September 15 marks the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month, a time to recognize the contributions, accomplishments, and cultural influence of Hispanic communities across the United States. In technology, Hispanic entrepreneurs are building companies that address complex challenges, introduce new technologies, and create solutions that are changing the way people live and work.
From artificial intelligence and biotechnology to climate technology, financial technology, and education, Hispanic entrepreneurs are bringing new ideas and perspectives to the technology ecosystem. Their companies demonstrate how entrepreneurship can turn personal experiences, technical expertise, and unmet needs into innovative solutions.
At CMD-IT (Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in IT), we support pathways that help students, researchers, educators, professionals, and entrepreneurs build careers, develop leadership skills, and contribute to the future of computing. Through programs such as the Tapia Conference, the LEAP Alliance, and the Academic Careers Workshops, CMD-IT creates opportunities for members of the computing community to connect, learn, develop professionally, and pursue leadership opportunities.
This Hispanic Heritage Month, CMD-IT highlights five Hispanic and Latino entrepreneurs whose companies are applying technology in innovative ways and helping shape what comes next.
Hispanic Entrepreneurs Making an Impact in Technology
Mariana “Mars” Garza
Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Alcove
Mariana “Mars” Garza is the co-founder and co-CEO of Alcove, a climate technology company developing digital infrastructure for environmental markets. Garza launched Alcove with co-founder Marley Rafson in 2022, combining her background in economics, startups, and venture capital with a desire to work on climate technology.
Alcove is a carbon credit commercialization platform that helps climate companies bring projects and environmental credits to market. The company’s technology is designed to help organizations manage complex information and connect climate projects with environmental markets.
Garza’s interest in climate technology grew from both professional and personal experiences, including seeing the effects of the climate crisis on friends and family in the United States and abroad. Her experience working with climate companies helped lead her to entrepreneurship and the creation of Alcove.
Alcove demonstrates how computing and digital infrastructure can play an important role in addressing challenges beyond traditional technology sectors. Garza’s work highlights the opportunities for entrepreneurs to apply technology, data, and business innovation to global challenges.
Learn more about Alcove: Alcove
Luis von Ahn
Co-Founder and CEO, Duolingo
Luis von Ahn is a Guatemalan-American computer scientist and entrepreneur and the co-founder and CEO of Duolingo, one of the world’s most widely used language-learning platforms. Before founding Duolingo, von Ahn created reCAPTCHA, a technology that was later acquired by Google.
Von Ahn co-founded Duolingo in 2011 with Severin Hacker with a goal of making language education more accessible. The platform has since expanded beyond language learning to include subjects such as mathematics, music, and chess while continuing to use technology and artificial intelligence to personalize learning experiences.
Von Ahn’s connection to his Guatemalan roots has also influenced his approach to technology and education. He has spoken about how access to education changed his own life and his desire to make high-quality education available to people regardless of their ability to pay. He has also emphasized the importance of Hispanic representation in technology and hopes his success can help younger Latinos see a future for themselves in the technology industry.
His career demonstrates how computing research and entrepreneurship can develop into technologies with global reach. From CAPTCHA and reCAPTCHA to Duolingo, von Ahn’s work has connected computer science with practical applications used by millions of people.
Learn more about Duolingo: Duolingo
Pauline Roteta
Founder and CEO, Pasito
Pauline Roteta is the founder and CEO of Pasito, an AI-native technology company transforming how organizations manage employee benefits. With a background in finance and experience at BlackRock, Roteta brought her expertise in financial services to entrepreneurship, creating technology designed to simplify complicated benefits processes.
Today, Pasito is building AI infrastructure for group health, life, and retirement benefits. Its technology converts complex plan and employee data into a unified system and uses AI to automate processes including plan creation, quoting, enrollment, communications, support, and claims.
Pasito’s growth demonstrates how artificial intelligence can be applied to specialized industries where complicated, manual processes have traditionally slowed innovation. In February 2026, the company announced a $21 million Series A investment led by Insight Partners to expand its AI platform and continue modernizing benefits operations.
Roteta’s work illustrates how entrepreneurs can combine expertise from different fields to identify opportunities where technology can make systems more efficient, accessible, and useful.
Learn more about Pasito: Pasito
Matthew Vega-Sanz
Co-Founder and CEO, GAIL
Matthew Vega-Sanz is a Puerto Rican-American entrepreneur and the co-founder and CEO of GAIL, an artificial intelligence platform designed specifically for financial services. Vega-Sanz and his twin brother, Michael, were born and raised in Miami to a Puerto Rican mother and Cuban father.
Before GAIL, the brothers co-founded LULA, an insurance technology company that developed infrastructure for businesses managing commercial insurance. LULA grew to serve thousands of businesses and millions of customers nationwide.
The brothers later turned their attention to artificial intelligence and financial services. GAIL uses AI to support financial institutions and automate customer service and operational workflows in highly regulated industries such as insurance and banking.
Vega-Sanz’s entrepreneurial journey demonstrates how technology founders can adapt when markets change. The transition from a college-focused car-sharing company to insurance technology and eventually financial-services AI shows how challenges can become opportunities to develop new ideas and businesses.
Learn more about GAIL: GAIL
Pita Navarro
Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer, Evvy
Pita Navarro is a Mexican-American and Hispanic entrepreneur-scientist and co-founder and Chief Science Officer of Evvy, a technology-driven women’s health company focused on the vaginal microbiome. Navarro is a molecular biologist whose work combines scientific research, biotechnology, and digital health.
Evvy uses microbiome science, data, and technology to develop new approaches to women’s health. The company’s platform began with vaginal microbiome testing and has expanded into research and personalized care, creating new opportunities to understand health conditions that have historically received limited attention.
Navarro’s interest in this work is also connected to her experiences growing up in Mexico. Her family and early experiences shaped her interest in using science and technology to improve health outcomes and create better tools for understanding women’s health.
Her career demonstrates the possibilities that emerge when scientific expertise and entrepreneurship come together. By translating research into technology, Navarro is helping create new approaches to women’s health while demonstrating the broader impact scientists can have as technology entrepreneurs.
Learn more about Evvy: Evvy
Building Pathways for the Future
Through the Tapia Conference, LEAP Alliance, Academic Careers Workshops, and other initiatives, CMD-IT continues to create opportunities for the computing community to learn, connect, and lead. This Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate the entrepreneurs who are building new possibilities through technology and the students, researchers, educators, and professionals who will help shape what comes next.
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