Chips and Tacos
ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT FAST COMPANY IS ITS range. For a publication with a specific focus—business innovation—we roam all over, covering everything from tech to live events, fashion to manufacturing, food to space exploration, and pretty much any other industry you can think of. Never is this more true than with the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies, our largest and most brand-defining franchise. And this year’s list is our biggest yet. We’re honoring a jaw-dropping 606 companies across 58 categories.
The sweeping nature of our reporting is exemplified by the two companies we’ve chosen to devote the most space to in our coverage of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies of 2024 (page 8): Nvidia, the chip giant that takes the No. 1 spot, and Taco Bell, which is driving the cultural zeitgeist.
Nvidia has had a monster year. The increasingly versatile tech company, which saw its stock price grow 238% in 2023, now accounts for an estimated 85% share of the market for the chips powering the AI boom and is developing its own vast array of applied-ai platforms. Global technology editor Harry Mccracken spoke with cofounder and CEO Jensen Huang for a story (page 10) about how Huang realized his long-gestating vision and what’s next for the company.
Taco Bell, meanwhile, has generated an uncommon level of devotion from its fans, thanks largely to Sean Tresvant, who was the company’s chief brand exec before becoming CEO in January. Tresvant arrived at Taco Bell after a 16-year run at Nike that he calls a “PHD in marketing.” As senior staff editor Jeff Beer reports in his cover story on Tresvant’s plan to export Taco Bell’s “cultural rebel” identity around the world (page 22), the new CEO still has plenty of “swoosh blood running through his veins.” That has served him well at Taco Bell in the U.S. How it helps globally remains a question.
Also in this issue, senior writer Ainsley Harris looks at the powerful diaspora of Y Combinator (page 94). Nineteen years after the startup incubator was launched as a way to circumvent the Silicon Valley VC establishment, YC has become the establishment (not to mention the launchpad for more than a dozen of 2024’s Most Innovative Companies).
Ainsley’s piece was edited by deputy editor David Lidsky, who also shepherded the Most Innovative Companies package with executive editor Amy Farley. Unfortunately for us, David has decided to move on from Fast Company, so these projects will be his swan songs. No one in the publication’s recent history has done more to cement its reputation for smart and prophetic journalism— and no one’s eye has ranged more broadly and authoritatively across the innovation economy. Thank you, David. We’ll miss you.