Alexander Torrenegra (born July 31, 1978)[1] is a Colombian-American entrepreneur, inventor, and investor.[2][3] He is the founder and CEO of Torre and has founded multiple companies including Voice123 and Bunny Studio.[4] He is also one of the "shark" investors on Sony's reality television series, Shark Tank Colombia and Shark Tank Mexico. He was featured in MIT's list of Innovators Under 35 in 2012.[4][5]
Alexander Torrenegra | |
|---|---|
 Torrenegra at Rackspace Solve in 2015 | |
| Born | July 31, 1978 Bogotá, Colombia |
| Nationality | Colombian-American |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur Investor Television personality |
| Known for | Torre, Voice123, Bunny Studio, Torrenegra Accelerator |
| Television | Shark Tank Colombia |
| Spouse | Tania Zapata |
| Children | 2 |
| Honours | MIT's Innovator Under 35 WEF's Young Global Leader |
| Website | https://torre.co/torrenegra |
Torrenegra is a known advocate of remote work. He has worked with remote teams since founding Voice123.[6]
Early life and education
editTorrenegra was born in Bogotá, Colombia. He was raised by his mother, Katia, and his maternal grandmother, María Emma Torrenegra.[7]
In 1993, he founded his first company: Apache A-X Cybernetic Enterprises Limited, at the age of 14.[3][8] He attended La Salle University, Colombia, and Florida International University.[4] He graduated from Miami Dade College with a degree in Computer Science and is part of the Stanford University Leadership Program.[9]
Career
editIn 1998, Torrenegra moved to the United States. He met his wife, Tania Zapata, who was a voice actress, in Miami, Florida.[3] In 2000, they co-founded Torrenegra Labs.[4] Torrenegra and Zapata founded Voice123, which applied the concept of reverse auctions to the voiceover industry, in 2003.[3]
By 2007, the company passed $1 million in sales and had approximately 150,000 voice actors registered and over 75,000 agency clients by 2016.[3] In September 2021, Voice123 was acquired by Backstage and TA Associates.[10][11] In 2008, Torrenegra founded LetMeGo, a company focused on hotels competing for bookings. The company closed in 2011.[8][12]
Torrenegra, Zapata, and Lucho Molina founded Bunny Studio in 2012 with the launch of VoiceBunny, then renamed Bunny Studio, an API for professional human voices.[3]
In 2013, he was part of a delegation of immigrant entrepreneurs that met with President Barack Obama.[13][14] He also works to improve government support for innovation in Colombia.[15][16]
Since 2017, Torrenegra has been in the main cast of Shark Tank Colombia as an investor, only being absent during season 4,[17] and as a guest in Shark Tank Mexico since 2024.[18]
In 2018, he co-founded Tribe, a remote-first video communication platform, and also started Torrenegra Organization to support bootstrapped entrepreneurs in accelerating their businesses.[19]
He founded Torre, an online network for finding work and talent through matching, in 2019, and became its CEO. By 2021, Torre secured a $10 million seed round led by former executives from Apple, Facebook, Uber, and SpaceX.[20]
Books
edit- 2020: Remoter: the why-and-how guide to building successful remote teams
References
edit- ^ Espectador, El (2020-04-15). "ELESPECTADOR.COM". ELESPECTADOR.COM (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-06-20.
- ^ Ilya Pozin (June 1, 2012). "Top Immigrant-Owned Startups". Forbes. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f Robert Schoon (September 23, 2015). "Marketplace: Bunny, Inc.'s Alexander Torrenegra Wants to Automate the Creative Job Market". Latin Post. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Alexander Torrenegra, 33". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
- ^ "13 Badass Immigrants In Technology". Business Insider. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ ""El trabajo remoto es mucho más bonito de lo que hemos visto"". Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ Torrenegra, Alexander (19 May 2021). "The woman who inspired Torre, its name, and icon". Torre Blog. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
- ^ a b "Torrenegra Labs: How To Get The Attention Of A Venture Capitalist". Mixergy. November 4, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "International Students as Startup Founders in the United States" (PDF). The George Washington University Office of Entrepreneurship. September 30, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Voice123 Acquired by Backstage". prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ "We've sold Voice123 and our feelings are mixed". torrenegra.medium.com. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ Alan Colmenares (December 28, 2009). "Young startup LetMeGo.com to take on big-time travel sites with extra-personal service". Venture Beat. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ Julia Myska (June 24, 2013). "Obama invites Colombian entrepreneur to discuss US immigration reform". Colombia Reports. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ Anna Li (May 24, 2013). "Silicon Valley execs share personal immigration woes at virtual #iMarch". Peninsula Press. Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Juan Manuel Santos Will Make His First Presidential Hangout". Enter.co. January 17, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Remarks by President Juan Manuel Santos in the VI Competitiveness Forum of the Americas". Prosperidad Para Todos. October 24, 2012. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
- ^ "Dos nuevos tiburones en Shark Tank Colombia". estiloe.com.co. Archived from the original on 2022-10-06. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ "¿Quiénes son los dos "tiburones" que se suman a la novena temporada de Shark Tank?".
- ^ "Alexander Torrenegra's genome in Torre". torre.co. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
- ^ "Colombia-based startup Torre raises a $10 million Seed round from SpaceX, Facebook, Uber former execs". Latin American Business Stories. Retrieved 2022-05-24.