2024 Honorees - Ali & Hadi Partovi
Born in Iran, Hadi and Ali Partovi grew up during the Iran-Iraq war. Their neighborhood in Tehran was bombed by Iraqi fighter jets. When they were 9 years old, their father, a physics professor, brought home a Commodore 64 computer from a trip abroad. This computer was their escape from their surroundings - they learned how to code and create apps, games, and music. They immigrated to the US at age 11. Soon after they turned 15, they spent their summers working as software engineers to help pay their way through high school and college. Upon graduating from Harvard University with Master's degrees in computer science, Hadi and Ali pursued careers in technology.
They attained success in the technology industry and founded numerous tech businesses, accomplishing the American dream. Additionally, they became prolific angel investors, backing companies such as Facebook, Uber, Airbnb, and Dropbox, among others.
In 2013, Hadi and Ali launched the education nonprofit Code.org, which Hadi continues to lead as CEO. Since its inception, Code.org has started a massive movement to teach computer science and coding to K-12 students globally. It is the largest provider of computer science curricula, with over 80 million student users in over 180 countries. Aside from Code.org, Hadi also serves on the boards of Axon and Mountain. Ali founded and runs Neo, a VC fund and mentorship community that brings together a diverse group of tech veterans to accelerate tomorrow’s leaders.
Both brothers are passionate about giving back to their community. With Code.org in Farsi, they aim to provide Farsi-speaking students with computer science education. Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. Code.org in Farsi would open a door to an opportunity that would otherwise be closed. With the proper support, the possibilities are endless.
