Tech Power Players 50

Like the long-awaited third act of a Shakespearean epic, we present to you: The Globe’s 2024 Tech Power Players 50 list.

It’s not a comedy, it’s not a tragedy (though perhaps AI encompasses both); it is a celebration and a grand spectacle of sorts. For the past two years, we have sought to highlight New England’s most influential and interesting people in technology, in the form of a list ranked by Globe journalists and an external advisory committee. The names and trends have shifted as the industry has gone through boom times, a downturn, and some reshuffling. But the region’s core strengths remain, in sectors like software, robotics, cybersecurity, climate tech, health tech, and venture capital.

So here’s who you need to know this year, and why.

Our third annual list of top tech CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, and changemakers tells a new story: one of opportunity amid the industry-wide challenges and mixed economic outlook.

Yes, 2023 saw venture capital funding in the state decline for a second straight year, and IPOs and acquisitions remain slow. But new entrants to the VC and startup landscape are bringing freshness, diversity, and new ideas to the ecosystem. Take AI, for example. While the biggest players in the booming sector have mostly set up shop on the opposite coast, shrewd innovators here are creating tools and technologies to make the field more efficient, diverse, and eco-friendly — and there are plenty of investors looking to back them. 

And while our 2024 list builds on the themes of previous years (such as resilience), you’ll find an inspiring mix of brand new faces among the many familiar ones. Together, they stand as a snapshot of who’s who in local innovation and global impact. We’re more than excited to see what they’ll do next.

— Business Editor, Gregory T. Huang

Methodology

The honorees reflect the breadth of the industry from venture capital to entrepreneurs, from startups to big companies, from universities to mentorship programs. The tech areas include software, cybersecurity, AI and robotics, climate tech, health tech, and crypto. (Biotech was generally excluded.)

We ranked them by their economic impact and influence in the tech community, with consideration given to efforts in mentorship, diversity, equity, and inclusion. We prioritized recent achievements, particularly in the past year. In some cases, we chose to honor more than one person from the same company in one slot.

For each candidate, two aspects were weighted equally: (1) their business impact in terms of value created (revenues, company valuations, number of jobs) and other economic considerations, and (2) their broader influence in the tech community in terms of their ideas, reputation, mentorship, and efforts to promote DEI.

The advisory committee, the Globe newsroom, and general public submitted over 200 nominations. The committee scored all candidates and passed their recommendations to the Globe’s team of business and technology journalists. The top 50 slots were ranked based on an internal process that included segmenting the list by sectors. (Some members of the committee were included on the list; these decisions were made by the Globe staff alone.)

Advisory committee

Dave Balter, Flipside Crypto
Larry Bohn, General Catalyst
Paul English, Boston Venture Studio
Yasmin Cruz Ferrine, Visible Hands
Aisha Francis, Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology
Yvonne Hao, State of Massachusetts
Linda Henry, Boston Globe Media Partners
Scott Kirsner, The Boston Globe, InnoLead
Youngme Moon, Harvard Business School
Eric Paley, Founder Collective
Katie Rae, The Engine Ventures

Tech Week: May 13-16

Join us for a week of technology-related events and experiences, including virtual panel discussions and in-person networking opportunities hosted by Globe journalists and our partners. RSVP here.

Explore the full Tech Power Players 2024 feature here.