Best Entrepreneurs 25 and Under

Who are the country's most promising young entrepreneurs? With help from our readers, we set out to answer that question in our fourth annual Best Entrepreneurs 25 and Under Special Report. As in previous years, we posted a nomination form on the channel of 's Web site and asked readers to recommend business whizzes who were no more than 25 years old and ran their own companies. We received a record number of nominations, ranging from the founder of an online TV network aimed at college students to a maker of flavored plastics.

After the call for nominations ended in July, our staff sifted through the entries, choosing the 25 most impressive. In this we had some high-profile help, from Virgin's Sir Richard Branson, contributor and Duke University executive-in-residence Vivek Wadhwa, and Bo Fishback, vice-president of entrepreneurship at the Kauffman Foundation. As in prior years, some of the finalists were backed by angel investors and venture capitalists, some were already profitable, and most made heavy use of the Internet. The biggest difference? More entrepreneurs voiced a desire not only to make a profit but also to make the world a better place, with a large number focused on education. We posted profiles of the 25 finalists online, asked readers to vote for the most outstanding, and received a record number of votes.