Startup Atlanta today announced that civil rights legend and social entrepreneur Andrew J. Young, and tech pioneer Ben Chestnut, will be presented with its highest honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award.  The honorees will be officially recognized at the Atlanta Startup Awards on October 12, 2022, at Atlantic Yards in Midtown Atlanta. 

“Startup Atlanta is excited to honor former Ambassador Young and Mailchimp CEO Ben Chestnut,” said Jennifer Singh, Co-Founder of Understory and Board Chair at Startup Atlanta. “Their success and commitment to the Atlanta startup community is definitely a model for our local ecosystem.”

Young, who co-founded fintech startup Greenwood in 2020, is widely recognized as a pioneer in and champion of Civil and Human rights and has long served in elected office and as a groundbreaking ambassador and adviser to presidents. He also works tirelessly on economic development, educational opportunities, world hunger, and poverty issues through the Andrew J. Young Foundation. 

Chestnut is an Atlanta-based tech entrepreneur and co-founder of Mailchimp, an all-in-one email marketing platform. Founded in 2001, the company employs more than 1,200 people and serves millions of global users. Mailchimp is now part of software company Intuit following a $12 Billion acquisition (the largest of its kind for a private company) in 2021.

"The success of Andrew Young and Ben Chestnut reflects the spirit embodied in our event theme, Ready, Set, Rise," said Board Member and Awards Co-Chair, Tony Cooper. "They are both exemplars of Atlanta optimism and Startup Atlanta is proud to honor them."

The Atlanta Startup Awards is the premier awards event for local early-stage and growth-stage businesses and entrepreneurs. The annual event brings together the startup community to celebrate its best and honor its startup trailblazers.

For more on the Atlanta Startup Awards, visit atlantastartupawards.com or contact [email protected] about available sponsorship opportunities.