Forbes - USA (December 2019)

CONTRARIAN INVESTING

By William Baldwin Photograph by Tim Pannell for Forbes



Connecting a Million Dots





50



EquBot is on a quixotic quest to prove that computers can outsmart human stock pickers.



























































formation to be found in annual reports and news Artificial Intelligence:
articles. Chida Khatua
at EquBot’s San
For most of their history on Wall Street, com- Francisco office.
puters have been strictly quantitative—dividing, Maybe computers
are chauvinistic:
say, prices by earnings and ranking the results. But His software
that is destined to change. A dramatic demonstra- made a timely
recommendation to
A computer can recognize tion of silicon’s verbal potential came in 2011, when buy shares of Zendesk,
a software developer
a cat. Can it spot a bargain stock? an IBM system called Watson bested two human located nearby.
Sitting in a business school lecture on hedge champions at Jeopardy! To accomplish this feat the
funds four years ago, Chidananda Khatua got computer had to grasp not just numbers but genea-
the inspiration to answer this question. A veter- logical relationships, time, proximity, causality, tax-
an Intel engineer working on a nights-and-week- onomy and a lot of other connections.
ends M.B.A. at UC Berkeley, Khatua imagined that Put that kind of artificial intelligence to work and
something powerful might come out of the ability it could do a lot more than win TV game shows. It
to blend precise financial data with the fuzzier in- might function as a physician’s assistant, as a rec-


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

Your legacy could help create



a world without cancer.







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©2019, American Cancer Society, Inc. No. 072235

Little Big Picture
THE WORLD’S FASTEST COMPUTER


No computer exhibits artificial intelligence gamers happy by simultane-
unless it can think quickly. Here’s a time

line of the fastest—the earliest of which ously processing different
would have been smoked by any smart- pieces of a moving image.
phone—with speeds measured in billions of

floating point operations per second. They turned out to be ide-
al for the intensely parallel
52 computational streams of
1964 1974 1985 1996 2018
CDC 6600 Star-100 Cray 2 Hitachi SR2201 iPhone 11 Pro IBM Summit neural networks, and they HOW TO PLAY IT
Control Data Control Data Cray Hitachi Apple IBM power the computer cen-
G (U.S.) (U.S.) (U.S.) (Japan) (U.S.) (U.S.) By William
N 0.003 GFLOP 0.1 GFLOP 1.9 GFLOP 600 GFLOP 600 GFLOP 149M GFLOP ters that Amazon rents out Baldwin
I
T to EquBot and other AI

S The artificial
E researchers. intelligence offer-

V ommender of products to consumers or as a de- Last year EquBot’s software picked up a buzz
N ings from EquBot
I tector of credit card fraud. Maybe it could manage around Amarin Corp., an Irish drug company with are expensive,

• with annual
portfolios. a prescription-only diet supplement that uses ome-
N fees of 0.77%
A Khatua, now 44, enlisted two B-school class- ga-3 fatty acids. The international ETF got in be- and 0.79%. A
I cheaper taste of
R mates in his venture. Arthur Amador, 35, had spent low $3, well before the regulatory nod that sent the
A computer-driven
R much of his career at Fidelity Investments advising stock to $15. Another move involved adding Visa to investing can be
T had at Vanguard,
N wealthy families. Christopher Natividad, 37, was a the domestic fund after the system measured rip- where a quant
O money manager for corporations. ples leading from announcements of chain-store
C group under John
They didn’t have any illusions that a comput- closings toward higher credit card volume. Ameriks looks
er would have understanding the way humans do. The computer has its share of duds. It fell in for buy signals
in numerical
But it could have knowledge. It could glean facts— love with NetApp and New Relic, perhaps reacting data. Since its

a mountain of them—and search for patterns and to a flurry of excitement in cloud computing. The inception in 1995,
the Vanguard
trends in the securities markets. Perhaps it could stocks sank. Not to worry, says Khatua. Neural net-
Strategic Equity
make up in brute force what it lacked in intuition. works learn from mistakes. Fund (fee: 0.17%)
The trio chipped in savings of their own and It’s too early to say whether EquBot, which man- has edged ahead
of its small- and
$735,000 from angel investors to create EquBot, ages only $120 million, will succeed. So far its U.S. mid-cap index.
advisor to exchange-traded funds. IBM, eager to fund has lagged behind the S&P 500 by an annu- The case for
showcase its artificial intelligence offerings, gave alized 3 percentage points, while the international Vanguard’s new


factor funds is
the entrepreneurs a $120,000 credit toward soft- one is running 6 points ahead of its index. more subtle: the
ware and hardware bills. EquBot, which says its funds are the only active- theory that you
should favor a
Two years ago EquBot opened up AI Powered Eq- ly managed ETFs using AI, won’t have this turf to
strategy with
uity ETF, with a portfolio updated daily on instruc- itself for long. IBM is selling AI up and down Wall strong long-term
tion from computers. In 2018 it added AI Powered Street. Donna Dillenberger, an IBM scientist in performance and
weak recent per-
International Equity. Yorktown Heights, New York, is working on a stock formance—mean-
Chief Executive Khatua presides over a tiny staff market model with millions of nodes, and she says ing the stocks

in San Francisco and 17 programmers and statisti- billion-node systems are around the corner. are temporar-
ily cheap. Take a
cians in Bangalore, India. The system swallows 1.3 An equally large threat comes from those human look at Vanguard
million texts a day: news, blogs, social media, SEC analysts Khatua is trying to put out of work. They can U.S. Multifactor
ETF (fee: 0.18%).
filings. IBM’s Watson system digests the language, track drug trials or notice that Amazon doesn’t take

William Baldwin
picking up facts to feed into a knowledge graph of cash. What EquBot has in its favor is the explosion in
is Forbes’
a million nodes. digitized data and a comparable growth in chip pow- Investment
Each of those dots to be connected could be a er. Humans can’t keep up with all the connections. Strategies
columnist.
company (one of 15,000), a keyword (like “FDA”) or “Ninety percent of the data in existence was
an economic factor (like the price of oil). There are created in the past two years,” says Art Amador,
a trillion potential arrows to link them. After trial EquBot’s chief operating officer. “In two years that


and error inside a neural network, which mimics will still be true.”
the neuronal connections in a brain, the computer
weights the few arrows that matter. Thus does the
system grope its way toward knowing which rip- F INAL THOU G HT
ples in input data are felt a week, a month or a year
“DISTINGUISHING THE SIGNAL
later, in stock prices.
FROM THE NOISE REQUIRES BOTH PATRICK WELSH (RIGHT)
On a busy day EquBot is doing half a quadrillion SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND SELF-
calculations. Thank goodness for Nvidia’s graphics KNOWLEDGE.”
chips. These slivers of silicon were designed to keep —Nate Silver


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

“ A BEAUTIFUL





NEW APPROACH






TO MARKETING.”








— COLORFUL ENGINEERING




































































Welcome to the future of marketing. A more vibrant,
integrated world that touches people’s lives in new,
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Óäää] - "" ,iÃi>ÀV LiV> i Ì i Ü À `½Ã w ÀÃÌ Ì ÀiÃi>ÀV Readers regularly ask us for ways to contact the ranked advisors—
and rank Wealth Advisors. Today it is still the only research Forbes’ solution: the Top Advisor Directory. Once an advisor has
Iorganization with a focus on the quality of the advisor—including earned a spot on a ranking, he or she is eligible to pay a fee to
telephone and in-person meetings—in addition to its quantitative be placed in this directory; participation has no bearing on any
measures. SHOOK’s goal is to recognize advisors having the ranking. Congratulations to our advisors who are the role models of
biggest impact on their clients’ lives. the industry, and dedicated to the highest professional standards.























SHAUN COSBY S. WESLEY CARPENTER JOE DI VITO GARRY MICHAELIS
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management RBC Wealth Management - Private Wealth Raymond James Financial Services
(205)-326-9552 | Birmingham, AL (251)-990-2361 | Fairhope, AL (602)-381-5340 | Phoenix, AZ (602)-230-9545 | Phoenix, AZ
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















JACOB DUFFY JOSEPH SCHIRRIPA JAMES SCHNEIDERMAN SONNY KOTHARI
Baird UBS Financial Services Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(480)-624-2381 | Scottsdale, AZ (310)-281-3810 | Beverly Hills, CA (310)-205-4701 | Beverly Hills, CA (714)-257-4447 | Brea, CA
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















SHAWN GRUVER JOHN HALPERIN EMILE ABINADER CRAIG MACOMBER
Wells Fargo Advisors UBS Financial Services Citi Personal Wealth Management Stratos Wealth Partners
(310)-725-2267 | El Segundo, CA (818)-377-8818 | Encino, CA (818)-831-5412 | Granada Hills, CA (949)-216-7827 | Irvine, CA
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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PETER HUFFMAN MICHAEL O’BRIEN BRIAN DONALDSON JUSTIN DEMKO
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors UBS Financial Services UBS Private Wealth Management
(858)-456-3624 | La Jolla, CA (858)-456-7729 | La Jolla, CA (858)-729-5255 | La Jolla, CA (310)-734-2389 | Los Angeles, CA

[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]















CAROL WILSHIRE PHILIPPE HARTL THOMAS MAHONEY SPUDS POWELL
UBS Financial Services Merrill Private Wealth Management UBS Private Wealth Management Kayne Anderson Rudnick
(213)-972-1440 | Los Angeles, CA (310)-407-3984 | Los Angeles, CA (310)-734-2401 | Los Angeles, CA (310)-282-7945 | Los Angeles, CA
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















CHERYL YOUNG LAILA PENCE JESSE RODRIQUEZ KELLY GARTON
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Pence Wealth Management UBS Private Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(408)-358-0976 | Los Gatos, CA (949)-660-8777 | Newport Beach, CA (949)-467-6032 | Newport Beach, CA (619)-699-3765 | San Diego, CA
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BLAIR CANNON BRIAN MACDONALD DREW CORRADINI GREG ONKEN
UBS Private Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management JP Morgan Securities JP Morgan Securities
(858) 947-7034 | San Diego, CA (415)-274-6054 | San Francisco, CA (415)-772-2970 | San Francisco, CA (415)-772-3123 | San Francisco, CA
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















TOM CONNAGHAN ELAINE MEYERS AARON WAXMAN GEORGE PAPADOYANNIS
Kayne Anderson Rudnick JP Morgan Securities B|O|S Ameriprise Financial
(415)-486-6675 | San Francisco, CA (415)-315-7801 | San Francisco, CA (415)-781-8535 | San Francisco, CA (650)-593-9170 ex. 328 | San Mateo, CA
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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ROBERT GALLO MATTHEW GALLO SETH HAYE ANDY MCCLAFLIN
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Aspen Wealth Strategies/Raymond James
(925)-945-4823 | Walnut Creek, CA (925)-945-4804 | Walnut Creek, CA (805)-494-0215 | Westlake Village, CA (303)-421-1113 | Arvada, CO
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WALLY OBERMEYER ALI PHILLIPS DANA NIGHTINGALE ANDREW DODDS
Obermeyer Wood Investment Counsel Obermeyer Wood Investment Counsel Obermeyer Wood Investment Counsel Dodds Wealth Management
(970)-925-8747 | Aspen, CO (970)-925-8747 | Aspen, CO (303)-321-8188 | Denver, CO (303)-539-3900 | Englewood, CO
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KEVIN COUTANT KEITH COUTANT JEFF ERDMANN FRANK MOORE
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Private Wealth Management UBS Financial Services
(203)-861-5908 | Greenwich, CT (800)-883-0564 | Greenwich, CT (203)-861-5902 | Greenwich, CT (203)-862-2185 | Greenwich, CT

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ELIZABETH ANGELONE MARTI MARACHE ROBERT S. PAOLUCCI BRIAN HETHERINGTON
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Principle Wealth Partners Merrill Private Wealth Management
(203)-861-5977 | Greenwich, CT (203)-625-4629 | Greenwich, CT (203)-318-8892 | Madison, CT (203)-972-2523 | New Canaan, CT
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NEIL KISHTER DON D’ADESKY MICHAEL D. GOLD ADAM CARLIN
Merrill Private Wealth Management The Americas Group of Raymond James The Bermont Advisory Group of Raymond James Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management
(202)-659-5033 | Washington, DC (561)-981-3690 | Boca Raton, FL (305)-460-2716 | Coral Gables, FL (305)-476-3302 | Coral Gables, FL
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LOUIS CHIAVACCI PETER BERMONT SCOTT BARKOW JONATHAN COHEN
Merrill Private Wealth Management The Bermont Advisory Group of Raymond James Barkow Wealth Management Group of Raymond James Raymond James & Associates
(305)-774-0501 | Coral Gables, FL (305)–446–6600 | Coral Gables, FL (305)-461-6610 | Coral Gables, FL (561)-904-7950 | Jupiter, FL
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CHRISTIAN HABITZ ANDREW SCHULTZ THOMAS MORAN LARRY LEPPO
JP Morgan Securities Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Moran Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors
(305)-347-5854 | Miami, FL (305)-695-6116 | Miami Beach, FL (239)-920-4440 | Naples, FL (239)-254-2240 | Naples, FL
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TREY MAHONEY LOUISE ARMOUR SAL TIANO TODD BATTAGLIA
UBS Financial Services JP Morgan Securities JP Morgan Securities MG&A Wealth
(561)-776-2552 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL (212)-272-6604 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL (561)-694-5600 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL (954)-289-9000 | Plantation, FL
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SCOTT WOODS ROBERT DOYLE CASSANDRA SMALLEY MICHAEL VALDES
Baird Doyle Wealth Management Doyle Wealth Management Merrill Private Wealth Management
(941)-364-4547 | Sarasota, FL (727)-898-3063 | St. Petersburg, FL (727)-898-3063 | St. Petersburg, FL (813)-273-8544 | Tampa, FL
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CLARKE LEMONS JAMES HANSBERGER ARAYA MESFIN ROD WESTMORELAND
WaterOak Advisors Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management UBS Financial Services Merrill Private Wealth Management
(407)-567-2956 | Winter Park, FL (404)-264-4269 | Atlanta, GA (404)-760-3204 | Atlanta, GA (404)-264-2066 | Atlanta, GA

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ALAN KINNEY CRAIG VANDER LEEST STEWART MATHER KATHLEEN ROESER
Wells Fargo Advisors Baird The Mather Group Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(912)-921-3422 | Savannah, GA (319)-365-3397 | Cedar Rapids, IA (630)-537-1080 | Chicago, IL (312)-443-6500 | Chicago, IL
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SHARON OBERLANDER DANNY RESNICK DANIEL FRIES MARK THORNDYKE
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management JP Morgan Securities Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(312)-696-7620 | Chicago, IL (312)-580-4065 | Chicago, IL (312)-696-2121 | Chicago, IL (312)-696-7645 | Chicago, IL
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JAMES MURPHY STEVEN LAPORTA SARAH DAMSGAARD RAJ BHATIA
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management JP Morgan Securities Merrill Private Wealth Management
(312)-696-2083 | Chicago, IL (312)-696-7501 | Chicago, IL (312)-580-4072 | Chicago, IL (312)-325-2676 | Chicago, IL
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STEPHEN M. ROSS DAVID SHEPPARD ROBERT WEIS DEAN HEDEKER
Ameriprise Financial Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors Hedeker Wealth
(312)-782-4000 | Chicago, IL (847)-550-7878 | Deer Park, IL (847)-482-8828 | Lake Forest, IL (847)-913-5594 | Lincolnshire, IL
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MICHAEL LANTZ ROD LOEWENTHAL KYLE CHUDOM SCOTT MAGNESEN
Lantz Financial UBS Financial Services Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(331)-204-6230 | Naperville, IL (847)-498-7802 | Northbrook, IL (630)-573-9680 | Oak Brook, IL (630)-573-9694 | Oak Brook, IL
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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RON STENGER JON BOWKER TRENT COWLES CHRIS COOKE
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Baird Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Cooke Financial Group
(630)-573-9676 | Oak Brook, IL (815)-636-5223 | Rockford, IL (317)-624-8451 | Indianapolis, IN (317)-814-7810 | Indianapolis, IN
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BRIAN COOKE JAY GAGNE TED CHARTIER DIANNA SMITH
Cooke Financial Group Gagne Wealth Management/Raymond James UBS Financial Services Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(317)-814-7808 | Indianapolis, IN (317)-577-6030 | Indianapolis, IN (913)-345-3245 | Leawood, KS (913)-402-5289 | Leawood, KS
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MARGO SHEPARD K. WADE CARPENTER DON BARRY TRAVIS MUSGRAVE

Wells Fargo Advisors Infinitas Baird Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(913)-267-7140 | Mission Woods, KS (913)-563-7300 | Overland Park, KS (316)-609-5211 | Wichita, KS (859)-231-5258 | Lexington, KY

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AMY ROOF JOHN WILLIAMS, JR. SCOTT GUIDRY CURTIS EUSTIS
Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Advisors Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(270)-444-8084 | Paducah, KY (270)-444-8084 | Paducah, KY (504)-569-2453 | New Orleans, LA (504)-586-7787 | New Orleans, LA
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RAJ SHARMA ALEX SUGAR SEAN DILLON PETER DISCH
Merrill Private Wealth Management RBC Wealth Management UBS Financial Services Great Point Wealth Advisors
(617)-946-8030 | Boston, MA (617)-725-1730 | Boston, MA (617)-439-8435 | Boston, MA (617)-585-0050 | Boston, MA
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JEFFREY SWETT TODD KOBELSKI DEBRA BREDE SUSAN KAPLAN
UBS Financial Services Merrill Lynch Wealth Management D.K. Brede Investment Management Company Kaplan Financial Services
(617)-439-8004 | Boston, MA (617)-498-3626 | Cambridge, MA (781)-444-9367 | Needham, MA (617)-527-1557 | Newton, MA

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JONATHAN WOLFF DAVID BORDEN CHUCK BEAN NICK CANTRELL
Lightship Wealth Strategies CCR Wealth Management Heritage Financial Services Thomson Financial Management
(617)-581-6100 | Newton Lower Falls, MA (508)-475-3880 | Westborough, MA (781)-255-0214 | Westwood, MA (978)-333-2144 | Worcester, MA


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RICH CARR PATRICIA BAUM CHARLES MARKS JOSH SCHNEIDER
Carr Financial Group RBC Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(508)-795-0264 | Worcester, MA (410)-573-6717 | Annapolis, MD (410)-230-6555 | Baltimore, MD (301)-961-1856 | Bethesda, MD
rich@carrfinancial.net [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















ROBERT J. COLLINS GARY WILLIAMS LARRY D. BOGGS BRAD HILL
Collins Investment Group Williams Asset Management Wells Fargo Advisors Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(301)-915-9630 | Bethesda, MD (410)-740-0220 | Columbia, MD (301)-724-2660 | Cumberland, MD (410)-770-6125 | Easton, MD
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TOM HILL JIM HOLZAPFEL RICHIE HOLZAPFEL SARAH KAPLAN
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Advisors Kaplan Financial Group
(410)-770-6124 | Easton, MD (240)-513-2766 | Hagerstown, MD (240)-513-2766 | Hagerstown, MD (301)-564-0088 | Rockville, MD
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] sarah@kaplanfinancialgroup.com

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KENT PEARCE SANDY I. LIOTTA DOUGLAS VELNOSKEY PEG MOORE
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Janney Montgomery Scott Wells Fargo Advisors
(410)-321-4340 | Towson, MD (410)-321-4321 | Towson, MD (443)-201-2088 | Westminster, MD (734)-668-4314 | Ann Arbor, MI
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JEFFREY FRATARCANGELI DAVID KUDLA DAVID LUND GREG MEAD
Fratarcangeli Wealth Management Mainstay Capital Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(248)-385-5050 | Birmingham, MI (866)-444-6246 | Grand Blanc, MI (616)-774-4234 | Grand Rapids, MI (616)-242-8318 | Grand Rapids, MI


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CHARLES ZHANG MICHAEL HOHF DANA LOCNISKAR MICHAEL FLEISCHER
Zhang Financial Advance Capital Management Merrill Private Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management

(269)-385-5888 | Portage, MI (800)-345-4783 | Southfield, MI (248)-655-4100 | Troy, MI (248)-740-7145 | Troy, MI


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LEO STEVENSON MATTHEW ASK BRYAN SWEET AMIR ABDELWAHED
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Raymond James Financial Services Sweet Financial Services/Raymond James Wells Fargo Advisors
(734)-324-3826 | Wyandotte, MI (218)-846-0381 | Detroit Lakes, MN (507)-235-5587 | Fairmont, MN (612)-340-4593 | Minneapolis, MN
[email protected] [email protected] bryan@sweetfinancial.com [email protected]
















THERESA WARD DAVID OLSON DIANE COMPARDO MARK CONRAD
Merrill Private Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Moneta Moneta
(612)-349-7846 | Minneapolis, MN (507)-281-0403 | Rochester, MN (314)-244-3222 | Clayton, MO (314)-244-3414 | Clayton, MO
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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GREG DELONG CANDACE REY WILLIAM A. WHICHARD, JR. JOHN H. WOOLARD, JR.
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Advisors Wells Fargo Advisors
(417)-885-1640 | Springfield, MO 1-(800)-968-2207 | Burlington, NC (252)-338-5121 | Elizabeth City, NC (252)-261-8144 | Kill Devil Hills, NC

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KIEL VANDERVEEN NATE LEGRAND ELLIOTT KUGEL DAVID BRIEGS
Raymond James Financial Services Raymond James Financial Services Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(402)-873-7477 | Nebraska City, NE (402)-597-9229 | Omaha, NE (908)-685-3252 | Bridgewater, NJ (908)-685-3203 | Bridgewater, NJ
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ROY WILLIAMS CHRISTINE F. HEIM CHRISTOPHER COOK ALBERT FOX
Prestige Wealth Management Group Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
(908)-782-0001 | Flemington, NJ (973)-301-7703 | Florham Park, NJ (800)-765-2499 | Florham Park, NJ (856)-231-4800 | Mount Laurel, NJ
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EDWARD PENBERTHY RORY O’HARA MARK CORTAZZO MICHAEL PRON
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Merrill Lynch Wealth Management MACRO Consulting Group Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
(856)-231-4800 | Mount Laurel, NJ (856)-231-5575 | Mount Laurel, NJ (973)-451-9400 | Parsippany, NJ (609)-243-7940 | Princeton, NJ
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
















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68






























































































F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

69






THE PROFILE


I N T E L L I G E N T






D E S I G N







FROM THE UNLIKELIEST OF PLACES, MELANIE PERKINS GREW DESIGN APP CANVA INTO
ONE OF THE MOST VALUABLE SOFTWARE STARTUPS IN THE WORLD. HER DIGITAL TOOLS

ARE POPULIST, PROFITABLE AND A POTENTIAL THREAT TO ADOBE AND MICROSOFT.













BY ALEX KONRAD





































PHOTOGRAPH BY DEAN MACKENZIE/IDC FOR FORBES






D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

70



S
N
I
K
R
E
P

E
I N
M → On a steamy May morning in 2013, Canva CEO
A
L
E
E Melanie Perkins found herself adrift on a kiteboard

—

L
R in the channel between billionaire Richard
I
F
O
Branson’s private Necker and Moskito islands.
P




Her 30-foot sail floating deflated and useless be- egant restaurant menus. Besides an impossible-

side her in the strong eastern Caribbean current, to-beat price (millions of users pay nothing at
the 26-year-old entrepreneur waited for hours all), Canva’s key advantage over rival products
to be rescued. As she treaded water, her left leg from tech giants like Adobe has been its ease of
scarred by a past collision with a coral reef, she use. Before Canva, amateurs had to stitch togeth-
reminded herself that her dangerous new hobby er designs in Microsoft Word or pay through the
was worth it. After all, it was key to the fundrais- nose for confusing professional tools. Today, any-
ing strategy for the design-software startup she’d one, anywhere, can download Canva and be cre-
cofounded with her boyfriend six years before. ating within ten minutes.
Canva was based in Australia, thousands of The company’s revenue comes from upselling
miles from tech’s Silicon Valley power corridor. to a $10-a-month premium version with snazzier
Getting a meeting—much less funding—was features or, more recently, from sales of a stream-
proving tough. Perkins heard “no” from more lined corporate account option. High-quali-
than 100 investors. So when she met the orga- ty stock photos—of which Canva has millions—
nizer of a group of kitesurfing venture capitalists cost another $1. It adds up. This year the com-

at a pitch competition in her native Perth, Per- pany expects to more than double its revenue to
kins got to training. The next time the group met $200 million; its most recent $85 million funding
to hear startup pitches and potentially write cru- round valued it at $3.2 billion. Perkins, an alum of
cial early-stage funding checks, she’d have a seat the 2016 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, has an es-
at the table—even if it meant having to brave timated 15% stake, valued at $430 million. Throw

treacherous waters. “It was like, risk: serious in her 34-year-old cofounder—and now fiancé—

damage; reward: start company,” Perkins says. “If Cliff Obrecht’s similar stake, and the Aussie power
you get your foot in the door just a tiny bit, you couple are likely worth more than $800 million.
have to kind of wedge it all the way in.” In an era of billion-dollar checks from Soft-
Such perseverance has long been a necessity Bank and high-profile profligacy at WeWork,



at Canva, which began as a modest yearbook-de- Perkins and Obrecht do things differently. They
sign business in the state capital of Perth on Aus- are couch surfers who prefer budget trips to pri-
tralia’s west coast. From those remote origins, vate jets. (This summer, with Canva already val-
Canva has grown into a global juggernaut. Twen- ued at more than $2 billion, Obrecht proposed
ty-million-plus users from 190 countries use the to Perkins in Turkey’s backpacker-friendly Cap-
company’s “freemium” Web-based app to design padocia region with a $30 engagement ring.)
everything from splashy Pinterest graphics to el- Rarest of all: Canva says it’s been profitable—at


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9



least using the favored startup metric of adjusted into the consumer space. And that’s not even
EBITDA, which strips out stock-option expens- considering Canva’s ambitions in new mediums

es, financing and tax costs—since 2017. “We have like video and presentations, which could pit it
been really conscientious about not taking on too against everything from small Instagram video-

much capital because we’ve been profitable for making apps to Microsoft, maker of the block-
the last two years,” Perkins says. buster PowerPoint.
It all starts with Perkins, who onboards every It’s daunting, to say the least, but for Perkins,
new employee (now 700 in total) with a thor- who has already turned doubting Silicon Valley

72 ough rundown of Canva’s most sensitive financial players into eager supporters and mastered the
numbers and past investor pitch decks. Other Chinese market—and has built a $200 million-
unicorn founders boast. Perkins keeps receipts. plus bank account—it’s all according to plan. “I feel
S
N And as Canva grows she’s trying to prove you can like we’ve done an incredible job, but we’ve done
I
K build a global tech giant from anywhere. “Mel- very little compared to what we want to do. We’ve
R
E anie is a rare breed of entrepreneur, the likes of done 1% of what I think is possible,” Perkins says.
P

which you don’t find often anywhere,” says Mary “Our company mission is to empower the world to
E
I Meeker, a seasoned internet investor whose new design. And we really mean the whole world.”
N




A firm, Bond Capital, made Canva its first official
L
E investment in May. erkins started working on what
M Perkins’ family jokes that she has a 100-point became Canva in 2007 from her
P  
— plan for changing the world. First, Canva has a mom’s living room in Perth. The

E
L much more straightforward challenge: win over daughter of an Australian-born
I
F big business. Like Atlassian, Slack and Zoom be- teacher and a Malaysian engi-
O
R fore it, Canva faces a classic dilemma: a freemi- neer of Filipino and Sri Lankan heritage, Per-
P
um model can make you viral, but most users will kins had wanted to be a professional figure skat-

never pay a dime. And though Canva says it has Perfect Fit er, enduring an adolescence of 4:30 a.m. wake-
users inside almost every large corporation today, “The three of us had up calls before enrolling at the University of
no idea how to run
they’re typically rogue individuals or small teams, a company,” says Western Australia. There, while teaching fellow
Cameron Adams
not official corporate accounts. Moving upmar- (left), with cofounders students basic computer design as part of her



ket means increasingly brushing up against Ado- Melanie Perkins communications and commerce studies, she had
and Cliff Obrecht

be, the $149 billion (market cap) graphics giant at Canva’s former an idea. The process of designing and printing
that took in $1.65 billion in revenue last quarter Sydney headquarters. a poster or a flyer—composing it in Adobe Pho-

“When I met Mel and
from its design-focused unit alone. Then there Cliff, I could feel the toshop or Microsoft Word, converting it to the

are a host of high-flying startups like Figma and jigsaw pieces coming right size and saving it as a PDF, and taking it

together.”
Sketch that cater to pros but could easily move to a store like Staples to print—seemed cumber-
some in the age of the internet.
Wouldn’t it be much better to
do it all in one place with one
online tool?
“The idea of making de-

sign really simple was the first
idea,” she says.
The problem felt so obvi-
ous that Perkins feared some-
one else would build a solution

first if she delayed. So she hired
freelancers to build a Flash
website to target one niche she
identified as steady and under-

served: school yearbooks, typ-
ically the responsibility of stu-
dent volunteers. Obrecht and
Perkins’ startup, Fusion Books,
found a market immediately.
And with one semester of col-
lege left, Perkins put her stud-
ies on pause. In peak season,
Perkins’ mom fed the printers
ink overnight. Obrecht worked


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9



the phones cold-calling prospects. When schools as an advisor in March 2012, Adams would sign
asked to speak to a manager, Obrecht simply low- on as third cofounder the following June. Now
ered his voice. The business eventually reached that they had a technical leader, the founders
400 schools, with licensees as far off as France. It broke through: Canva raised $3 million in seed

was a start. But Perkins couldn’t go much farther funding in two tranches in 2012 and early 2013,
without venture funding, then virtually impossi- including a crucial matching grant from the Aus-
ble to find in Perth, a city built on mining and pet- tralian government.

rochemicals. The company launched in August 2013 to a
74 Perkins spotted—and seized—the narrowest couple of reviews on tech blogs and few users.
of opportunities in 2011 when a longtime Silicon Adams and Canva’s engineers, who stayed up late
Valley venture capitalist named Bill Tai came to in Sydney (the company relocated there in Feb-
S

N Perth to judge a startup competition. A skilled ruary 2012) to handle the expected influx of sign-
I
K kitesurfer who had backed TweetDeck and ups, went to sleep dejected. What no one knew
R
E Zoom, Tai was in town mainly to play in Perth’s yet was that Canva’s timing was perfect. The rise
P
of Instagram and Twit-
E
I ter were changing how
N
A businesses reached cus-
L
E tomers. From schools to
M sheriff’s offices, skating




— rinks to self-published

E
L authors, everyone sud-
I
F denly cared a lot about
O
R their online presence.
P

Canva was an affordable
way to look good. The
trickle of sign-ups grew
to 50,000 users in the

first month; by 2014,
when Canva raised an-
other $3 million from
killer waves. Perkins and Obrecht sniffed out a Destination: Design Thiel’s Founders Fund and Shasta Ventures,

dinner Tai was hosting and ambushed attendees Users have made 600,000 users had made 3.5 million designs.
2 billion designs in
with a pitch for something called Canvas Chef: a Canva to date, one In China, historically a fool’s-errand market
metaphorical pizza, with design elements as the billion in the past for Western software makers, Canva is a rare suc-
year alone. Up next:

toppings and document types—flyer, business Canva Apps, seen cess. Obrecht—a tall, amiable presence who, as
card, restaurant menu—as the dough. “It wasn’t here on Canva’s COO, often rallies the troops (or delivers bad
website, a new

the most stylish analogy,” says Rick Baker, an in- service that embeds news)—opened Canva’s first office outside of


publishing tools
vestor who saw the pitch that night. from popular apps Sydney, in Manila, in 2014, then hired the former


The founders left without any capital—but like Instagram and head of LinkedIn’s China unit to build an office
Pinterest into Canva.
with a newfound enthusiasm for extreme water in mainland China. Today, a local engineering

sports. They became fixtures at Tai’s subsequent team handles a China-first version of Canva built

kitesurfing gatherings, which featured prom- from the ground up with features like deep inte-

inent tech executives looking to invest in new grations with Chinese messaging apps and easy-
startups. In Maui, after a friend of Peter Thiel’s to-create QR codes, which are popular there. Mc-
told them they needed a single leader, Perkins Donald’s China is a customer, as is a nationwide
became sole CEO. real-estate brokerage that offers the software to

Perkins and Obrecht were having worse luck its 1,000 agents.
in their visits to Silicon Valley’s venture capital
gatekeepers on Sand Hill Road. Dozens of firms hen it comes to serving big

passed on the little-known, romantically linked W   businesses, Canva is still a
cofounders from a startup dead zone. “I’m hon- rookie. Its October launch
estly, and unfortunately, not comfortable doing of Canva for Enterprise
a deal in Australia,” wrote one. “I am not sure it’s came at a private event in
going to make sense just yet,” another said. New York. Perkins addressed staffers from about

In the end, the wave-chasing connections paid 100 companies, including Equinox, JPMorgan

off. Through the group they met Cameron Ad- and HubSpot.
ams, 40, an ex-Googler who had founded a start- A slow start for Canva’s enterprise business
up based in Sydney. Expecting to meet with them won’t sink the company. This December, the


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9



company matched more of Adobe’s own features
by announcing a video-editing tool and an apps en app, called Adobe Spark, since 2016. While
suite; it’s still working on improvements to its free Canva claims that its tools are used at 50,000
alternative to Microsoft PowerPoint, which has universities and 25,000 nonprofits, Adobe says

already been used to make 80 million presenta- it’s given out 23 million free Spark accounts to
tions. But Canva’s long-term growth prospects de- students and teachers. In December 2017, Ado-
pend on whether corporations will progress from be reunited with Scott Belsky, the entrepreneur
small pockets of fans to accounts reaching thou- whose social media business Behance it acquired
sands of employees. After years of adding more in 2012, to instill a scrappier ethos in its product
76 features to Canva’s suite, Perkins is betting on the teams. “They feel like they’re the underdog be-
opposite approach for corporate America. By of- cause they’re like, ‘We’re not the coolest startup,’ ”


fering limited sets of templates and options, Can- says Belsky, chief product officer of Adobe’s Cre-
S
N va hopes execs will trust more employees to cre- ative Cloud unit.
I
K ate their own content. At Realty Austin, a midsize Then there are the typical startup growing
R

E Texas residential and commercial real-estate firm, pains. Until two years ago, Canva’s tool for edit-
P

a marketing team of six used to create all printed ing its core code was so clunky that only five engi-
E
I handouts and digital assets for its agents to pro- neers could work on it at a time. Much of the com-
N
A mote events like open houses. Now, with Canva, pany’s focus last year was on a complete rewrite of
L
E the company’s 550-plus agents create material for the front-end interface of its app. “We’re growing
M their own listings, faster and on their own time. so fast that things are breaking constantly,” Ob-

— Adobe isn’t sleeping while all this goes down. recht admits. And in May, Canva suffered its big-


E

L It has offered its own freemium, templates-driv- gest test of customer trust to date. Days after Can-
I
F va announced that Meeker’s invest-
O
R ment had valued the company at $2.5
P
billion, a hacker in Europe breached
its systems, downloading 139 million
user names and email addresses before
TECH’S NEW ROLE MODELS Canva could stop the attack.
Stuck in California, Perkins and
CANVA CEO MELANIE PERKINS IS IN ELITE COMPANY, RUNNING ONE OF THE HIGHEST- Obrecht called and texted with At-
VALUED WOMAN-FOUNDED AND -LED STARTUPS, FROM CALIFORNIA TO CHINA.
lassian’s co-CEOs and cofounders
(and Canva investors), Mike Cannon-
Brookes and Scott Farquhar, reach-
ing Farquhar as the billionaire was
on a runway in Peru en route to Ma-
chu Picchu. At their urging, Canva
called the FBI and launched a for- TATARKO: ETHAN PINES; MI: DAVE ZHONG / GETTY IMAGES; PERKINS: HORACIO VILLALOBOS / CORBIS-GETTY IMAGES; WOJCICKI: JOHN SHEARER / GETTY IMAGES; EAGAN: DAVID PAUL MORRIS / BLOOMBERG; GUSTAFSSON: BY DAVID PAUL MORRIS / BLOOMBERG; WEISS: TAYLOR HILL-GETTY IMAGES; CARLSON: JAMEL TOPPIN FOR FORBES. VALUATION ESTIMATES COURTESY OF PITCHBOOK.
mal review; two weeks later, Can-
Houzz VIPKid Canva 23andMe
va announced two-factor authentica-
Valuation Valuation Valuation Valuation tion for all users. Though Perkins says
$4B $3.5B $3.2B $2.5B
Canva’s users responded by rallying
CEO CEO CEO CEO
Adi Tatarko Cindy Mi Melanie Perkins Anne Wojcicki behind the company, it was a warn-
Palo Alto, California Beijing Sydney Sunnyvale, California ing: With better recognition comes a
Founded: 2009 Founded: 2013 Founded: 2012 Founded: 2006
bigger target on your back.
Home design Online language Design DNA


site classes software testing Those close to Perkins are confident
that she can handle the pressure. Guy
Kawasaki started his career as a hype-
man for Steve Jobs, traveling the world
to tout all things Apple in the 1980s.
The former Forbes columnist says he’s
happy to end his career doing the same
for Perkins, investing in Canva and
joining the company as “chief evange-
Darktrace ezCater Glossier Guild Education
list” back in 2014. “More people can
Valuation Valuation Valuation Valuation
$1.61B $1.25B $1.2B $1B use the democratization of design than
Co-CEOs CEO CEO CEO can use a Macintosh,” he says. “You
Nicole Eagan, Stefania Mallett Emily Weiss Rachel Romer don’t have to be in Silicon Valley—you
Poppy Gustafsson Boston New York City Carlson don’t even need to be in America—to
Cambridge, U.K. Founded: 2007 Founded: 2012 Denver
Founded: 2013 Online Skincare and Founded: 2015 be successful. Holy cow.”
Cybersecurity catering beauty products Education benefits

See story, page 41 D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

DETROIT, MI | OCT 27-30, 2019


The Forbes Under 30 Summit debuted in Detroit this year, breaking records across the board for attendance, speakers
and exhibitors. With 9,000+ top attendees, 220+ speakers, 24 content tracks and a startup hub featuring 150 exhibitors,
Forbes gathered the young, creative minds changing the course—and the face—of business and society. We had a lot of
fun too: an exclusive concert, a food festival, immersive sponsor activations, career-changing networking opportunities,
celebrity guests, a service day, a legendary bar crawl and much more. We’re already looking forward to returning to
Detroit in 2020 for next year’s Summit.

78






























































































F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

THE LIST







KEVIN DURANT’S


79
HARDEST




THREE-POINT PLAY
















K



















































THE NBA SUPERSTAR HAS COME TO NEW YORK WITH THREE GOALS
IN MIND: A RETURN TO DOMINANCE, A DEFINING CHAMPIONSHIP
AND A LASTING BUSINESS EMPIRE. THEY’RE ALL INTERCONNECTED.







BY STEVEN BERTONI PHOTOGRAPH BY JAMEL TOPPIN FOR FORBES


D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

or Lebron have attempted.
Brooklyn is Durant’s fourth career stop. He
was originally drafted by the Seattle SuperSon-
ics, which soon moved the franchise to Oklaho-
ma City, where he became a superstar playing
for the Thunder. In the Bay Area, when he de-
→ The sleek and infinitely camped to the Golden State Warriors, he became

a champion, a lightning rod—many fans cynical-
long apartment overlooking ry juggernaut that was already minting titles—
80 ly viewed him as jumping onto the Stephen Cur-

A Manhattan’s sleek and and an entrepreneur.
T
In choosing Brooklyn, he seeks to redefine
N
R all three aspects. Can the superstar come back
U infinitely long High Line park from a devastating public injury to dominate the
D league again? Can he win a championship with
E perfectly, if unintentionally, a team centered on him? (He’s already flexed
N

I
V
new muscles there, eschewing the high-profile

frames the owner of this New York Knicks, a pairing seemingly preor-
K

—
T dained, for the upstart Nets.) And can he trans-
mansion in the sky, the late his Silicon Valley lessons to the world capital
S
I
L
E of capital as well as of media and fashion. “Walk-
H NBA superstar Kevin Durant, ing around New York,” Durant says, “there is so
T much greatness, hard work and determination.”
who is so trim he looks Ventures, cofounded with his manager, Rich
Durant’s outside business vehicle: Thirty Five
even taller than 6 feet 10. Kleiman, a music industry veteran who previ-
ously helped start the sports division of Jay-Z’s
talent agency, Roc Nation. Thirty Five Ventures

Settling into his (yes, infinite) blue velvet couch, has 15 full-time employees running Durant’s en-
Durant can toggle between the stunning skyline dorsements, foundation, and expanding collec-
and his trophy-stacked office, filled with a mu- tion of startups and media plays. Over the past



seum’s worth of MVP, All-Star and other super- few years he’s plowed more than $15 million into
lative hardware. (His two NBA championship 40-plus startups. Nearly 70% of the companies
rings, won with the Golden State Warriors, have have raised subsequent rounds at higher valu-
a special home in the bedroom.) ations, scoring what Durant claims are paper
But Durant’s focus is on present challenges, gains topping 400%.
rather than past triumphs. Across from his trophy More directly, Thirty Five Ventures has a
room sit a Pilates machine and a cagelike strength production arm creating basketball-themed doc-
and balance trainer called a Sensopro, here to as- umentaries, series and scripted shows for outlets
sist a career-saving comeback as he rehabs the like Apple, YouTube and ESPN. “LeBron James
Achilles tendon he ruptured during June’s NBA was the first case study that you can build a real

Finals in front of a television audience of 18 mil- business while you’re playing,” says Kleiman.
lion. That season was done—the current one too. “Kevin is building a real and authentic company.”
“What’s most important is to take care of my body For Durant, a 30 Under 30 alum who recent-
so I can put my product back on the court,” Du- ly hit the grand old age of 31, the goal is noth-
rant says, fresh from a workout wearing a print- ing short of a ten-digit net worth. By the time his
ed hoodie featuring the antihero from the film A playing career is over, he’ll have made well over

Clockwork Orange and black-and-orange Jordan $500 million from salary and sponsorships. Now,
high-tops. “How well you play on the court deter- Durant says, “I want to use the checks I get from
mines how big your business is going to grow.” companies to create true generational wealth.”
That business starts with a $164 million con-
tract he signed with the Brooklyn Nets this sum- urant was raised by his moth-
mer and a ten-year, $275 million Nike shoe deal D   er in Prince George’s Coun-
that assumes his continued superstardom. With ty, Maryland, outside Wash-
those two alone, he will earn more than $70 mil- ington, D.C., in a rough neigh-
lion this season without suiting up for a single borhood where he was always
game. Durant’s goal is to turn that income into looking over his shoulder. By middle school, he
assets at a scale few athletes not named Jordan was 6 feet and mostly looking down. By 17, he


F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

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was the MVP of McDonald’s High School All-American vestments in Coinbase, Robinhood, Caffeine TV, Imper-

Game. By 18, College Player of the Year at the University of fect Food, Lime scooters and more. “He learned about what
Texas. By 19, NBA Rookie of the Year. And so on, all the way it takes to start companies and invest in companies,” says
to league MVP recognition and several runs at the crown Eddy Cue, the head of Apple’s vast internet software and
with the Thunder and then his 2016 decision to join the services division, who first met Durant for dinner and end-

team he couldn’t beat—signing a $54 million contract with ed up talking with him until 3 a.m. “When you’re winning,
the Warriors. The move would forever alter his brand and everyone’s interested in learning what makes you tick, and
his business. Kevin was smart to take full advantage of meeting people.”

82 Durant first took an interest in the money game when
he was weighing competing endorsement offers from Nike o will this playbook work in New York,

and Under Armour in 2014: “I learned a lot about the busi- S   America’s other business capital, a place
T

N ness side through that. It really broke things down for me.” that’s more diversified and less starstruck?
A Oklahoma City offered slim options. “There’s oil and real

R To Durant’s credit, as he did around San
U estate,” Durant says, “but that was a real old boys’ club, Francisco, he’s embracing the local ethos—
D

and it was hard to break into.” With one foot still in the oil including the city loft, from which he can walk to Thirty
N
I patch, Durant and Kleiman waded into the tech world, lob- Five’s soon-to-open 4,500-square-foot Chelsea headquar-
V

E bying to invest in the delivery startup Postmates and the ro- ters. “New York will be the culmination of the different
K
bo-investor Acorns. communities Kevin’s touched, and it will take our company
—
In the Bay Area as a Golden State Warrior, though, he had to the next level,” says Kleiman, who met Durant originally
T
S VIP access to the world’s hottest startups. “All the founders through a mutual friend, the musician Wale, at a Jay-Z con-
I
L
and investors come [to Warriors games], and you get to in- cert at Madison Square Garden.
E
H teract with and meet them,” Durant says. “They look like If the Bay Area was about Durant latching onto deals,
T
normal people, but they are changing the world so fast and New York is about owning his own media. There’s Swagger, a
have so much power.” scripted series based on Durant’s early life backed by the Hol-
Durant soon struck up friendships with the likes of Lau- lywood titan Brian Grazer; it’ll be distributed on Apple’s new
rene Powell Jobs, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, streaming service (thanks in part to his friendship with Cue,
Airbnb’s Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia, and executives from the Apple executive). Lower-budget series and shorts live
Google and Apple. In the Silicon Valley startup scene, at on his YouTube channel, which now approaches 800,000
once square and status-obsessed, Durant money was sexy, subscribers. Durant’s franchise, The Boardroom, covers the
attracting press, street cred and customers. Soon came in- business around elite athletes with a website, newsletter and
ESPN show. “The younger generation is looking for access
and authenticity,” says ESPN president James Pitaro.
All these initiatives possess an incredibly potent market-
ing solution, the ten-bagger kind. The secret sits in those
MJ VS. LBJ VS. KD workout machines in Durant’s apartment. No player of Du-
rant’s caliber has ever returned from a ruptured Achilles
HOW KEVIN DURANT POSTS UP AGAINST MICHAEL JORDAN to the same level of dominance. No player in almost half a
AND LEBRON JAMES ON (AND OFF) THE COURT.
century has brought an NBA trophy to the country’s larg-
est city, one mad for basketball. “The team is in the garage
stage, where we are putting the idea together. It’s more inti-
mate, everyone understands the goal and has a fresh experi-
ence,” Durant says. “A championship would be a whole oth-
er level, but injecting a new energy into a city through bas-
MICHAEL JORDAN LEBRON JAMES KEVIN DURANT ketball would be even cooler.”

If Durant can pull this off, he’s now positioned himself to
AGE
56 35 31 reap . Acorns and Lime scooters will succeed or fail without
NBA DRAFT PICK him. With his new initiatives and his own assets, he controls
3 1 2 his destiny, and the sky’s the limit. “I want to own and run
NBA TITLES an NBA team—run day-to-day operations and impact young
6 3 2

players coming through the league,” he says, ticking off the
INSTAGRAM FOLLOWING path that Michael Jordan took to become a billionaire.
19.1 Million 53.5 Million 11.6 Million
@jumpman23 @KingJames @easymoneysniper “I started down here,” Durant adds, leaning forward to

NBA CAREER EARNINGS1 touch the floor of his apartment with his gigantic hand. “I
$90 Million $307 Million $224 Million know there’ll be kids popping up in my family, and I want
(1984-1993, 1995-1998, 2001-2003) (2003-present) (2007-present)
them to start above this roof. The only way to get there for
2019 NIKE SNEAKER DEAL
$130 Million $32 Million $26 Million your family is to create money, and I want to do it in a cool-
BEST INVESTMENTS er way, not just being greedy and accumulating as much as

Charlotte Hornets Blaze Pizza, Liverpool FC Coinbase, Postmates
I can.” F
DISCARDED NICKNAME
Magic The Akron Hammer Durantula
D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9
1

Not adjusted for inflation.



F O R B E S B R A N D V O I C E W I T H I W C S C H A F F H A U S E N | PA I D P R O G R A M









THE MOMENT








84



T
N
E
M
O
M

E
H
T















B R A N D O N B R YA N T






























J O N YA O






























B L A K E TO M N I T Z

F O R B E S B R A N D V O I C E W I T H I W C S C H A F F H A U S E N | PA I D P R O G R A M












PREVIOUS 30 UNDER 30 LISTMAKERS REFLECT ON THE TURNING

POINTS THAT DEFINED THEIR JOURNEYS TO SUCCESS.


85







BRADEN HANDLEY'S T
H
E

M
SEMI-PERMANENT TATTOO O
M
E
EMPIRE IS HERE TO STAY N
T








raden Handley loves going under the needle. He has
a mummy inked on his thigh and a Pink Panther on his
Barm, nearby the word “okay.” “I have over 15 now,”
says the 29-year-old cofounder of Inkbox Tattoos.


Handley doesn’t fear the permanence of tattoos—but he
does take it seriously, which is why his startup, Inkbox, makes
temporary ones. They cost $16-30 and last about two weeks,
and Handley uses the product to wrap his head around
future permanent designs. “A lot of people do—they’re
tattoo curious.” he says. Others may just want a short-term,
personalized accessory. In its four years, Inkbox has sold more
than 1 million of these statement pieces. “Self-expression,
iëiV > Þ v À i ] à ÛiÀÞ Ì Õ} ]» > ` iÞ ÀiyiVÌð º/>ÌÌ Ã
are one way to get out of that trap.”



While Handley feels strongly about the eternal cool of both
permanent and semi-permanent ink, the investors he pitched
ÜiÀi ½Ì >à V Û Vi`p >
} Ì > ` vwVÕ Ì À >` Ì Ì i f£Î
million in funding Inkbox has today.

THE MOMENT OF INSPIRATION


For Handley, entrepreneurship is a family tradition. “I used to
go to garage sales with my dad. We’d buy sports equipment
and resell it,” he recalls with a laugh. “He’d make me
negotiate, because it was a good learning experience—and a
kid will get a better price.” In high school, Handley graduated
to online, and in-home, marketplaces. “When my brother went
to university, I turned his room into a shop. I’d buy shirts in

bulk and resell them to friends.”




F O R B E S . C O M

F O R B E S B R A N D V O I C E W I T H I W C S C H A F F H A U S E N | PA I D P R O G R A M







Handley always knew he’d launch his own business But the company’s success only fully hit Handley
one day. And when he did, it was, appropriately, when he and Tyler were able to thank their parents

a family affair. In 2014, his brother, Tyler, shared for teaching them to be entrepreneurs in a big way—
that he’d been researching how to test out tattoo by gifting them a percentage of the company. His
designs and learned that a special skin-dying fruit— parents motivated the brothers to persevere when the
the jagua—was recently available for import to business took hard hits, and for Handley, being able
86
their native Canada. “I immediately knew this was to give away a piece of what he’d built reinforced how
something we could start,” says Handley, then a social v>À
L Ý >` V i à Vi Ì i LÀ Ì iÀà wÀÃÌ Ì>
i`
T media strategist. “My brother is a natural leader, and about their vision. Now, he says, “My dad is always
N
E I’m a boots-on-the-ground, get-stuff-done [type].” checking our website to learn the names of new
M i « ÞiiÃ] Ã Ü i i V iÃ Ì Ì i vwVi] i
ÜÃ
O
M [how to greet them].” As Inkbox continues growing,

E Ì >Ì >Þ LiV i ` vwVÕ Ì] LÕÌ À>`i > ` /Þ iÀ
H
T are committed to running the upstart like a family
company, the efforts of two brothers. That part, he
says, isn’t temporary.



















BRANDON BRYANT



THE MOMENT OF CHALLENGE IS CHANGING THE

/ i wÀÃÌ ÃÌi«¶ iÌÌ } à > `à ` ÀÌÞ° º ÃÌ>ÀÌi` (VERY WHITE) FACE
mixing this ink by hand in my 500-square-foot

apartment,” Handley recalls. He imported crates of
the fruit from Panama to test and improve the ink. “I OF VENTURE CAPITAL
Ài i LiÀ ` } Ì i wÀÃÌ i > ` Ì i } }] ¼ Þ
... this actually works!’ Why has no one done this
Þi̶» / i LÀ Ì iÀà >` > «À `ÕVÌ Ì iÞ Li iÛi` °
Unfortunately, they were the only ones. Rounds of
fter landing a job in investment banking post-
fundraising were painful. After a major backer pulled
college, it didn’t take long for Brandon Bryant,
out at the last moment, “We were around two weeks
Athe 29-year-old cofounder of Harlem Capital
away from being completely bankrupt.”
Partners, to observe that he and his colleagues had
THE MOMENT OF SUCCESS little in common. “As a person of color, you sit next
to the kid who played lacrosse, whose father and
The brothers had a feeling the idea would land better mother is somebody, and you get to understand how
> } Ì i ºÌ>ÌÌ VÕÀ Õð»
L Ý >`i ÌÃ wÀÃÌ they move in the world,” he recalls of the old boys’
online sale within minutes of launching in 2015 and club that seemed to dominate his majority-white
ran a Kickstarter campaign that raised $80,000 in one workplace. “My big takeaway from my experience is
day, proving to new investors the real desire for this to be on the offense now, and be excited to make my
product. The company now has over 120 employees, own opportunities.” He’s done that by launching a

in Toronto and Japan. Ûi ÌÕÀi V>« Ì> wÀ V ÌÌi` Ì ÛiÃÌ }




D E C E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

F O R B E S B R A N D V O I C E W I T H I W C S C H A F F H A U S E N | PA I D P R O G R A M








businesses owned by people of color and women,
who receive as little as 3% of VC funding.


THE MOMENT OF INSPIRATION

Bryant left his Wall Street job but started sharing
small-scale investment ideas with friends, including 87
his future Harlem Capital cofounders, who began
ÕÃÌ } Ì }iÌ iÀ vÕ `ð º >ÀÀ ` Q/ } iR } iÃ] ¼ T

have all these really cool opportunities. Do you H
E
>Ûi f£ä]äää Ì «ÕÌ Ì Ü>À`à ̶½ i À Q* iÀÀi CHEF JON YAO GOES
M
>VμÕiÃR ÌiÝÌi` i] Ã>Þ }] ¼ Þ Õ >Ûi f£ä]ää䶽 O
We had $50,000 in 30 minutes.” Then one day in FROM LUNCHBOXES M
E
2015, over dinner in a cramped Harlem apartment, N
T
Bryant, Tingle, Pierre-Jacques and John Henry—who
completes the Harlem Capital quartet—realized that TO A MICHELIN STAR
Ì iÞ ÜiÀi iÃÃi Ì > Þ ÀÕ } > Ã > wÀ ° º7i½`
been building an airplane in midair,” Bryant says.
/ i ÃÌ>vv v v ÕÀ Ü>Ã > Ài>`Þ yÞ }] LÕÌ Ì iÞ ii`i`
a mission.

efore opening Kato, the trendy Taiwanese
THE MOMENT OF CHALLENGE restaurant celebrated by food critics and

BLA hipsters alike, Jon Yao almost quit the
As Bryant and his cofounders searched for
kitchen. Having run out of money while interning
entrepreneurs to invest in, they found that the buzz
for several chefs, he moved back in with his parents
was most often surrounding the same type of faces.
and agreed to lend a hand with their startup idea:
It occurred to them just how little venture capital
a lunchbox service for university students in Los
goes to people of color and women and set a goal
Angeles. Within three years, Yao helped them
of investing in 1,000 diverse founders. While this
launch the business, quickly transformed it into a
new MO for Harlem Capital Partners was inspiring
chic restaurant and earned the greatest accolade in
to its founders, it wasn’t especially motivating for
modern cooking: a Michelin star. The way he tells
the investors they approached. By Bryant’s estimate,
it, he failed very far upward.
they’ve heard the word “no” hundreds of times.


THE MOMENT OF SUCCESS THE MOMENT OF INSPIRATION

And of course, occasionally, there are yeses. One of Yao’s parents had spotted what they believed to
Ì i >À}iÃÌ «À Û>Ìi iμÕ ÌÞ wÀ Ã } L> Þ Ü >Ã > be a need in LA: grab-and-go meals for students.
minority stake in Harlem Capital and invested in its “They thought it would be easy,” Yao says, but
wÀÃÌ « i` vÕ `] Ü V Ãii
Ã Ì À> Ãi fÓx ° vÀ «>V
>} } ÛiÀy Ü Ì > Ì Ã > v>V ÌÞ] Ì i
Harlem has invested in startups like animal care concept wasn’t working. What was working was Yao’s
service Wagmo (founded by a woman); menstrual latest hobby: hosting friends for elaborate dinners at
supply company Aunt Flow (founded by a woman); his house. The meals impressed his parents’ business
and gig economy marketplace Jobble (founded by «>ÀÌ iÀð º/ iÞ ÜiÀi
i] ¼ v ̽à à >À` Ì À}> âi
a black man). And Bryant will continue to seek out lunchboxes, why don’t you do what you were doing

people who believe in his work, he says, returning to Ü Ì Þ ÕÀ vÀ i `ö½» / iÞ μÕ V
Þ « Û Ìi` Ì ÃiÀÛ }
Ì i iÌ>« À v yÞ }° º ̽Ã
>Þ v Þ Õ ` ½Ì Ü> Ì Ì Ì Ãi w iÀ i> ð Ü] >Ì ÃiÀÛià > `> Þ V > } }
be along for this ride. But we’re going to Mars, and 10-course tasting menu for $118. The cheap facility
then we’re going to Venus and then we’re hitting they rented became the restaurant’s sleek 27-seat
Pluto. So, see you there!” dining room, and Yao’s role changed from “son
helping out” to head chef.





D E C E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

F O R B E S B R A N D V O I C E W I T H I W C S C H A F F H A U S E N | PA I D P R O G R A M







THE MOMENT OF CHALLENGE eep in the Sunset Park neighborhood of
Brooklyn, Blake Tomnitz overlooks the
Yao opened the restaurant doors with almost no D15,000-square-foot brewery he spent the past
working capital. But the greatest challenge was half-decade building and perfecting. It’s a far cry from
his search for identity. Once the idea behind Kato à w ÀÃÌ >ÌÌi «ÌÃ Ì LÀiÜ V i}i] º ÕÀ ` À
had evolved, Yao took the reins, having done so room kitchen stoves,” recalls the now 30-year-old
88 Õ vw V > Þ > Ài>`Þ° ÕÌ Ì i ÀiÃÌ>ÕÀ> ̽à ` ÀiVÌ cofounder and CEO of Five Boroughs Brewing Co.
wasn’t fully baked—and it didn’t feel personal to / `>Þ] Ã VÀ>vÌ LiiÀÃ y Ü Ì À Õ} L>À Ì>«Ã > ` ÃÌ V
him. In the hopes of bringing in money, he served vÀ `}ià >VÀ ÃÃ] Üi ] > w Ûi iÜ 9 À
L À Õ} ð
T
N pan-Asian dishes “that I thought resonated with
E
M what Angelenos liked to eat,” he says. “There wasn’t THE MOMENT OF INSPIRATION
O a voice behind the food. It wasn’t driven by my
M
identity.” It was that sense of resignation that pushed Post-college, Tomnitz kept brewing but took a job as
E
H him to pivot. an investment banking analyst. Still, some corner of
T
his brain was preparing for a business in beer. One
THE MOMENT OF SUCCESS day, he and his future cofounder, Kevin O’Donnell,

then his banking colleague, laid their eyes on an
ƂÌ w ÀÃÌ] 9> V Õ ` ½Ì i « LÕÌ Ãii >Ì >à >
inspiring scene at a Bronx bar. “We had never seen
evolution of someone else’s vision—a stopgap
such a diverse group gathering around beer. It didn’t
before he opened a place that was truly his. But
matter if you’ve lived here your entire life, if you’ve
that freed him to take risks. “I’ll treat this like an
ÕÃÌ Ûi` iÀi] v Ì½Ã Þ ÕÀ w ÀÃÌ À £]äääÌ VÀ>vÌ LiiÀ]»
incubator,” he thought, and decided to curate a
he says. They instantly knew what they wanted to
ÌÀÕi /> Ü> iÃi i Õ y Õi Vi` LÞ Ì i y >Û ÀÃ v Ã
VÀi>Ìi\ > LiiÀ Ài«ÀiÃi Ì } > w Ûi L À Õ} Ã v i v
childhood. “I might as well do food I believe in.” In
the most diverse cities in the world—and a space to
Õ i] Ì i V iv ÀiVi Ûi` Ã w ÀÃÌ ÃÌ>À° º Þ Õ Ì >Ìi
drink it.
goal was to be in the Michelin system,” he says.
“It’s slowly starting to sink in,” he says. “When I THE MOMENT OF CHALLENGE
Ü>Ã Þ Õ }iÀ ` ` ½Ì >Ûi > /> Ü> iÃi w i ` }
ÀiÃÌ>ÕÀ> Ì° Ü] > Ì v /> Ü> iÃi V ivà Ã>Þ] ¼9 Õ Tomnitz and O’Donnell were blocked by bureaucracy,
guys are the guiding star.’” whether about building codes or liquor laws, at every
step of the way. “Starting a business in New York
City is very hard. Starting a manufacturing business is
extremely hard, and starting an alcohol manufacturing
business is impossible.” Nearly. And yet in 2017, Five
Boroughs opened to the public.


THE MOMENT OF SUCCESS

In August 2017, Five Boroughs launched the brand
HOW BLAKE with a traditional IPA, a crisp pilsner, a tart gose and
a hoppy lager. “We wanted to develop a wide variety

TOMNITZ BUILT THE to show as many different palates across New York
as possible,” says Tomnitz. Anticipating bureaucratic

hold-ups, they waited until the very last minute to
QUINTESSENTIAL announce their opening. “But 500 people showed

up—it wasn’t just family and friends; there was
NEW YORK BREWERY Ã } w V> Ì ÌiÀiÃÌ Ì Þ vÀ À
Þ LÕÌ iÜ

York City and beyond.” A room packed with all kinds
v «i « i vÀ > w Ûi L À Õ} Ã] > } } ÕÌ > `
à «« } à VÀi>Ì Ã¶ Ã Û Ã Ü>à Ài> âi`°







D E C E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

CONGRATULATES







THE UNDER 30







CLASS OF 2020










FROM THE OFFICIAL TIMEPIECE OF FORBES UNDER 30















































THE MOMENT






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BRIANNA ROLLINS-
MCNEAL, 28
Hurdler, Team USA
JESSICA ROMANELLI DAVID,
28
Director of marketing, SeventySix
Capital
KERRY SCALORA, 27
Director of global partnerships,
UFC
TOM SCHAAR, 20
Skateboarder, Team USA





SPORTS







BOBBY WAGNER, 29

MID D LE LIN EBAC K ER , S EAT TL E S E AH AWKS

NFL star Bobby Wagner studies opposing offenses the same way poker champs read tells. Does a receiver adjust his gloves ahead of a


passing play, or do linemen heavily lean on their fingertips before a run? Wagner’s betting he has the same keen eye for business. He began


his investment blitz in 2014, plowing mid-five-figures into Denali Therapeutics, a biotech focusing on brain disease that went public in
2017. More recently, he joined stars like Diddy, Shonda Rhimes and Kevin Durant (see p. 78) in Andreessen Horowitz’s Cultural Leadership

Fund. Comprising African American leaders outside the tech world, the fund invests in a wide range of startups and donates all profits to

organizations promoting diversity in tech. Wagner’s gridiron play is delivering a flood of investable assets. In July, he negotiated his own
three-year, $54 million contract with the Seahawks, making him the highest-paid middle linebacker in the league. Says Wagner: “We
should take the time to learn how to make money work for us, versus working for the money.” —Daniel Kleinman, Chris Smith
JUDGES: SHEILA JOHNSON, PARTNER, MONUMENTAL SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT; SKYLAR DIGGINS-SMITH, POINT GUARD, DALLAS WINGS (UNDER 30 CLASS OF 2019); JASON LEVIEN, CEO, DC UNITED.
BOBBY WAGNER WEARS A ZADIG & VOLTAIRE CASHMERE BLACK HOODIE AND A DOLCE & GABBANA BLACK LEATHER BOMBER JACKET.

F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

91




A WAKE-UP CALL TO CYNICS WHO THINK THEY HAVE

seen it all. The young, creative and bold

minds on this year’s 30 Under 30 list are

proof positive that the future will be

new, exciting and profoundly differ-
ent. These entrepreneurs are teach-

ing viruses to fight cancer, develop-

ing technology to help astronauts

breathe on Mars and creating strings

of hit songs that fuel our daily playlists.

And that’s just a few. Harnessing our expert

community, our robust reporting, our vigorous

vetting and the wisdom of the world’s top investors and entrepreneurs, we

evaluated more than 15,000 nominees. The final product: 600 revolutionaries

in 20 industries changing the course—and the face—of business and society.


EDITORS: STEVEN BERTONI AND ALEXANDRA WILSON
ASSISTANT EDITORS: MARLEY COYNE AND ALEXANDRA STERNLICHT





































PHOTOGRAPHER: JAMEL TOPPIN STYLE DIRECTOR: JENNIFER LEE
PHOTO ASSISTANTS: MARK GRGURICH, ZORAN JELENIC STYLE ASSISTANTS: SAMANTHA KIDD, CHARLOTTE GHIGLIAZZA. HAIR AND MAKEUP: SUZANA HALLILI USING TEMPTU & MARIO BADESCU

D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9 F O R B E S . C O M

FOOD & DRINK Cofounders, MáLà Project
MENG AI, 27; YISHU HE, 28;
NING (AMELIE) KANG, 28

NICK AJLUNI, 26;
NICK GUILLEN, 29
Cofounders, TRUFF Hot Sauce
LAUREEN ASSEO, 28
Founder, Fresh N’ Lean
ATARA BERNSTEIN, 29; ARIEL
PASTERNAK, 29
Cofounders, pineapple collaborative
AKSHAY BHARDWAJ, 26
92
Executive chef, Junoon
TARA BOSCH, 25
Founder, SmartSweets
BENNETT BYERLEY, 23;
MATTHEW CZARNECKI, 24;
ANDRÉ MONTEIRO, 23
Cofounders, Verb Energy
CAMILLE COGSWELL, 28
Executive chef, K’Far
DAVID COHEN, 28;
DAVID GREENFELD, 29
Cofounders, Dream Pops
LELAND COPENHAGEN, 29;
SARAH HUGHES, 29
Cofounders, Yai’s Thai
FORREST DEIN, 27;
GREG SERRAO, 27
Cofounders, JuneShine
NICO ENRIQUEZ, 26
Founder, Willie’s Superbrew
JEREMY FALL, 29
Cofounder, J. Fall Group
JAMES FAYAL, 29
Founder, Zest Tea
KAYLA GIOVINAZZO, 29
CEO, Eat Clean Bro
ANDREW JONES, 29;
CAYLA MARVIL, 28
Cofounders, Lamplighter Brewing
STERLING JONES, 28
President, JOJO’s Chocolate
GABE KENNEDY, 29
TARA BOSCH, 25 Cofounder, Plant People
ISSEY KOBORI, 26;
TRINITY MOUZON WOFFORD, 26
FOU ND ER , SMARTSWEE TS
Cofounders, Golde
Tara Bosch turned a kitchen experiment into a PIERSON KRASS, 28
Founder, Lunar Solar Group
$55 million revenue candy brand. A former sugar
NICK MARES, 23
addict, Bosch had daily chats with her grand- Cofounder, Kettle & Fire

mother over bags of sweets. She loved the ritual,
DANIELA MOREIRA, 29
but hated the way candy made her feel. “I start- Executive chef, Call Your Mother
ed thinking, ‘I want to feel good about candy, so KELSEY MOREIRA, 28
why can’t I?’” She bought a gummy bear mold and Founder, Doughp
tested recipes using plant-based fibers and plant- EVAN ROCHEFORD, 29

Cofounder, NutraMaize
based sweeteners to replace corn syrup and sugar.
SAMANTHA SCHNUR, 25
The British Columbia native sold the gummies
Founder, The Naughty Fork
from her car and cold-emailed Canadian retail-
LUCAS SIN, 26
ers, eventually selling to grocers and health food Chef, Junzi Kitchen
stores. A 2017 TV appearance on Fox Business ANTHONY SPENCER, 29; CHRIS
caught the attention of Whole Foods, leading to SPENCER, 28
full U.S. distribution with the retail giant. Today Cofounders, Keto Pint
her lines of no-added-sugar candy sell in more ASHLEY THOMPSON, 29
Cofounder, MUSH
than 18,000 stores across North America. “The
ZACH VOUGA, 29
focus so far is reinventing the candy aisle,” Bosch
Cofounder, Plant Power Fast Food
says. “Now we are asking, ‘What else can we kick
KAE WHALEN, 28
sugar out of?’ ” —Chloe Sorvino, Kristin Stoller Beverage director, Kismet
JUDGES: RANDALL LANE, CHIEF CONTENT OFFICER, FORBES MEDIA; BRIAN RUDOLPH, COFOUNDER, BANZA (UNDER 30 CLASS OF 2016);
LEE SCHRAGER, FOUNDER, SOUTH BEACH & NEW YORK WINE AND FOOD FESTIVALS; CHRISTINA TOSI, CHEF/FOUNDER, MILK BAR.
TARA BOSCH WEARS A YEON BLACK MESH LONG-SLEEVE TOP AND GRAY BUSTIER, OFFICINA BERNARDI SILVER HOOP EARRINGS AND A LIVEN CO. OPEN X DIAMOND RING.

F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

The Sky’s The Limit.



Congratulations to this year’s Forbes Under 30 listers from the city
that knows what hard work looks like. Detroit is honored to host the
winners and many more at the Forbes Under 30 Summit this fall.

ENTERTAINMENT Actor
YALITZA
APARICIO, 26

ASANTE BLACKK, 18
Actor
ZOEY DEUTCH, 25
Actor
BEANIE FELDSTEIN, 26
Actor
CAROLINE
GOLDFARB, 29
Writer
94
ANITA GOU, 29
Founder, Kindred Spirit
KELVIN HARRISON
JR., 25
Actor
STEPHAN JAMES, 26
Actor
JHARREL JEROME, 22
Actor
JOEY KING, 20
Actor
BEN LEVINE, 29
Agent, Creative Artists
Agency
HANNAH LEVY, 28;
ADRIANA ROBLES, 26
Writer-directors, Saturday
Night Live
MIKE MAKOWSKY, 28
Writer
HANNAH MARKS, 26
Filmmaker
MARSAI MARTIN, 15
Actor
EZRA MILLER, 27
Actor
NIKI MONTAZARAN, 29
Agent, ICM Partners
INDYA MOORE, 24
Actor
EMMA NEEDELL, 29
Writer,
Evil Monster Dog
EVA NOBLEZADA, 23
Actor
ERIKA OLDE, 28
Founder, Black Bicycle
Entertainment
LILI REINHART, 23
Actor
COLE & DYLAN SPROUSE, 27 HUNTER SCHAFER, 21
Actor
ACTOR-BR EW ER S ALEXANDRA SHIPP, 28
Actor
Cole and Dylan Sprouse were earning acting checks before they could walk. At 8 months old, the iden- COLE SPROUSE, 27
tical twins scored jobs in diaper commercials and at 6 years old shared a breakout part in Adam Sandler’s Actor
1999 comedy Big Daddy, which brought in $230 million worldwide. Next came starring roles in Disney DYLAN SPROUSE, 27
Actor
Channel’s tween hit The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. At the peak of teen celebrity, the brothers quit show-
NEDAA SWEISS, 28
biz and enrolled at NYU, where Dylan majored in video game design and Cole in archeology. “With child
Head writer, The Tonight
stardom, the public views you as a youthful public commodity,’ says Cole. “You start to question how to Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
change the public persona to match your own identity.” Identity for Dylan meant brewing honey wine: his FINN WOLFHARD, 17

Brooklyn-based All-Wise Meadery has around $1 million in annual sales and is profitable. Cole, mean- Actor
while, boomeranged from archeology back to the small screen, starring as Jughead in the hit CW drama PHILLIP YOUMANS, 19
Filmmaker, Denizen Pictures
Riverdale, a dark take on the Archie comics that has earned him three Teen Choice Awards. In 2019 he
JABOUKIE
starred in teen drama Five Feet Apart, which brought in more than $90 million on a $7 million budget.
YOUNG-WHITE, 25
—Maddie Berg, Dawn Chmielewski Comedian


JUDGES: TITUSS BURGESS, ACTOR, SINGER; STEVE MOSKO, CEO, VILLAGE ROADSHOW ENTERTAINMENT GROUP USA;
ISSA RAE, ACTRESS, WRITER, PRODUCER (UNDER 30 CLASS OF 2014); BRIAN ROBBINS, PRESIDENT, NICKELODEON.
DYLAN SPROUSE WEARS AN EIDOS GRAY CROC PRINTED SUEDE JACKET, A Z ZEGNA GRAY CASHMERE SWEATER, DAVID HART PAINT-SPLATTERED GRAY PANTS, AN OFFICINA BERNARDI DOG-TAG
BRACELET AND A JONAS STUDIOS ORANGE AND SILVER DOG-TAG NECKLACE. COLE SPROUSE WEARS AN L.B.M. CHALK-STRIPE WOOL SUIT AND AN ISAIA COTTON BUTTON-DOWN SHIRT.

F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

A P E R F E C T G I F T






New York Times Bestseller



What It









Takes








From the Chairman, CEO,


and Co-Founder of Blackstone







“A playbook for success in any field.” “A must-read, inspirational account.”


— JOHN KERRY — JA NET YELLE N




“Filled with fresh insights and “The real story of what it takes
personal experiences that everyone from a man who could turn dreams

will relate to and learn from.” into realities.”


— JACK WELCH — R AY D ALI O


“A series of thoughtful reflections “This story literally has what it takes:
derived from the author’s the anecdotes, the insights and, most
extraordinary life.” of all, the values.”


— HENRY A. KISSINGE R — MARK CARNEY



“This book reveals how he has “Steve challenges us all to be
achieved the rarest kind of leverage in better leaders, better citizens,

multiple fields.” better people.”


— ERIC SCHMIDT — MARY BARRA




ORDER NOW: R e ad Wha tItTak e s. co m


AL SO AVAIL AB LE AS AN E-B OO K AN D A N AU DI OB OO K

IVAN ALO, 29;
LADANTE MCMILLON, 29
Cofounders, New Age Capital
LUKE ARMOUR, 29
Founder, Chaac Ventures
CROOM BEATTY, 29
Principal, Menlo Ventures
KONSTANTINE BUHLER, 27
Partner, Sequoia Capital
GRACE CHOU, 29
Vice president, Felicis Ventures
96 NATALIE DILLON, 28
Senior associate, Maveron
CATHARINE DOCKERY, 27
Founder, Vice Ventures
JULIE EFFRON, 27
Partner, Elephant
ASH EGAN, 28
Partner, Accomplice VC
JORDAN FUDGE, 27;
ERIC REINER, 28
Cofounders, Sinai Ventures
YIDA GAO, 29
General partner, Struck Capital
RAYFE GASPAR-ASAOKA, 29
Principal, Canaan Partners
AMANDA GROVES, 27
Partner, PLUS Capital
TESS HATCH, 26
Investor, Bessemer Venture
Partners
ALEX IMMERMAN, 29
Partner, Andreessen Horowitz
JARED JACOBS, 29
Vice president, CAVU Ventures
REBECCA LIU-DOYLE, 27
Senior associate,
Insight Partners
HENRY MCNAMARA, 29
Partner, Great Oaks Venture
Capital
BRIAN MOON, 29
VENTURE Senior associate,
Norwest Venture Partners
JUSTINE MOORE, 25;
OLIVIA MOORE, 25
Venture investors, CRV
CAPITAL Principal, Craft Ventures
LAINY PAINTER, 27

AVERY ROSIN, 28
Principal, Lead Edge Capital
JULIA SCHOTTENSTEIN, 27
Principal, NEA
JASON SHUMAN, 28
CATHARINE DOCKERY, 27 Principal,
Primary Venture Partners
FOU NDE R, V I C E VE NT U RES SAM SMITH-EPPSTEINER, 29
Partner, Innovation Endeavors
In 2018 Catharine Dockery was raising money for L.A. wine startup Bev when she experienced a CHLOE STEINBERG, 28
major buzzkill: “the vice clause.” To manage money for foundations and nonprofits, many investors Principal, Equinox Ventures

pledge to avoid backing alcohol, cannabis, nicotine, gambling and sex. As a result numerous VCs re- AMY SUN, 29
peatedly told Dockery the wine company was off-limits. Rather than see that as an obstacle, Dockery Partner, Sequoia Capital

saw an opportunity. She sold her New York apartment to launch her fund Vice Ventures to back taboo VINAY TRIVEDI, 29
VP, General Atlantic

brands. Formerly a Citigroup analyst and chief of staff for Bonobos cofounder Andy Dunn, Dockery


has raised $25 million from family offices and high-profile investors like Marc Andreessen and Brad- SHAWN XU, 29

Senior associate, Floodgate
ley Tusk. Early bets include CBD drink-maker Recess and Maude, which makes condoms and vibra-
KEVIN ZHANG, 27
tors. “A lot of people were very skeptical and didn’t believe,” Dockery says. “Now I have a ton of compa- Principal, Bain Capital Ventures
nies that come to me directly, and I get deals from a lot of other funds.” —Sarah Hansen, Alex Konrad,
Jon Ponciano
JUDGES: NEERAJ AGRAWAL, GENERAL PARTNER, BATTERY VENTURES; KIRSTEN GREEN, FOUNDING PARTNER, FORERUNNER VENTURES;
REBECCA KADEN, MANAGING PARTNER, UNION SQUARE VENTURES (UNDER 30 CLASS OF 2015); JEFF JORDAN, MANAGING PARTNER, ANDREESSEN HOROWITZ.
CATHARINE DOCKERY WEARS AN ALICE & OLIVIA FAUX FUR COAT AND AKNVAS BROWN CHECK PLAID TUNIC AND PANTS.

F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9

THE FUTURE







IS HERE










Engage with a Forbes-Ranked Next-Gen Wealth Advisor


Forbes ranks America’s top Next-Gen Wealth Advisors, whose teams
oversee half a trillion dollars in client assets. Vetted by SHOOK Research,
these top-ranked advisors represent the future of wealth management.

With an average tenure of 12 years, these advisors have weathered
market cycles and are proving to make a positive difference in

their clients’ lives.


See the Forbes top-ranked wealth advisors at
Forbes.com/top-next-gen-advisors























































SHOOK Research considered advisors born in 1980 or later with a minimum 4 years relevant experience. Advisors have: built their own practices and lead their teams; joined teams and are viewed as future
leadership; or a combination of both. Ranking algorithm is based on qualitative measures: telephone and in-person interviews, client retention, industry experience, credentials, review of compliance records,


firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, such as: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances
vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research, LLC. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation from the advisors or their
firms in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information see www.SHOOKresearch.com.

SAYID ABDULLAEV, 27
Product marketing manager, YouTube
MARTIN AGUINIS, 24
Head of global marketing, Flutter, Google

NILLA ALI, 28
Senior vice president, commerce, BuzzFeed
ALEXANDER ALLEN, 26;
ANDY TAMAYO, 28
Senior creative team, David The Agency
HAYLEY ANDERSON, 29
Cofounder, Soona
98 FRANKY BERNSTEIN, 26
Founder, Markett
SAMANTHA BORT, 28
Director, digital innovation
and experience, L’Oréal
CRISTINA DE LA PEÑA, 29
Cofounder, Synapbox
MEGAN DUONG, 28
Global head of brand, Claris
RYLEE EBSEN, 29
Founder, Ebsen Enterprises
HECTOR ESPINOZA, 27; NANCY LI, 23
Cofounders, Multiplied
CARLEY GAUTHIER, 29
National director of marketing, Live Nation
ANDREW GREEN, 27
Global director of innovation,
Anheuser-Busch InBev
PATRICK IP, 29;
JACOBO LUMBRERAS, 29
Cofounders, Catalog
SAMEEN KARIM, 26;
AKASH MALHOTRA, 28
Cofounders, Eventable
AUSTIN MACE 27; RYAN THOMAS, 27 MARKETING &
Cofounders, Subvrsive
ANTON MAMONOV, 24;
KARAN WALIA, 29; SOBI WALIA, 25
Cofounders, Cluep
NINA MONTGOMERY, 28
Systems Designer, IDEO ADVERTISING
TYLER ROCHWERG, 27
Digital marketing and innovation manager,
Johnson & Johnson
LAUREN ROTHBERG, 29
ERIK ZAMUDIO, 28
Director of marketing, Reformation
SHEBA ROY, 27
Global partner marketing lead, Google C OFOU ND E R, FOOJ I
MO SAID, 29
Founder, Mojo Supermarket Fooji helps brands reach social media
SIVAKAMI SAMBASIVAM, 29 fans in the real world. Take HBO. To pro-
Founding team member, GoodRx mote its tech satire Silicon Valley, Fooji de-
BRYAN STROMER, 24 livered—via drone—branded pizzas to 700
Product marketing manager, Microsoft people in the Bay Area, L.A. and New York
HANNAH TENENBAUM, 29 who tweeted a unique hashtag and a pizza
Agent, Paradigm Talent Agency
emoji. For Mini Cooper, Fooji supplied ve-
ROSS TIPOGRAPH, 29 hicles in 30 minutes direct to fans in a
Writer, producer and director,
Ross Jacobs Co. tweet-to-test-drive campaign. Cofounders
RUIWAN XU, 29 Erik Zamudio and Gregg Morton worked
Founder, CareerTu together on fashion app WeStyle in Lex-
JON YOUSHAEI, 29 ington, Kentucky, before pivoting to Fooji.
Product Marketing Manager, Instagram
Other clients include Amazon, Disney
ERIK ZAMUDIO, 28 and Lay’s. “We first did it as a little bit of a

Cofounder, Fooji
joke,” says Zamudio. “Then brands start-
TIFFANY ZHONG, 23
Cofounder, Zebra Intelligence ed noticing us as this unique way to engage
with fans.” —Jenny Rooney, Marty Swant,
Samantha Todd


JUDGES: KYLE WONG, FOUNDER, PIXLEE (UNDER 30 CLASS OF 2017); ELIZABETH RUTLEDGE, CMO, AMERICAN EXPRESS;
RICK GOMEZ, CHIEF MARKETING AND DIGITAL OFFICER, TARGET; DANA ANDERSON, CHIEF TRANSFORMATION OFFICER, MEDIALINK.
ERIK ZAMUDIO WEARS AN ISAIA WOOL SUIT JACKET AND PANTS, AND A WOOL NAVY TURTLENECK SHIRT.

F O R B E S . C O M D E C E M B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 9