In 2012, one of the most recognizable figures in the Western world is undoubtably Mark Zuckerburg, co-founder and CEO of Facebook. Not only is he one of the most successful individuals in the past decade (some might say he is number one on the list), but he is worth an approximated 14 billion US Dollars at the age of 28. However, he is only one of many young entrepreneurs making an impact on the world through their businesses (not to mention that they are all worth a lot of money). Here is a list (adapted from a list compiled in 2010 by Josh Dunlop from IncomeDiary) of five of the most notable young entrepreneurs (not including the obviously notable Zuckerburg) who have made themselves known through hard work and a whole lot of determination (and maybe some luck every now and then):
1. Dustin Moskovitz (28):
Worth an estimated $ 3.5 billion
Dustin may be a little less familiar to you than Mark Zuckerburg, but he’s definitely someone who has struck lucky. In fact Dustin was one of the co-founders of Facebook along with Mark. Dustin has since left Facebook (back in 2008) and has now set up his own business, Asana, a company that deals with the problems of workplace collaborations. The company is aimed at creating a social network that is suited to business relationships, instead of social relationships like its predecessor. So how much is he worth? An estimated $3.5 billion.
2. Andrew Mason (31)
Worth an estimated $1 billion
Andrew Mason is the founder and CEO of the online business Groupon. A site you have all more than likely heard about or used before. Andrew, at the age of just 29 years old was said to be worth an estimated $600 million due to the sites huge success. Founded in 2008, Groupon has been steadily increasing its traffic and it’s income for the grateful founder. The aim of the website is to offer out daily deals to people all over the world via an online coupon service. Each and everyday Groupon releases new “Groupons” to its customers allowing them to receive discounts on anything from Subway meals to laptops and much more. His previous employer gave Andrew in order to start this venture, which has now made them both a lot of money in the few short years it has been up and running. I’m sure we can expect more from him in the near future.
3. Matthew Mullenweg (28)
Worth an estimated $40 million
Its nice to have someone with a simple background in the list. He, like many of us, does not have a degree in any sort of IT discipline, but rather chose the route of Political Science and Philosophy. Matthew Mullenweg is the founding developer of WordPress, a resource a lot of us use on a daily basis. Funnily enough his background is anything but technical, he went to a performing arts school, learned to play the Jazz Saxophone, and then he went on to created one of the best website and blog programs in the world. In 2005 he started the company Automatic, which became the backing force behind WordPress and Akismet.
4. Blake Ross (27)
Worth an estimated $150 million
Blake Ross is an American software developer, known best for his work with Mozilla Firefox. That’s right at the age of 25yrs he has been able to accumulate a total fortune worth $150 million. In 2005 he was nominated for the Wired Magazines top “Rave Award” opposite some very popular names including Larry Page and Jon Stewart. Blake also co-founded the company Parakey that was eventually bought out by, yes you’ve guessed it, Facebook.
5. Naveen Selvadurai (30)
Worth an estimated $80 million
You may not have heard about Naveen but rest assured he is definitely a big hitter. He made most of his money through a joint venture that you may have heard of, Foursquare anyone? However before co-founding Foursquare he had worked extensively with some very well known brands, Nokia, Sun Microsystems and Sony to name a few. $80 million, yes please!
The Roodepoort Chamber of Commerce (ROCCI) is one of the biggest Chambers in South Africa, and is comprised of over 100 businesses in the Roodepoort area in Johannesburg. Contact ROCCI on (+27)86 111 3304, send an e-mail for additional information, or visit the ROCCI website to find out more about what is on offer, or how it would benefit you to be a part of this ever-growing inter-business network.
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