It’s been declared the Year of the Woman for so many years running, it’s about time to acknowledge what we already know: We’re challenging paradigms, upending business as usual, and building a new world order. Not just this year, but from now on.
At Marie Claire, we make it our mission to celebrate women’s triumphs every day, and for our 6th annual New Guard list, we’re highlighting the 50 women who really owned 2018. They’re disrupting billion-dollar industries (like Bumble’s Whitney Wolfe Herd and Glossier’s Emily Weiss), founding billion-dollar companies (including Adi Tatarko of Houzz and Anne Wojcicki of 23andMe), taking them public (see: Eventbrite’s Julia Hartz and Stitch Fix’s Katrina Lake), and of course, running them (congrats Susan Wojcicki of YouTube and Sukhinder Singh Cassidy of StubHub). Women are also changing the stories we tell (yes, Shonda Rhimes and Ava Duvernay) and how we tell them (a round of applause for Netflix’s Cindy Holland and Disney’s Jennifer Lee).
Listed in alphabetical order—because they’re all on top!—these 50 disrupters, creators, and innovators are seriously leading the charge. We promise by the time you finish scrolling, you’ll feel inspired, empowered, and ready to join them as they shake up the status quo.
Theresia Gouw
An early investment in Facebook helped Gouw’s net worth skyrocket to a reported $500 million, prompting Forbes to proclaim her the richest self-made female venture capitalist in the U.S. this year. What’d she do with the cash? Launched Aspect Ventures—one of the few funds run by two women (Jennifer Fonstad is cofounder)—which closed a $181 million round earlier this year and oversaw its first billion-dollar IPO in cybersecurity startup ForeScout.