AI 20

These 20 human beings are inventing new ways to harness the ever-accelerating cognitive power of agentic Al.

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NOT LONG AGO, MOST AI NEEDED CONSTANT PROMPTing: Give an instruction, get a response, repeat. Now, a new software class is starting to run with the assignment. Agentic AI systems can break down goals into steps, coordinate across tools, and carry out tasks with limited human oversight. The shift is already drawing in a wide cast of players, from researchers and VCs to activists and executives. The 20 people highlighted here are building and shaping that ecosystem as it moves into the real world. Some may not be widely known yet, but as AI takes on more responsibility, their influence will continue to grow.

FOUNDER AND CEO WABI

Eugenia Kuyda

EUGENIA KUYDA REMEMBERS WHEN ONE OF HER favorite apps became too bloated. All she wanted was a simple weight tracker: She also got calorie counting, meal tracking, and a subscription she didn't need.

With Wabi, Kuyda wants to let users take app development into their own hands, using AI prompts to create simple apps that others can remix and share, all currently for free. It's a more casual take on vibe coding than services like Replit and Cursor; Kuyda likens it to how YouTube democratized video distribution online.

"As soon as the cost of creating software goes to zero, all of a sudden you can build so many things that wouldn't exist before," she says.

Mimicking YouTube's platform strategy has other potential advantages: Wabi spares aspiring app creators from the burdens of hosting their own creations. That means Wabi itself deals with things like hosting costs, personal data processing, privacy policies, security, and content moderation. The hope is that this will lead to an influx of small-scale apps that scratch specific itches.