Ben Chestnut

Mailchimp. Chestnut and Dan Kurzius started Mailchimp in Atlanta in 2001 as a side project of their web design agency, after small clients kept asking for an affordable way to send newsletters. They never took venture funding, and the free plan they introduced in 2009 brought email marketing within reach of shops, bands and charities. Intuit bought the company in 2021, and Chestnut stepped down as chief executive in 2022.