Greg Roodt

Bro, let me put you onto Greg Roodt, the guy’s a straight-up tech beast and a startup OG. He’s been in the game for over 18 years, no joke. Started off grinding at big names like Yahoo!, Thomson Reuters, and MTN, building massive web and mobile apps, you know, the stuff that runs the internet behind the scenes. But what’s really crazy is how he jumped from that into the startup world and crushed it.

Back in 2014, Greg jumped into Y Combinator’s W14 batch, that’s basically the VC’s stamp of approval for anyone trying to do big things with tech startups. He co-founded AirHelp, which is a Y Combinator-backed startup, think flight compensation, real-time data processing for flights and bookings. He was the CTO there, building the tech that made the company tick. That’s where he proved he’s not just a coder but a true startup founder who can take an idea and turn it into something real and expandable.

Fast forward, now he’s leading the data engineering team at Canva, one of the biggest design tools in the world. He’s the Head of Data Platforms, which basically means he’s responsible for building the systems that crunch all the data Canva uses to improve itself and power all those crazy analytics and machine learning features. And get this, he’s saved Canva tons of engineering costs by implementing smarter data integration solutions. That’s real impact, no cap.

What does this tell me about him? Greg’s got a fire for building shit that actually works, for creating systems that scale, and for turning complex data into something useful and strong. He’s not just about the code, he’s about solving real problems, making products better, and pushing the whole industry forward. His process from big companies to leading startups and then to a giant like Canva shows he’s a guy who’s not afraid to jump into the deep end. He’s motivated by making things better, faster, smarter.

Plus, he’s super active in the community, organizing meetups in Sydney for data engineers and sharing the knowledge. That shows he’s about lifting others up, not just stacking his own deck. His story is all about hustle, technical mastery, and the drive to build stuff that impacts millions.

Bottom line: Greg Roodt is a tech veteran who’s been around the block, built big things, and now shapes the future of data at Canva. He’s the real deal, a perfect blend of startup grit and serious engineering skill. No bullshit.