In the inaugural Disruptor 50 list, CNBC set out to identify fast-growing companies using new technology to take on established players and drive change in their respective industries. In the decade since, we've seen 19 IPOs, 3 direct stock listings and 13 acquisitions from the original, unranked list.
But successful exits only tell part of the story: we've also seen a number of original disruptors fold over the last 10 years, including companies like web-based TV subscription service Aereo, energy storage company LightSail Energy and invention platform Quirky, among others.
Today, many of the companies that made the original list in 2013 have gone on to become household names and billion-dollar businesses shaping the next generation of great public companies: 23andMe, Airbnb, Shopify and Twilio, to name a few.
2013 Disruptors
| Company Name | Material changes |
|---|---|
| 23andMe | IPO on June 17, 2021 via a merger with VG Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) |
| 3D Robotics | Acquired by Kittyhawk Aero on June 11, 2021 |
| Aereo | Bankrupt as of November 21, 2014; It was later purchased by DVR company TiVo for $1 million in March 2015 |
| Airbnb | IPO on December 10, 2020 |
| Atlassian | IPO on December 10, 2015 |
| Audax Health | Acquired by United Health Care on February 19, 2014 |
| Block | IPO on November 19, 2015; Formerly known as Square |
| Boku | IPO on November 20, 2017 |
| Box | IPO on January 23, 2015 |
| Bromium | Acquired by HP on September 19, 2019 |
| BuzzFeed | IPO on December 6, 2021 via a merger with 890 Fifth Avenue Partners, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) |
| Castlight Health | IPO on March 17, 2014; Acquired by Vera Whole Health on January 5, 2022 |
| CircleUp | - |
| Dropbox | IPO on March 23, 2018 |
| Etsy | IPO on April 1, 2015 |
| Foursquare | - |
| Getaround | - |
| Ginger.io | - |
| Hotel Tonight | Acquired by Airbnb on March 7, 2019 |
| INRIX | - |
| Kabam | Acquired by Netmarble on January 25, 2017 |
| Kickstarter | - |
| Kymeta | - |
| Lending Club | IPO on December 11, 2014 |
| Lightsail Energy | Shut down in January 2018 |
| LiveU | Acquired by Francisco Partners and Industrial Growth Partners on May 28, 2019 |
| MakerBot | Acquired by Stratasys on June 19, 2013 |
| Microseismic | - |
| Nest Labs | Acquired by Google on January 13, 2014 |
| Opower | IPO on April 4, 2014; Acquired by Oracle on May 1, 2016 |
| Ouya | Acquired by Razer on July 28, 2015 |
| Palantir | Direct stock listing on September 30, 2020 |
| Picarro | - |
| IPO on April 18, 2019 | |
| Quirky | Bankrupt as of September 22, 2015 |
| Rent the Runway | IPO on October 27, 2021 |
| Rethink Robotics | Shut down in October 2018 |
| Shapeways | IPO on October 20, 2021 via a merger with Galileo Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) |
| Shopify | IPO on May 21, 2015 |
| SpaceX | - |
| Spotify | Direct stock listing on April 3, 2018 |
| Tumblr | Acquired by Yahoo on May 20, 2013; Sold to Automattic on August 12, 2019 |
| Twilio | IPO on June 23, 2016 |
| IPO on November 7, 2013 | |
| Uber | IPO on May 10, 2019 |
| Warby Parker | Direct stock listing on September 29, 2021 |
| Waze | Acquired by Google on June 11, 2013 |
| Wealthfront | Acquired by UBS on January 26, 2022 |
| Acquired by Facebook on February 19, 2014 | |
| ZocDoc | - |
