Meet The Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia Class Of 2026

From entrepreneurs innovating in robotics and AI to investors, artists, athletes and scientists — this year’s 30 Under 30 Asia listees are pushing boundaries in every industry.

The 11th edition of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list highlights the brightest young sparks across the region. This year’s listees are pushing the boundaries in their respective fields at a time when AI is fast becoming ingrained in work and play.

Showcasing a range of talents, the lineup includes budding business minds behind new startups, such as JoyIn Technology, a Chinese builder of companion robots for older folk and kids, which is looking to launch overseas. Founded in 2024 by Guo Renjie, the startup has launched four humanoids, including the 50cm-tall Zeroth M1, which was unveiled in January. Guo says that as of April, the company has received nearly 20,000 pre-orders for the M1 model, which is capable of gauging facial expressions and starting a conversation if someone appears lonely and can also read books to children. JoyIn was valued at $351 million in October and has raised over $70 million across three rounds. It is one of seven Chinese robotics startups whose founders made the list, underscoring the country’s booming robotics sector.

And in India, where quick commerce has taken root, a supplier of freshly made food promising delivery in 10 minutes has investors lining up to help the company scale.

Founded by three former colleagues from a cryptocurrency startup that had cratered, Swish is an app that delivers freshly prepared food in 10 minutes. Initially self-funded by the trio, Aniket Shah, Ujjwal Sukheja and Saran S., the startup has so far raised $54 million, including $38 million in a Series B round in March led by U.S.-based Bain Capital Ventures and London-headquartered Hara Global Capital that valued it at $139 million.

AI Everywhere

Across the list, young entrepreneurs are using AI to build custom enterprise tools and autonomous agents.

To improve efficiency, Finnlay Morcombe and Oliver Farnill cofounded Melbourne-based Fluency in 2023. The startup has developed plug-and-play software that can identify repetitive tasks in a company's workflows and use AI to automate them.

And in Japan, Yuki Noro founded Akari to help construction companies increase their efficiency and reduce labor input. It develops cloud-based AI software that handles everything from construction management and structural calculations to processing invoices and answering building code questions. In January, the Tokyo-based company raised ¥5 billion ($31 million) from Mitsubishi Electric at a ¥100 billion valuation.

This year’s listees are also leveraging AI to enhance gaming, language learning, and smart wearables.

Rong Sijia cofounded Action&Link, the maker of a small USB dongle, which paired with its smartphone app, turns a player's body into a controller for PC and Nintendo Switch games. Another listee, RJ Gan cofounded Confidein, an ‘AI faith’ startup that makes a technology-powered prayer ring. By tapping the NFC-based device to a smartphone, Christian believers receive verses tailored to their moods.

Next-Wave Research

Our roster of 300 entries covers 10 categories that, apart from entrepreneurs, includes venture capitalists navigating shifting markets, scientists on the path of discovery, social entrepreneurs tackling issues such as food waste, as well as artists and athletes shining on the global stage.

A total of 19 researchers and scientists made the 2026 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, making up two-thirds of the Healthcare & Science category. Their research topics range from material science to AI—focusing on how to better train large language models (LLMs) and reduce model hallucination.

One listee, Hikari Okita, is researching the potential of xeno-nucleic acid (XNA), a more durable version of DNA and RNA but with similar genetic storage capabilities. XNA could help in developing artificial life and determining its origins, going back as many as “four billion years.”

Hailing from South Korea, Ph.D. candidate at MIT, Eugene Park’s research examined how magnetic materials could enable future low-power computing technologies beyond conventional silicon electronics. Last year, Park participated in the Caltech Trailblazers Symposium and received the Graduate Student Gold Award from the Material Research Society.

Rising Talents

From the court to the runway, this year’s list also showcases an abundance of athletic and creative talent.

Alexandra Eala is a fast rising star on the tennis court who got Filipinos fired up about the sport after she broke into the Women’s Tennis Association’s (WTA) Top 50 last year. The 20-year-old’s recent career has been a volley of firsts: In 2025 she became the first Filipina to beat two Top 10 players (Miami Open, January); to reach a WTA tour final (Eastbourne International, June); and to win a Grand Slam singles main‑draw match (U.S. Open, August).

On the other hand, 25-year-old model Bhavitha Mandava has blazed a trail—since spotted by a modeling agent on the New York subway in mid-2024—to become the first Indian model to open Chanel’s Métiers d’Art collection in December as the muse of Matthieu Blazy, the celebrated artistic director of the French fashion house. In March, she was appointed a Chanel house ambassador and in May, made her first appearance at the Met Gala in New York.

Beyond individual milestones, Mandava and Eala understand the cultural impact of their success. Their ability to inspire the next generation of young Asians earned them a well-deserved spot on our list.

"I think about brown girls who might feel...that something has shifted in what they believe is possible for them. I know that feeling, because I've been that girl too," Mandava says.

The 30 Under 30 class of 2026 was selected from a pool of close to 4,000 nominations who were evaluated by Forbes Asia’s team of reporters and editors across the region and vetted by a panel of experts, including 30 Under 30 alumni, from a range of sectors.

The final tally represents 18 countries and territories in the Asia-Pacific region. India has the most entries, 78, followed by China, 46, Australia, 38, and Japan, 32. Indonesia, Singapore and South Korea have 18 each. Roughly a quarter are women and the average age is 26. This year’s cohort has raised a combined $1 billion in funding from some of the region’s savviest investors.

Check out our full Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2026 list here.

Methodology and Judging Process: To source candidates for the list, Forbes Asia reporters and editors comb through thousands of online submissions, as well as tap industry sources and list alumni for recommendations. Candidates are evaluated by the Forbes Asia team and a panel of independent, expert judges on a variety of factors, including (but not limited to) funding and/or revenue, social impact, scale, inventiveness and potential.

This year’s judges consist of accomplished and acclaimed investors, entrepreneurs and business leaders: Roshni Nadar Malhotra, chairperson of HCLTech and trustee of Shiv Nadar Foundation; Kai-Fu Lee, chairman and CEO of Sinovation Ventures; Kishin RK, founder and CEO of RB Capital; Allan Zeman, founder and chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Group; Kuok Meng Ru, founder and CEO of Caldecott Music Group; Nisa Leung, founding managing partner at Aulis Capital; Arif Rachmat, cofounder and executive chairman of TAP Group; Laurence Lien, cofounder and chairman of Asia Philanthropy Circle; Patrick Grove, cofounder and group CEO of Catcha Group; David Gowdey,managing partner at Jungle Ventures; Paul Ronalds, founder and CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures; Yinglan Tan, founding managing partner at Insignia Ventures Partners; Annabelle Yu Long, founding and managing partner at BAI Capital; Magnus Grimeland, founder and CEO of Antler; Bing Chen, cofounder and CEO of Gold House; Akiko Naka, founder and CEO of Wantedly; Hian Goh, founding partner at OpenSpace Capital; Ronald Akili, CEO of Potato Head Family; Vinnie Lauria, founding partner at Golden Gate Ventures; Randy Duax, managing director, Asia-Pacific at Stagwell; Nikhil Sawhney, vice chairman and managing director at Triveni Turbine; Eric Gnock Fah, cofounder and president of Klook; Anna Fang, founding partner and CEO of ZhenFund; Chandra Tjan, cofounder and general partner at Alpha JWC; Snehal Patel, managing director of Saena Partners; Hua Fung Teh, cofounder and group president of ONE; Nicole Warne, founder of Gary Pepper Girl and Vinesh Johny, cofounder of Lavonne Academy of Baking Science and Pastry Arts.

*The birth date cutoff to make the 2026 list was December 31, 1995. All ages displayed are calculated as of December 31, 2025.

**The editors reserve the right to amend any information or remove any listees in light of new information.

***In cases where a judge is an investor in the company of a potential candidate, they have been recused from assessing that nominee.

Credits

Edited by: Rana Wehbe Watson

Assistant Editors: John Kang, Yue Wang and Ardian Wibisono

Additional Editing: Naazneen Karmali, Mary E. Scott, Chris Prystay

Research and Reporting: Zinnia Lee, Megha Mandavia, Yessar Rosendar, Ian Sayson, James Simms, Catherine Wang and Yang Xiaozhou

Design Direction - Asia: Mirna Aprilla, Mossy Chew and Hidayat

Under 30 Asia 2026 Photography: Under 30 Asia 2026 Photography: Brendon Thorne (Patrick Nappa), Courtesy of Hanwha DreamPlus, (Jihyun Kim), Courtesy of WME Agency (Alexandra Eala), Fang Yan (Simon Song ), Harshith Dambekodi (Aniket Shah, Ujjwal Sukheja and Saran S.), Jocelyn Tam (Anson Wong and Jerry Lo), Muhammad Fadli (Erika Richardo), Shunichi Oda (Hikari Okita), Taylor Hill/Getty Images (Bhavitha Mandava), Tim Gao (Guo Renjie)

Photo Post Production - Asia: Jay Sofyan

Editorial Operations: Justin Conklin, Francesca Walton

Database Management: Dmitri Slavinsky

Creative Director: Alicia Hallett-Chan

Director of Photography: Robyn Selman

Design Director: Fernando Capeto

Senior Designer: Philip Smith

Photo Research: Gail Toivanen, Amanda Whitlock

Technical Project Manager: Juman Nidal

Product: Dmitri Slavinsky

Engineering: Diab Al Saadi, Tay Buley

QA: Kristine Karapetyan

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