2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 list features multiple Penn graduates

Penn graduates were featured on the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 list in four different categories — Finance, Education, Manufacturing & Industry, and Food & Drink.

The annual Forbes list recognizes 600 up-and-coming leaders from 20 different industries, and this list is the tenth to be published. Recipients were nominated online and reviewed by editors in each category who pass on promising candidates to a panel of judges. Among this year's judges were 1992 Wharton graduate Jacqueline Reses and 2012 College and Wharton graduate Sarah Guo.

Alexandra Sternlicht, a 2016 College graduate and an Under 30 reporter at Forbes, said that there is no one guaranteed way to get on the list.

“We love founders,” Sternlicht said. “We really value their backstories, how they grew up, and what they learned. Diversity is extremely important. And then we also look into how much money they’ve raised, how much money they’re making, how many employees they have.” 

2014 Wharton graduate Heather Steinman was honored in the finance category. She is the Vice President of the Raine Group, a global merchant bank that advises and invests in technology, media, and telecommunications. Steinman has transacted over $10 billion since joining Raine in 2014 with a focus on entertainment and content.

Hannah Buchan, a 2016 College graduate and partner at Beehouse, works at an investment firm that focuses on the legal cannabis industry. She previously served as an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs.

2015 Wharton graduate Kathlyn Grasso was featured in the education category for founding GenHERation — a female empowerment network for high school girls — as an undergraduate student, and won the inaugural President’s Engagement Prize of $150,000 during her senior year. She was also awarded the 2014 Wharton Venture Award.

Michael Vilardo — 2014 College graduate and co-founder of Emile Learning — was also featured under the education category. Emile Learning provides short, educational videos and offers online high school courses. At Penn, Vilardo was the second baseman for the baseball team and graduated early to pursue a degree in management at Purdue University with his baseball eligibility.

Rajat Bhageria, who graduated from Wharton and Engineering in 2018, founded Chef Robotics and was featured under the manufacturing & industry category. Chef Robotics automates food service, using artificial intelligence to create and deliver food. Bhageria also founded ThirdEye, an app that converts text to speech for visually impaired users during his first year at Penn.

2020 Wharton graduate David Zhao is listed under the food & drink category for founding Chubby Cattle International Group, which uses technology to serve hot pot, such as serving ingredients on a conveyor belt. It has five locations across the United States, including one in Philadelphia’s Chinatown. 

Although she said that being featured on the list is an honor, Sternlicht added that it is just the beginning of the honorees' careers. Those featured in the 30 Under 30 list are invited to local gatherings, speaker series, and Under 30 summits. 

This year, Forbes also launched a 30/50 Summit, which will gather women from the "30 Under 30" and "50 Over 50” list in Abu Dhabi this March.

“People have met their spouses, their business partners, and best friends through this community. It can be really, really impactful,” Sternlicht said.