Meet 19 Society Alumni Named to the 2026 Forbes 30 Under 30 List

From building billion-dollar AI startups to developing life-saving medical tests, young Society for Science alumni are translating their curiosity and talent into real-world impact. Former participants in the Science Talent Search, International Science and Engineering Fair and the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge (formerly the Broadcom MASTERS) are shaping solutions to some of the most complex challenges of our time.

This year’s Forbes “30 Under 30” lists recognize 19 Society alumni across 11 categories, from AI to Venture Capital. Though early in their careers, these honorees are already founding companies, leading teams and inventing the world of tomorrow. We are proud to celebrate these changemakers and excited to follow their promising careers.

Explore the full list of Society alumni honorees and learn more about each alum by following the links below.

AI

Selin Kocalar (STS 2022), co-founder of Delve

Selin co-founded Delve with Karun Kaushik. The company began as an AI-based medical scribe and has since evolved into a tool that automates “compliance busywork” for companies.

Hahnbee Lee (ISEF 2017), co-founder of Mintlify

Along with Han Wang, Hahnbee co-founded Mintlify, a platform that helps more than 10,000 companies create and maintain AI-native documentation, including guides, API references and knowledge bases.

David Yue (ISEF 2018–19), co-founder of Accordance

Motivated by the growing problem of staffing shortages in accounting (75% of U.S. accountants will retire within the decade), David co-founded Accordance with Finsam Samson to help companies solve complex tax and accounting problems with the use of AI.

Jesse Zhang (STS 2015, ISEF 2014–15), co-founder of Decagon

Jesse and co-founder Ashwin Sreenivas started Decagon together, which now boasts a $1.5 billion valuation. Decagon builds AI customer service agents to handle a wide range of tasks for an equally wide range of companies.

Energy and Green Tech

Jason Kaufman (ISEF 2016), co-founder of Maritime Fusion

With co-founder Justin Cohen, Jason started Maritime Fusion, which builds compact fusion reactors to provide emissions-free propulsion systems for commercial and defense ships.

Finance

Kalyani Ramadurgam (ISEF 2014), co-founder of Kobalt Labs

Kalyani and Ashi Agrawal co-founded Kobalt Labs, which uses AI to bring compliance into the machine learning age, helping banks complete important and time-consuming tasks like vetting business partners and responding to security breaches.

Healthcare

Sara Sakowitz (STS 2014, ISEF 2014), general surgery resident physician at Massachusetts General Hospital

Sara is a general surgery resident physician whose research looks at the collective impact of health equity and economics, with the aim of improving health outcomes on a systemic level.

Manufacturing and Industry

Yasmeen Alfaraj (ISEF 2015), founder of NextSet Materials

Yasmeen founded NextSet Materials to develop a recyclable thermoset plastic for advanced manufacturing, aiming to replace materials that contribute more than 65 metric tons of landfill waste each year. 

Media

Evan Gorelick (BCM 2017), writer at The New York Times

Evan Gorelick is one of the youngest staff writers at The New York Times, where he covers politics, technology, trade and public policy. He writes for The Morning, a newsletter read by more than 16 million subscribers and 5 million unique readers daily.

Science

Skye Lam (ISEF 2022), co-founder of Madlab

With Vienna Sparks, Skye co-founded MadLab, where he has developed affordable and easy-to-use test strips that can detect five drugs that are frequently added to people’s drinks or other substances.

Claire Liu (STS 2014 scholar), research scientist at Biohub

Claire is a biomedical engineer who has developed multiple tools to help scientists better understand inflammation. Her work has been published in more than 20 peer-reviewed articles.

Duy Phan (STS 2014 scholar), postdoctoral researcher at Harvard Medical School

Duy identified genes that cause congenital hydrocephalus, the most common reason for brain surgery in children. His work has led to non-invasive therapies that are currently in clinical trials.

Sevahn Vorperian (ISEF 2014), postdoctoral researcher at Genentech

As a Ph.D. student, Sevahn developed a simple urine test that can analyze urinary and reproductive tract issues in lieu of a biopsy. Her current research examines RNA biology with a goal of creating new medical tools and treatments.

Social Media

Alexandra Wong (BCM 2015), founder of NextGen Accessibility Initiative

A disability and accessibility advocate, Alexandra founded NextGen to help Gen Z organizations make their social media content more accessible. The initiative has helped reach over 200,000 young people in 119 countries.

Sports

Matt Spettel (ISEF 2016), co-founder of Trainwell

Matt and Gabe Madonna are the co-founders of Trainwell, a tech-enabled personal training company with an app that guides users through customized programs. The company’s trainers receive salaries, health benefits and retirement benefits, notable in an industry that typically employs trainers as independent contractors.

Transportation and Aerospace

Michael Mong (BCM 2011), co-founder of Mach9

Michael and his three co-founders started Mach9 in 2021. Since then, the company has developed geospatial CAD software that uses AI to create precise maps that support the work of surveyors, engineers and infrastructure owners.

Alex Wulff (ISEF 2015–16, BCM 2013), co-founder of Distributed Spectrum

Alex, Ben Harpe and Isaac Struhl are the co-founders behind Distributed Spectrum, which works with the U.S. armed forces to develop an array of applications with the aim of increasing service members’ safety and effectiveness.

Venture Capital

Vinay Iyengar (ISEF 2013–14), founder and managing partner at Anansi Capital

With more than a decade of experience in venture capital, Vinay founded Anansi Capital in January 2025. The firm invests in small companies and helps them integrate AI into their business models.

Sophia Luo (STS 2016), partner at Greylock

Sophia helps lead Greylock Edge, the firm’s three-month accelerator program, and Greylock Scout, which invites top angel investors to source, support and invest in early-stage startups on the firm’s behalf.

Want to learn more about our remarkable alumni? Explore our full Notable Alumni page to see how Society alumni are shaping the world.