Meet 4 young innovators making waves before 25

They may have just stepped out of their teens, but they’re already stepping up to change the world. 

The latest "AZ Inno Under 25” list, published by the Phoenix Business Journal, includes four rising stars from Arizona State University: students Camille S. Campbell, Sandul Gangodagamage and Kentarou Siejak, and alumnus Will Xander. 

The annual list honors entrepreneurs under 25 who are daring to disrupt industries and redefine what’s possible through bold, creative ventures.

Between them, they’ve written books, launched startups and nonprofits, produced films, delivered TEDx Talks, and collected an impressive lineup of awards and prize money. 

These young innovators are not just shaping Arizona’s future but making waves on a global scale.

At just 21, Camille S. Campbell already has a résumé that reads like the life’s work of someone twice her age. A published author by 14 and founder of a nonprofit by 20, the third-year student is proving that creativity and technology can thrive together.

“I’ve always been passionate about storytelling and the transformative effect stories can have on people,” Campbell said. “They can better lives, inspire change and empower others to tell their own stories.”

That mission started early. Growing up in New Mexico and later Scottsdale, Arizona, she was homeschooled before studying at ASU, where she’s now a double major in finance and digital marketing at the W. P. Carey School of Business and a Barrett, The Honors College student.

“I think being homeschooled made me a self-starter,” she said. “It taught me how to balance a lot at once.”

Her first nonprofit, Rising Poets Community, launched when she was just 17. Since then, it’s distributed thousands of free books to children worldwide, including those in Ukraine through her art therapy initiative “Colors of Ukraine.” The picture book, which she both authored and funded through the ASU’s Venture Devils 2024 social impact pitch competition and private philanthropists, was given free to children in war zones.

“I wanted to give them something that brings hope — a book that could be theirs, even in the middle of chaos,” she said.

But Campbell’s vision extends far beyond storytelling. Her latest venture, the AI Innovators Foundation, bridges creativity and technology by teaching kids about artificial intelligence through storytelling and hands-on projects.

“I want to show students that AI isn’t something to fear,” she said. “It’s a tool for creativity and a co-creator that helps us imagine and build new things.”

Campbell is also a co-director of AI Salon Arizona, a global organization fostering discussion around the intersection of technology and humanity. This week, she’s moderating a panel at ASU’s AI conference, which she considers another milestone on a list that keeps growing.

When asked how she manages her workload — seven published books, two majors, two nonprofits, and leadership in AI circles — Campbell laughed.

“Sometimes it’s a lot, but I genuinely love it,” she said. “The passion drives me.”

As she looks ahead to graduation in 2027, Campbell is already developing a storytelling technology platform that she hopes will empower everyone to be a creator.

“Canva made design accessible to everyone,” she says. “I want to do that for storytelling and help people become the main character of their own lives.”

When Sandul Gangodagamage talks about building a gaming company in college, his excitement is threaded with a strong passion to build great products for millions across the world.

Born in Minnesota and now residing in Arizona, the 20-year-old is a third-year student at the W. P. Carey School of Business studying business and computer science. He launched Legion Platforms from a problem he knew firsthand: bad internet, weak computers and games that took up hundreds of gigabytes.

“I just couldn't access games at all,” Gangodagamage said. “It would take 15, 20 minutes to load … the games were so laggy. It was basically unplayable.”

What began as a pirate game in high school has become a platform company. Gangodagamage said the first title reached 500,000 players while he was a senior in 2023; today, Legion Platforms claims 13 million users and aims for 20 million within a year.

“We’re the largest gaming company in Arizona, but we’re just getting started,” said Gangodagamage, whose entrepreneurial drive has already earned him top honors in several university pitch competitions. They include first place in ASU Venture Devils, Tech Devil’s Innovation and Lab-to-Launch. He also received recognition as a 2025 first-place regional winner in Princeton’s TigerLaunch, the world’s largest student-run entrepreneurship contest.

By building browser-based, cloud-optimized multiplayer games that load in seconds and run on low-end machines, Legion avoids downloads, storage bloat and lag. The result is a product designed for dorm-room MacBooks and handheld phones. This accessibility-first design philosophy means anyone from across the world can access a 3D multiplayer experience in seconds, bridging the gap between high-quality graphics and universal playability. Legion is also completely free to play, built on a mission to bring gaming to everyone. 

He said he builds games for everyone so friends can invite friends, play together and spread the product by word of mouth. The games are built to spark interaction, whether through quick competitive matches, shared achievements or in-game events, Gangodagamage said. 

“The majority of our users that I’ve met in person have told me they found out about our games through a friend telling them,” Gangodagamage said. “Word of mouth is huge.”

For Gangodagamage, success isn’t measured in profit margins, but in the number of people whose lives his platform can touch. His vision is bold and unshakable: to make Legion a name known in households everywhere, sparking conversations and inspiring players for years to come.

“The goal is to literally change the world,” he said.

Eighteen-year-old Kentarou Siejak is redefining what it means to be a changemaker. A second-year W. P. Carey School of Business student, he’s already an entrepreneur, public speaker, author and film producer with a vision far beyond his years.

“I’ve lived all over the world as a military kid,” said Siejak, who routinely delivers TEDx Talks and keynote speeches to college students and organizations. “I’ve seen how awful the world can be and how amazing it can be. If each person strives to do more in support of others, we’d all be in a much better place.”

That belief in leading by example drives everything Siejak does. From tech startups to community mentorship, he’s proving that innovation can also have heart. His current projects — most in the AI and robotics space — are designed to make technology more human-centered. One team he helped build is developing a phone case that uses microfluid technology to help people who are blind read from their screens.

“That one excites me the most,” he said with a grin. “It’s about creating something useful that really changes lives.”

Siejak’s passion for impact also extends to film. He’s producing a feature-length movie on mental health awareness, which was shot entirely on an iPhone and produced at ASU’s Piper Writers House.

“I want to show people you don’t need a big budget to make something meaningful,” he said. “Mental health isn’t just a struggle — it’s proof that you can rise above what tries to hold you back.”

Despite his remarkable list of achievements, Siejak is disarmingly humble.

“I don’t think I’m a prodigy,” said Siejak, who also offers leadership coaching to organizations. “I just hate seeing potential wasted. So many young people have ideas but stop because they’re told they can’t. I want to be living proof that you can.”

He’s already written two books — “Teen Success: From Nothing to Something” and “Teen Failure: From Nothing to Nothing” — a candid reflection on the highs and lows of ambition. A third book on leadership is on the way.

“It’s about the lessons I’ve learned leading teams since I was 6 years old,” he says. “Leadership is everything. It’s what makes or breaks a business, a community, even a society.”

Will Xander already carries the confidence and composure of a seasoned entrepreneur. The 23-year-old is the founder and CEO of Truthkeep, an AI-driven data analytics company serving Fortune 500 semiconductor clients. 

Before he graduated from Arizona State University in 2024 with a degree in organizational leadership and project management, Xander had already closed over $60 million in real estate deals as a multifamily broker for Scottsdale-based ORION Investment Real Estate.

“I always knew that my steppingstone into the business world would be through being a commercial real estate broker,” Xander said. “If you worked really hard and understood the business, you could make good money. It was one of those moments where hard work and preparation met good luck.”

That success gave him the freedom to pursue his deeper passion for technology and innovation.

“I’ve always been curious about how things progress — technology, the economy, inventions, the way society evolves,” he said. “After my success in real estate, I knew I needed to start an AI company.”

Founded in 2023, Truthkeep helps large semiconductor firms manage and interpret enormous amounts of data, from product specs to customer insights. The company’s AI systems analyze tens of thousands of data points each month to identify trends and inefficiencies.

“Our platform helps teams develop smarter roadmaps,” Xander said. “If a customer is struggling with a certain product, our system highlights that and directs it to the right team to fix.”

Running a company, he says, isn’t much different from selling.

“Being a CEO is really just being a salesperson,” he said. “You’re creating relationships, fostering trust and providing real value.”

Xander’s team of 13 operates largely remotely, though the company is based in Tempe.

“We’re a lean, productive team,” he said, adding that his focus is not on size but on solving big problems. “We want to create massive impact. Semiconductor is one of the most important industries in the world, and that’s what wakes me up in the morning.”

His road to ASU was far from straightforward.

“I was denied from ASU at first,” he recalled. “It was ego-shocking as a 17-year-old, but it made me work harder.”

After appealing the decision and taking two prerequisite classes, he earned A’s in both and eventually graduated with honors.

“Being denied was a blessing in disguise,” he said. “It forced me to be more self-aware and disciplined.”

Recognition for his accomplishments, he says, is nice but not the goal.

“It’s just a pit stop — like stopping at the gas station on the way to California,” he said with a laugh. “I’m grateful for the recognition, but this isn’t about me. It’s about my team and the people who believed in us.”

When asked if he sees himself as successful, Xander paused.

“Maybe once or twice a month I think, ‘good job,’” he said. “But this is only chapter one. I believe humans are meant to work, innovate and change the world. That’s why I’m here.”