketing for new ventures.
Kendall’s expertise is also a result of her trajectory as an entrepreneur. She launched her own consultancy serving startups, funds, and VC services companies.
Bob Reisenweber, Managing Director at Oiga Technologies, a 10Pearls Company
Bob is an expert in finance and entrepreneurship. He oversees daily operations and strategic growth for Oiga Technologies, a 10Pearls company. 10Pearls is an award winning end-to-end digital development partner, helping businesses innovate, modernize, and accelerate. Since joining Oiga in 2021, Bob has doubled its size and solidified its position as a premier service provider in the space.
Bob graduated from Wharton Business School at UPenn before starting his career in M&A investment banking at UBS. He then transitioned into venture capital as an associate at GITP Ventures, an emerging markets tech fund. Bob later co-founded award-winning daily fantasy sports platform Betiply and augmented reality ad-tech startup Arlene.io in New York.
Harold Diaz, CEO & Co-Founder at Ressolve
Harold is a Computer Engineer and has a Masters in Marketing Management. He has more than 16 years experience in the field including CRM, data mining and AI/BI. His startup Ressolve, is an artificial intelligence platform trained to understand and interpret spoken or written conversations, extracting valuable insights that allow companies to improve the customer experience and to increase the profitability of their business.
Oren Zamir, Founder of Orizon Energy
Oren founded Orizon Energy in 2021 with the goal of helping build Western Canada’s best residential solar company. In 2023 Orizon became Canada’s leading Solaredge residential purchaser. The startup offers premium home services, making green energy projects affordable for both residential and commercial customers across Canada
Orizon Energy is not his first startup, he also built a real estate investment group, Basil Pasta Bar and Oraizen Automotive, an automotive shop. In 2022 he purchased Acceleration Auto & Performance, a company that works on some of the coolest cars in the region.
Kai M. Fahrion, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Zeno Renewables
Kai’s goal is to help reduce humankind’s carbon footprint hence his commitment to creating a sustainable future. In 2015, Kai co-founded Zeno (originally Virtuoso Energy) to address the gap in how energy is used locally and globally. As Co-CEO, he works on special projects, growth, team development, and leadership.
He moved to Canada from Germany as a child due to pollution. His family has long embraced sustainability starting with his grandfather who designed one of Eastern Europe’s first solar farms 40 years ago.
Jaime Mansur Monroy, CEO of Mansur Solar
Jaime’s path towards sustainability started when graduated as an Electrical Engineer specialized in photovoltaic solar energy technologies. He then pursued a Masters in Photovoltaic Solar Energy.
His entrepreneurial journey began when he created Manur Solar, a company dedicated to the design and execution of photovoltaic projects. With the aim of promoting solar energy as a main source of clean energy in the Mexican market.
Kiem Schutter, Founder and CEO of Qi Integrated Health
Schutter’s startup, Qi Integrated Health is a health clinic in Vancouver that provides the highest level of patient care to customers with the help of a team of leading practitioners. It’s built around a new system of care that combines evidence based medicine with traditional therapies.
Arjun Chandar, Founder and CEO at IndustrialML
Arjun is an expert in deploying advanced technologies for manufacturing and production. He co-founded and leads IndustrialML as CEO, an enterprise platform that powers factory data management through real-time integration, analytics, visualization, notifications and reporting.
With extensive experience in Industry 4.0, robotics, sensors and automation, Arjun drives innovation. He is currently undertaking a PhD project at MIT focused on utilizing 3D printing to build housing for homeless populations globally. Throughout his career, Arjun has implemented cutting-edge solutions to transform manufacturing operations. As CEO of IndustrialML, he now enables factories to leverage their data through a powerful end-to-end management platform.
Ximena Aleman, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Prometeo OpenBanking
As Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Prometeo, Ximena’s primary objective is to champion the adoption of APIs as a unified access point for interoperability across Latin America. She has led the fintech innovation in Latin America by founding three pioneering fintech startups and driving early adoption of open finance in the region. Her leadership has been instrumental in advancing API-based connectivity to enable seamless integration between financial systems across Latin America.
Prior to Prometeo, Ximena gained expertise in communications and marketing strategy, consulting for a range of companies. She held leadership roles including Head of Marketing at the law firm Dentons Uruguay and Director of Digital Content at EME, a creative agency producing content for Latin American media. She also worked for major news outlets in Uruguay.
Sebastián Hernandez, Founder & CEO of Superfüds
Sebastián Hernández launched his first healthy food distribution venture in 2014 fueled by his passion for wellness and nutrition. Over the years, Superfüds has evolved into a premier wellness super app offering products across categories including nutrition, mental and physical health, beauty, and sustainability.
Sebastian’s technological background includes his previous role as a strategic advisor to the IT Minister of Colombia where he helped in the formulation and structuring of programs, projects, and strategies related to the development and closing of the country’s IT talent gap.
Gonzalo Forero, Co-Founder at Apparta
Gonzalo is not only the co-founder of Apparta but he’s also the Head of Marketing. It is a marketplace for restaurants to offer empty tables with discounts that consumers can reserve through an app.
The startup was launched in April 2021 in Barranquilla, Colombia. This entrepreneur noticed that restaurants have empty tables available at all times of course except at lunch and dinner time. But they have many expenses and those empty tables become lost revenue. So he saw this market opportunity even before the pandemic, and when it hit it exacerbated the issue of empty tables and lost revenue, underscoring the need for a solution like Apparta to help fill unused capacity.
Jose Peña Manjarrés, Co-Founder & COO at Flycrew
Jose has helped create a more innovative Latin America. He has worked leading creative teams, developing strategies, and managing operations across various countries in the region including Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Panama and more. He was selected as a Global Shaper by the World Economic Forum – a group of young leaders under 30.
Jose co-founded Flycrew in 2021, an all in one platform that makes it easy to sell, grow and manage digital products, membership, and community in Latin America.
Thomas Vadora, Founder of Splight
With a Master’s degree in Computer Science and a deep passion for the fast-paced energy industry, Thomas cultivated expertise as a competitive programmer and principal software engineer. This increased his interest in scalable, high-performance software.
He studied machine and deep learning at the University of Toronto which allowed him to blend his passion for the energy sector and his AI capabilities. This ultimately led him to found Splight, an AI platform that provides innovative and intelligent solutions to the energy sector.
Alejandro López, Co CEO & Cofounder Vozy
An electronics engineer with over 16 years of experience in the electric and mining sectors, Alejando is passionate about entrepreneurship and technology. His expertise ranges from marketing and sales to leading teams.
As co-founder of Vozy, Alejandro is able to apply the technical expertise and leadership abilities he previously used to help other companies grow to now build and scale his own startup.
Dustin Betz, Director of Venture Operations
Dustin is a biologist, builder and investor at White Rose Ventures. He supports entrepreneurs building impactful businesses in Pennsylvania. As a former founder and startup community advocate, he is focused on understanding emerging science, tech and innovations that can change norms or transform markets, especially at the intersection of ecology, synthetic biology, food, hardware, energy and sustainability.
Angela Acosta, Founder & CEO at Morado
Before founding Morado, a women-centric beauty tech company, Angela had the opportunity to enter new market launches with Rappi, one of LATAM’s most impactful unicorns. She lived in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Peru and she has always been driven to build tech solutions that empower the region.
As a founder, Catalina thrives in fast-paced environments and is fueled by the change she can drive through technology. With Morado, she aims to transform the lives of millions of women in the beauty industry.
Ben Sadeghipour, CEO at HackingHub.io
Ben is a renowned ethical hacker, content creator, and educator. Aka “NahamSec,” he advocates for widespread cybersecurity awareness, emphasizing the importance of education, tools, and vigilance in combating potential threats.
Ben has identified thousands of security vulnerabilities across major companies like Apple, Google, and Snapchat. Leveraging his experience as the former head of Hacker Education at HackerOne, he shares his expertise through speaking engagements, training sessions, and content creation on YouTube and Twitch, focusing on ethical hacking, bug bounty programs, and web security.
Celeste Shoot, Co-Founder of Nimble Technology Partners
Celeste has more than 12 years of diverse experience in sales, sales ops, brand management, GTM, and most recently product marketing. She has worked at Verizon, Pluralsight, and Drata.
Her startup, Nimble Technology Partners, celebrates diverse skills, perspectives, and experiences that help them match the best talent with their customers. Celeste’s aim is to help create the future of work within tech and build connections with people that move innovation forward.
Stephanie Gómez Cardoso, Co-Founder Bacu
As a former Rappi employee, Stephanie co-founded Bacu, a restaurant chain with a focus in technology. Her expertise at her previous job gave her the necessary skills and knowledge to launch a startup that stands out from the competition with it’s omni channel presence and it’s
In addition to seeking efficiency in internal processes, her restaurant is also interested in gaining greater insight into customer tastes and preferences, as well as offering easy and simple payment options.
Miguel Mc Allister, Co-Founder of Cafe La Divisa
Miguel, a computer science graduate who has been an entrepreneur since 2018, has been a key player in various internet industries since the age of 18. His journey began with ventures in tech insurance, VoIP, FoodTech, and e-commerce, where he mixed technology and marketing to propel these enterprises from conception to rapid growth.
Among his standout achievements is the co-founding of Domicilios.com, which emerged as the largest online food delivery marketplace in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador. Currently, as the co-founder and CEO of Merqueo, Miguel is at the forefront of Colombia’s online supermarket sector. His vision revolves around leveraging technology to make grocery delivery accessible to Latin America’s middle class. His last venture is Cafe La Divisa, a sustainable specialty coffee company in Colombia focused on the economic empowerment of women through one of the best coffees in the world.
Jake Karls, Co-Founder & Rainmaker of Mid-Day Squares
Jake co-founded Mid-Day Squares, a Montreal based functional chocolate bar manufacturer, with his sister and brother in law in 2018.
Jake is a rising business leader, he has earned accolades like finalist for EY’s Entrepreneur of The Year, Forbes 30 Under 30 list for 2023 in the Food and Beverage category, and is a regular contributor to major media outlets across North America. He has an innovative approach and vision that have allowed him to be a voice in his field.
Sarah Segal, President at Squish Candy
Sarah founded Squish Candy, an artisanal candy company and was the CEO until 2013 when she joined DAVIDsTEA. Her expertise ranges across brand strategy, e-commerce, retail operations, and governance.
Sarah has over a decade of leadership experience. Most recently as the Chief Brand Officer, she led tea and product development and pioneered new digital initiatives and sales channels. Sarah has a Bachelor’s in Environmental Health from McGill University and a Masters in Water Science, Policy and Management from Oxford University.
Vasyl Dub, Co-Founder & CEO of Animal ID
Vasyl is the brain behind Animal ID, an analytics platform for manufacturers of pet products. With over 14 years of experience in the tech space, Vasyl has worn different hats including CEO, Business Development Director, CMO, and Product Lead, highlighting a versatile and dynamic career path. His leadership skills allowed him to build and manage diverse teams, successfully hiring over 50 professionals.
Vasyl’s expertise includes a wide variety of service and product-focused businesses in industries like Software, Pet, Web3, and Fintech. His support for innovative projects and his achievement in raising over $2 million underlines his great capacity for gathering investment and backing for forward-thinking projects.
Stuart Meczes, Creative Director at Contnt
Stuart Meczes, the Creative Director at Contnt, is a multifaceted talent with a remarkable track record in the literary and marketing worlds. As an Amazon top 20 bestselling author with five novels under his belt and more on the horizon, Stuart has demonstrated his ability to captivate audiences with his storytelling prowess.
Additionally, he serves as a tier 1 copywriter, specializing in crafting compelling content for both established brands and burgeoning startups, with a keen focus on the cryptocurrency and decentralized finance sectors. Stuart’s expertise has earned him recognition across various renowned publications, including BSC News, Coin Telegraph, Yahoo, Yahoo Finance, Benzinga, and Forbes, further solidifying his position as a prominent figure in the industry.
Vinay Kashyap, Co-Founder & Vice President of Product Engineering at GoodGist Inc
At 35, Vinay Kashyap is a distinguished Co-Founder and Vice President of Product Engineering at GoodGist Inc., where he brings over a decade of innovation in technology to the forefront. With a seasoned background that includes pivotal roles at industry giants such as Huawei, Toshiba, DataRPM, Progress Software, and Sentienz Akiro, Vinay has mastered the intricacies of Distributed Systems, Cloud Computing, and Big Data Analytics through 14 years of dedicated service.
Vinay’s professional narrative is adorned with the creation of patent-pending innovations and leadership in advancing Machine Learning and Predictive Maintenance within the realm of Industrial IoT. Currently, he dedicates his expertise to the evolution of an avant-garde Skill Development platform at GoodGist Inc., employing Generative AI to redefine the corporate learning and upskilling / reskilling landscape.
For Vinay, success transcends conventional achievements; it’s about igniting change and enriching lives. He believes in “bringing people close to intelligence,” envisioning technology as a catalyst for knowledge and community empowerment.
This article includes a client of an Espacio portfolio company.
