Gen.T: Unicorn Founders

Meet the young leaders on the Gen.T List 2022 who run billion-dollar companies

In 2014, venture capitalist Aileen Lee coined the term “unicorn” to describe companies valued at more than US$1 billion. Like the mythical creatures the term refers to, unicorn companies are relatively rare.

That said, Asia has given rise to numerous unicorn companies since the term emerged. As of 2021, there are more than 390 unicorns in the Asia-Pacific region, with about two-thirds of them hailing from China.

The 2022 Gen.T List includes 16 honourees who run unicorn companies—the largest number to feature on the list to-date.

SHEN XIAOYONG

When Shen Xiaoyong started his company, SmartMore, he wanted to push the boundaries of production efficiency using technology like AI. Since 2019, SmartMore has created more than 30 intelligent manufacturing systems, and in 2021, the company raised US$200 million in Series B funding.

MONSINEE NAKAPANANT

Monsinee Nakapanant is the co-president of Ascend Money, a fintech company she co-founded in 2013. In September 2021, Ascend Money raised US$150 million from investors at a valuation of US$1.5 billion, making it Thailand’s first fintech unicorn and the second unicorn in the country.

YIN QI

Founded in 2011, artificial intelligence unicorn Megvii is a world leader in deep learning facial recognition technology with its signature product Face++. Under the leadership of co-founder and CEO Yin Qi, it has become the world’s largest authentication software company and in 2021 it became the first Chinese AI company to go public, with a US$890 million Shanghai IPO.

PAUL LEISHMAN