Meet The Founders Defying Tariffs And Leveraging AI

These entrepreneurs are shaping the way we shop, on and offline.

By Maria Gracia Santillana Linares, Angelica DeLeon and Alex Stuckey

Nothing to wear? Enter Alta, an AI-powered shopping and styling app. Founded by Jenny Wang, 28, the software startup makes an inventory of your clothes, then styles for any combination of weather, season and occasion. Upload photos of items you own (or recent shopping receipts) to create a digital closet and the New York-based company will then list outfit suggestions or—and this is where Wang hopes to make money—recommend new stuff to buy.

“Fashion is so interesting from a data perspective,” says Wang, a Harvard-trained engineer. “Alta is both utilitarian in that it helps you decide what to wear and buy, but it’s also just aspirational.”

Amid the sea of AI-powered closet startups, Alta is backed by both venture and fashion heavyweights, including Menlo Ventures, which led the company’s $11 million seed round in June, LVMH-backed Algaé Ventures and Michelle Obama’s stylist, Meredith Koop.

Wang is just one of the 30 honorees of this year’s 30 Under 30 Retail and E-Commerce list, which highlights the founders of growing consumer brands and retail technology startups. To be considered for this year’s list, all candidates had to be under the age of 30 as of December 31, 2025 and never before named to an Under 30 North America, Asia or Europe list.

Wang isn’t the only one tapping into AI to make shopping easier. Phoebe Gates, 23, joined forces with 30 Under 30 alum Sophia Kianni to start Phia, an app that pulls full-priced, discounted and second-hand options for shopping searches—“the Google Flights of fashion,” says the daughter of Bill and Melinda Gates.

Then there are those using AI to power back-house operations. Pinpoint cofounders Joshua Cohen, 28, and Justin Krokoff, 28, are using AI to reach customers directly in their DMs, embedding customer support agents into the messages they receive. Sarah Ganzenmuller, 28, founded AI software company Rediem to directly target customers with specific holiday sales and in-person events. And Bridger and Carson Hart, 26 and 28 respectively, are building Hoppn to improve color search for hundreds of brands on Shopify.

Then there is SwfitSku, founded by Mit Patel, 26, and Daniel Mazur, 27, which has built out a point-of-sale system specifically targeted toward small businesses. Those that have used the software have seen about a 10% increase to their profit margins and have saved 15 hours a week in now-automated tasks.

Another major theme in retail in 2025: Tariffs. As brands adjust for changing regulations, find new suppliers and manufacturers and deal with mixed consumer spending, these listers are capitalizing on the growing interest in second-hand shopping. Jae Seung Lee, 24, grew Two Fold Vintage, a small vintage shop in Sacramento to a globally-recognized vintage destination in Los Angeles, and Alexia Ioannou, 29, turned her curated vintage studio, Nou, into a made-to-order shoe line.

Even our all-star alumni, former 30 Under 30 listers who’ve experienced major growth this year, have benefitted from the shift towards second hand. Archive, cofounded by Emily Gittins (Class of 2023) is helping brands cash-in on secondary sales, usually dominated by peer-to-peer marketplaces like Depop or Poshmark. She raised a $30 million Series B round this year. Investors are tapping into clothing rental app Pickle too. Cofounders Julia O’Mara and Brian McMahon (Class of 2025) closed a $12 million Series A in March.

Entrepreneurs are still innovating in the beauty and skincare industry, capitalizing on specific products and massive social media followings. Influencer Sarah Cheung, 29, is building Sacheu Beauty on the popularity of her stainless steel gua sha. Fazit Beauty cofounders Aliett Buttelman, 29, and Nina La Bruna, 29 have created a $40 million (sales) empire of temporary glitter freckles.

Viral brands Dairy Boy headed by content creator Paige Lorenze, 27, and Happy Camp3r headed by Stephanie Devli, 27, have turned their millions of followers into customers. And Yash Daftary, 26, is banking on the creator economy, too. His retail tech startup FanBasis has received over $20 million in funding to help influencers and content creators build and launch brands.

Our finalists were selected with the help of our judges: Amy Liu, founder of Tower 28; Kanyi Maqubela Becirovic, managing partner at Kindred Ventures; Danielle Guizio, fashion designer of Guizio and Under 30 alum (Class of 2019) and Kadjija Dosso, founder of Dosso Beauty and Under 30 alum (Class of 2024). Of those named to the final Retail & E-commerce list, 48% are women, 35% identify as people of color, and 70% are founders.

This year’s list was edited by Maria Gracia Santillana Linares, Alex Stuckey and Angelica DeLeon. For a link to the complete Retail & E-commerce list, click here, and for full 30 Under 30 coverage, click here.

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