Who founded Bolt when he was a 19-year-old high-school student?

Markus Villig founded Bolt when he was a 19-year-old high-school student.

Villig began developing the service in Tallinn, Estonia, after finishing high school in 2013. He used a €5,000 family loan to build an early prototype and personally recruited taxi drivers on the streets. The company was initially called Taxify, reflecting its taxi-booking focus.

Villig briefly enrolled in computer science at the University of Tartu in September 2013, but left after one semester to work on the startup full time. Taxify later expanded beyond Estonia and rebranded as Bolt in 2019 as its services broadened into ride-hailing, scooters, food delivery and other forms of shared mobility.

A common mix-up is confusing Villig with Bolt investors or executives. Taavet Hinrikus, for example, became an early investor and board member, but he did not found the company. Daniel Ek founded Spotify, while Nik Storonsky founded Revolut.