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the GYES' list of the 25 most exceptional entrepreneurs under the age of 25 in 2025
A GYES Initiative since 2022, we are proud to present the 4th Cohort of GYES 25 Under 25 Recipients.
In Partnership with:
By the Numbers:
Average age: 19.28
Funds raised: $80 Million+
Revenue: $30 Million+
Scott Hiett (19)
Country: United Kingdom
Website: https://hiett.dev/
Programming since 7 years old, Scott has built apps that have had millions of users. He became a Co-Founder of a startup at 16 years old after being featured in Forbes at 15 as "The next generation of computer science". He has led an engineering team of 7 people. He has built apps in his spare time with various other teenagers. One app he built on his own was "MusicPals" (December 2020, he was 17), which got 15 million total social media impressions in regions all around the world, and netted 1 million users. Soon after, he landed on MTV News, at which point he got into talks with a number of major record labels. MusicPals allows you to match with people who love the same music, and drops you in text chats while the song plays. At 14, he wrote a modification that turned the Sims 4 game from single player game to a multi player game. He grew a community of 30,000 people and to this day the mod has 700,000 downloads, and 10k monthly active users - even though he has not touched the code in well over a year. At 17, Scott wrote an app in his spare time with a friend Robert Westbury (at the time, 15) that collects social media data in real time at mass scale to create one, unified feed. Currently it has over 25,000,000 pieces of content tracked and a daily average of ~50k new content pieces. For the past year, he has been building a new app with a business partner from the music industry. While he cannot share what it is yet, they have been in some amazing talks and they are in the process of raising their first funding round. He left his previous job running an engineering team to work on this. He accomplished all of the above mentioned feats while attending school, having just finished high school a few months ago.
Oliver Edholm (19)
Country: Sweden
Depict.ai
Oliver started programming by the age of 8. When he reached the age of 15, he was the youngest AI researcher in the world. Instead of finishing high school, he began working as an AI research engineer at Europe's leading payment company. He got inspired to start Depict.ai after realizing that AI is applied in retail but only available for giants. He has raised over 20 million Dollars and has a team of 38 for his AI for eCommerce company.
Dominic Ill (20)
Country: Switzerland
Website: Tuki.ch
Dominic founded a company manufacturing and selling step-stools toddlers cannot fall out of (called the Tuki) from his garage with his friend, Simon Thut, when he was just 15 years old. They invested 600 CHF of their pocket money into the wood to make the first "learning towers" and made a website with Jimdo. In the absence of any competition and with the help of Google Ads, they started receiving their first orders. Soon, they founded a limited liability company, established ties with a factory who could manufacture the product at scale, and built a custom website. After about $350,000 in sales, they decided to professionalize and rebranded the product with an agency, had the product redesigned by a talented product designer, and had a shiny, new website built. Next, they raised money to grow the business, one of the investors being the man who had worked with them from the marketing agency. The product is now available in over 130 specialty stores in Germany, Austria, Denmark, and Switzerland. In fiscal year 2021, they had a revenue of CHF 500,000 and this year they are on track to have a revenue of 1 million CHF.
Jai Aadhithya (17)
Country: Qatar
Website: hiddentears.org
Jai Aadhithya Ramesh, a 17-year-old Indian student born in Qatar, is a remarkable entrepreneur and innovator with a passion for engineering. He has founded two organizations, Hidden Tears and Panatex, which address crucial societal issues. Hidden Tears, established in 2022, is a youth-led organization that has rapidly expanded its reach across multiple countries. It focuses on raising awareness and providing support for victims of online abuse and mental health challenges, particularly within the Indian community in Qatar. Jai and his team have conducted anti-bullying sessions in schools, connected real victims of mental health with certified professionals, and initiated innovative campaigns to challenge the negative aspects of online abuse and stigma. Their long-term goal of developing an AI-powered mental health chatbot demonstrates their commitment to making a difference. Additionally, Jai's involvement with Panatex, a student-led tech club, further showcases his dedication to education and tech enthusiasts' growth. Through various classes, workshops, and the creation of educational materials, Jai has made a significant impact on the education sector in Qatar and India. His involvement with GYES as the operations manager of Qatar reflects his continuous efforts to promote entrepreneurship among the Qatari youth, demonstrating his leadership and innovation in these important fields.
Amin Shaykho (23)
Country: United States
Website: Kadama.com
Founder of the Largest Education Social Media Brand in the World, Kadama
Ryan Hickman (13)
Country: United States
Website: https://ryansrecycling.com/
In 2012 at the age of 3, Ryan went along with his dad to the local recycling center and cashed in a few small bags of cans and bottles and decided that recycling was in his future. The day after going to the recycling center, Ryan notified his mom and dad that he wanted to give empty plastic bags to all the neighbors and maybe they would save their recyclables for him. Not only did the local neighbors save their cans and bottles for Ryan but so did their friends, families and co-workers. Today, Ryan has customers all over Orange County, CA and he has a passion to recycle that is amazing.
In 2016, Ryan’s recycling story went viral and ever since he has been featured on web sites, television and radio stations around the planet. Ryan has recycled over 176 thousand pounds of trash.
Shivam Ramphal (24)
Country: United States
Website: https://meetmaya.world/
Shivam Ramphal is a seasoned entrepreneur and technology visionary, currently making significant waves as the Co-Founder of Maya AI. With a diverse and extensive background that encompasses fields such as chemical engineering, healthcare, marketing, and robotics, Shivam has a history of successful entrepreneurial ventures. Under his leadership, Maya AI has become a pioneer in the realm of innovative AI-powered technologies, fundamentally reshaping the landscape of deep research and strategic decision-making. Shivam's academic foundation, which includes an Associate's degree in Engineering and Business Management from Hillsborough Community College (HCC), provides him with a solid grounding for his multifaceted entrepreneurial journey. Beyond his role at Maya AI, Shivam is deeply engaged as a mentor, advisor, and a source of support for emerging startups and fellow entrepreneurs. He is not only a dedicated professional but also a philanthropic individual, actively contributing to his community through volunteer work. Shivam's entrepreneurial journey, which began at a young age and has spanned diverse industries, now focuses on impacting healthcare and pharmaceuticals. With Maya AI, he and his team are driving advancements that accelerate drug discovery, enhance the analysis of clinical trials, create personalized treatment solutions, increase treatment effectiveness, and streamline patient diagnostics and monitoring, thus demonstrating their commitment to making a positive impact in the field.
Donát Posta (23)
Country: Hungary
Website: https://smapplab.com/
Donát is a co-founder and CEO of SMAPP Labs a company developing automated pest monitoring solutions to protect crops. Based on the data they have collected their goal is to provide accurate predictions of the pest population.
Marietta Hickman (24)
Country: United Kingdom
Website: www.cheekynibble.com
Marietta Hickman is the Founder of Cheeky Nibbles, a granola bar that is vegan and nut-free, and with 100% compostable packaging. She is completely self funded. Marietta renovated an old fire station in an ex-RAF base in Norfolk into a commercial kitchen to launch Cheeky Nibble. She still operates as a sole trader, managing the production, website and packaging design, social media and fulfillment herself. Within a year of launch has had over 30k GBP turnover, been awarded the Kettle Foods New Business award 2021, and is stocked in numerous shops including Bayley & Sage and Selfridges. She is planning to relaunch as gluten free by end of 2022, making Cheeky Nibble free from all 14 major allergens. She will also launch mini boxes, which will help showcase how the unique large, snackable clusters really do make Cheeky Nibble a hybrid product, both a cereal and a snack. The mini boxes will be sold as part of a variety pack so customers can sample all the flavors more easily, and sold as single portions for breakfast in hotels and as snacks in cafes, vending machines and grocery stores. She is autistic and has Tourettes Syndrome and Cheeky Nibbles has helped Marietta overcome her challenges.
Arushi Bagchi (17)
Country: United States
Website: https://www.rememoirs.org/
Arushi Bagchi is the CEO & Co-Founder of Rememoirs, an organization supporting Alzheimer's patients and promoting STEM education in underprivileged
communities. Rememoirs has 39 chapters in 7 countries and has impacted the lives of over 100 thousand people. Due to her enormous impact, the GYES Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2022 was awarded to Arushi.
Avi Schiffmann (19)
Country: United States
Website: https://ncov2019.live/
Avi Schiffmann launched the first real-time Covid tracking website, called nCoV2019.live, in early January 2020. By late April 2020 over 600 million people had visited this website, which was getting about 30 million visitors each day.
Avi began teaching himself how to code when he was seven years old, mostly by watching YouTube videos. In addition to his coronavirus tracker, Schiffmann has made more than 30 other websites. He was offered $8 million to put ads on his site, which he turned down.
Alina Morse (17)
Country: United States
Website: zollipops.com
Alina Morse founded sugar-free candy brand, Zolli Candy, when she was just 9 years old. The brand is sold around the world in over 25,000 stores and is the number 1 best-selling sugar-free candy on Amazon. Started with under $10,000, the company now has revenues of around 6 million USD.
Terry Chen (20)
Country: USA
Website: cognogpt.com
Terry Chen is a driven entrepreneur and the visionary founder and CEO of Cogno, a pioneering generative AI company. At Northwestern University, where he is majoring in Economics and Computer Science, Terry also holds the esteemed position of a startup resident at the Garage, the university's premier startup center. Before embarking on his journey with Cogno, Terry's notable professional experience includes serving as the Director of Strategy and Development at Young Sustainable Impact, a globally recognized startup incubator focused on sustainability solutions. He also held the role of Executive Director at the Columbia Startup Accelerator in China, where he played a pivotal role in organizing the CSAC accelerator camp and mentoring over 30 startups. Terry's exceptional leadership and innovation in entrepreneurship have earned him prestigious awards, including the Diana Award and Global Teen Leader award. Under Terry's guidance, Cogno is revolutionizing customer interaction analysis for international e-commerce brands, utilizing advanced AI technology to significantly reduce customer service costs while increasing market leads. Their innovative approach empowers businesses with personalized recommendations and targeted marketing content, thereby enhancing the overall customer experience and achieving impressive market traction, further solidifying Terry's role as a trailblazing entrepreneur.
Brandon Martinez (16)
Country: United States
Website: https://areyoukiddingsocks.com/
Brandon co-founded Are You Kidding Socks in 2014 with his brother, Sebastian. The pair have designed their own line of socks, which they have been selling largely direct to consumers through their web shop. They also use their colorful and fun sock designs to help raise funds and awareness for local and national charities such as Stand Up To Cancer, JDRF, Amigos for Kids, Autism Speaks and among many others.
Lily Born (16)
Country: United States
Website: http://www.imagiroo.com/
Lily witnessed how her grandfather who had Parkinson's disease kept spilling his drinks. Using moldable plastic and a bit of experimentation, she made him a plastic cup that didn't tip and was comfortable. About a year later, she noticed her dad trying to save his laptop from spilled coffee, and she made him a ceramic version at a local pottery studio. After using it for a short time, and realizing what a great invention it was, Lily's dad asked her if she wanted to bring it into production. That began an adventure that had them up to elbows in clay and traveling across the world to the ceramics capital of China, JingDeZhen. There they were able to refine the models, find a manufacturer and prepare for a production run of ceramic cups. Thanks to supporters on Kickstarter and Indiegogo, the ceramic Kangaroo Cup became a reality.
Alec Katz (21)
Country: United States
Website: https://www.curiouscardinals.com/
When Covid-19 hit during the spring quarter of their freshman year at Stanford, Alec Katz returned home and began tutoring neighbors on subjects he was passionate about that aren't taught in high school textbooks. In the summer of 2020 he decided to take a leave of absence to grow his tutoring business, Curious Cardinals. By reaching out to student leaders at his colleges, he co-founded a network of more than 200 tutors whom the company pays $40 to $60 per hour to teach courses to high schoolers on subjects like cryptocurrency or the future of aviation. The company was profitable right away, selling courses directly to parents and to secondary schools, and offers financial aid. He closed a $4.25 million funding round this year and made $600,000 in revenue in the first year in business.
Caroline Bercaw (20)
Country: United States
Website: https://dabombfizzers.com/
Caroline co-founded Da Bomb Bath Fizzers with her sister when she was just 11 years old. The girls went to the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market, which brings buyers as small as mom-and-pop and as big as Target, to discover new goodies for their shelves. The Target beauty buyer arranged a meeting and made a deal to carry Da Bomb products in all 1,8000-plus stores around the United States. Since 2018, the company has had revenues around 20 million Dollars.
Blake Resnick (21)
Country: United States
Website: https://blakeresnick.com/
BRINC founder Blake Resnick has raised over $27 million from an impressive roster of investors including Index Ventures, Sam Altman, Figma and Scale AI. The Thiel Fellow aims to change the way the police and rescue teams operate during emergencies. And it's already in use: Hours after the catastrophic apartment collapse in Surfside Florida, Black hand-delivered his lidar-equipped reconnaissance drone that was used to assess stability in areas too dangerous for engineers.
Ben Botvinick (19)
Country: United States
Website: https://benbotvinick.com/
In 2020, at 17, Ben Botvinick started Hyper, a payment platform for entrepreneurs. Most of Hyper's customers' projects begin as side hustles: Hyper has helped turn more than 100 of those into businesses generating tens of thousands in annual revenue. In June, the company raised a $17.2 million Series A from General Catalyst and others.
Jack Bonneau (16)
Country: United States
Website: https://www.teenhustl.com/
Jack is the Founder of Teen Hustl & Jack's Stands and was the youngest male to successfully pitch on Shark Tank. Teen Hustl hires teenagers to deliver Amazon, UPS, and FedEx packages from lockers to customer's homes after school and on weekends.
Eitan Bernath (19)
Country: United States
Website: https://www.eitanbernath.com/
After appearing on the Food Network's "Chopped" at the age of 11 and "Guy's Grocery Games" with restaurateur Guy Fieri a few years later, Eitan Bernath realized his culinary passions extended beyond the kitchen. In 2015, he founded Eitan Productions, his own entertainment studio that develops, produces and distributes food and lifestyle content for more than 5 million social media followers. The 19 year old's content now reaches more than 300 million people in 150-plus countries.
Kenan Pala (18)
Country: United States
Website: https://kids4.org/
Kenan founded the Kids4Community which has raised over 1 million Dollars for homelessness.
Riya Karumanchi (19)
Country: United States
Riya Karumanchi is the 17 year old founder and CEO of SmartCane, a device created for the blind to assist with spatial orientation and navigation.
Peyton Klein (20)
Country: United States
Website: https://globalminds.world/
The 2016 US election, both during and in the aftermath, brought turmoil and an alarming rise in the number of hate crimes. Then fifteen-year-old Peyton Klein, like many, wanted to take action.
What started as a simple afterschool club, soon turned into a movement. After a viral article, students and teachers internationally started reaching out saying that the academic and social disconnect between English Language Learners (ELL) and native English speaking students was not unique.
Peyton founded the Global Minds Initiative, a for-youth, by-youth organization created to combat the issues of cultural intolerance and discrimination through an after school tutoring program between English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) and Native English Speaking (NES) students.
Joash lee (21)
Country: Singapore
Website: https://joashl.com/
Joash previously founded multiple fashion startups and started one of Asia's leading hospitality creative agencies, serving firms such as Marriott International, IHG Hotels & Resorts, and Formula 1. He also launched new products for EdTech unicorn Crimson Education, growing them from $0 to over $1M, and was the Founder and Head of Crimson Press Service, the world's only PR agency for high schoolers.
With experience in venture capital, he was at Southeast Asia’s top corporate venture capital firm and has since taken on various advisory roles. He is a Venture Partner at VNTR Capital, an investment community in over 45 countries, and Iron Key Capital, a Web3 fund. Joash is also pioneering research on peace credits, a novel mechanism aiming to abate emissions and create peace by curbing the explosion of munitions.
His passions lie in entrepreneurship and innovation, sustainability, and Web3. He is a frequent speaker and writer on these topics for renowned platforms such as The Economist and is a member of the Forbes Business Council.
The mission
To recognize exceptional young entrepreneurs to support them in their missions of making a difference.
Truly get recognized
The Global Young Entrepreneur Society will work with its partners and members around the world to share the list with the international business community.
Who?
Any entrepreneur under the age of 25 can nominate themselves to be on the list.
The selection process
Through a process of careful consideration, the Global Young Entrepreneur Society (GYES) will select the 25 best fits for our list.
Do you think a spot on our list could support your entrepreneurial journey or your startup?
Nominate yourself today.
Know a young entrepreneur? Let us know and we will reach out to him/her.
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