Alexander Torrenegra

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, Bunny Studio,[4] and Tribe. He is also one of the "shark" investors on Sony's reality television series, Shark Tank Colombia. He was featured in MIT's list of Innovators Under 35 in 2012.[4][5]

Alexander Torrenegra
Torrenegra at Rackspace Solve in 2015
Born (1978-07-31) July 31, 1978
Bogotá, Colombia
NationalityColombian-American
Occupation(s)Entrepreneur
Investor
Television personality
Known forTorre, Voice123, Bunny Studio, Torrenegra Accelerator
TelevisionShark Tank Colombia
SpouseTania Zapata
Children2
HonoursMIT's Innovator Under 35
WEF's Young Global Leader
Websitehttps://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

Torrenegra 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

In 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]

In 2018, he co-founded Tribe, a remote-first video communication platform, and also started Torrenegra Accelerator to help out fellow entrepreneurs.[18]

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.[19]

Books
  • 2020: Remoter: the why-and-how guide to building successful remote teams

References
  1. Espectador, El (2020-04-15). "ELESPECTADOR.COM". ELESPECTADOR.COM (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-06-20.
  2. Ilya Pozin (June 1, 2012). "Top Immigrant-Owned Startups". Forbes. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  3. Robert Schoon (September 23, 2015). "Marketplace: Bunny, Inc.'s Alexander Torrenegra Wants to Automate the Creative Job Market". Latin Post. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  4. "Alexander Torrenegra, 33". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  5. "13 Badass Immigrants In Technology". Business Insider. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  6. ""El trabajo remoto es mucho más bonito de lo que hemos visto"". Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  7. Torrenegra, Alexander (19 May 2021). "The woman who inspired Torre, its name, and icon". Torre Blog. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
  8. "Torrenegra Labs: How To Get The Attention Of A Venture Capitalist". Mixergy. November 4, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  9. "International Students as Startup Founders in the United States" (PDF). The George Washington University Office of Entrepreneurship. September 30, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  10. "Voice123 Acquired by Backstage". prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  11. "We've sold Voice123 and our feelings are mixed". torrenegra.medium.com. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  12. 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.
  13. Julia Myska (June 24, 2013). "Obama invites Colombian entrepreneur to discuss US immigration reform". Colombia Reports. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  14. 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.
  15. "Juan Manuel Santos Will Make His First Presidential Hangout". Enter.co. January 17, 2013. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  16. "Remarks by President Juan Manuel Santos in the VI Competitiveness Forum of the Americas". Prosperidad Para Todos. October 24, 2012. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  17. "Dos nuevos tiburones en Shark Tank Colombia". estiloe.com.co. Archived from the original on 2022-10-06. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  18. "Alexander Torrenegra's genome in Torre". torre.co. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
  19. "Colombia-based startup Torre raises a $10 million Seed round from SpaceX, Facebook, Uber former execs". Latin American Business Stories. Retrieved 2022-05-24.
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