JACKSON JHIN
Age: 27 • Cofounder, Protégé
The former CFO of social media unicorn Cameo wants to put access to the biggest names in showbiz in the palm of your hands. His Chicago-based startup, Protégé, lets aspiring actors and musicians pay up to $300 a minute—nearly $18,000 an hour—to share their work and get feedback from celebs like DJ Khaled and Jason Alexander. “Stars all remember when they were at the bottom and needed someone to take a shot on them,” Jhin says. For some, it’s money well spent—Florida Georgia Line’s Brian Kelley has signed a user he met on Protégé. Jhin and cofounder Michael Cruz have raised $8.5 million from Sequoia and celebs including Lionel Richie, Diplo and Will Smith.