Founder & CEO, Amazon

Jeff Bezos has always been interested in anything that can be revolutionized by computers. Intrigued by the amazing growth in use of the Internet, Bezos created a business model that leveraged the Internet’s unique ability to deliver huge amounts of information rapidly and efficiently.

In 1994 he founded Amazon.com, Inc., now the leading online retailer, offering services that traditional retailers cannot: lower prices, authoritative selection and a wealth of product information.

Before heading west to start Amazon.com, Bezos worked at the intersection of computer science and finance, helping build one of the most technically sophisticated quantitative hedge funds on Wall Street for D.E. Shaw & Co. He also led the development of computer systems that helped manage more than $250 billion in assets for Bankers Trust Company.

He graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in electrical engineering and computer science from Princeton University in 1986.