10 Crazy Entrepreneur Types Who Changed the Course of History
10 Crazy Entrepreneur Types Who Changed History
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re breaking down the types of entrepreneurs that have existed throughout human history, influencing our collective journey each step of the way.
For this list, we’re looking at how the fundamental traits of entrepreneurship — vision, risk-taking, persistence, and the ability to sell an idea — have manifested over time in ways you might never have considered.
The Prophets
Thousands of years ago, there were prophets standing on mountaintops, trying to convince the masses to embrace their revolutionary vision for how humanity should live. These spiritual entrepreneurs identified fundamental problems in how societies functioned and created entirely new belief systems to address them. Take Zoroaster, who around 600 BCE essentially “disrupted” the polytheistic market by introducing monotheism, influencing every major religion that followed. Moses didn’t just lead the Israelites out of Egypt: he created the world’s first comprehensive legal and moral framework with the Ten Commandments, essentially building a startup civilization with revolutionary principles. These visionary leaders had no venture capital, and no market research. Instead, they had pure conviction that their ideas would change the world.
The Kings
Long before anyone talked about “scaling up,” ambitious rulers were building kingdoms from nothing through sheer entrepreneurial will. Alexander the Great didn't inherit a world empire; he built one through strategic vision, calculated risk-taking, and an incredible ability to inspire loyalty in his subjects. Charlemagne essentially created the concept of medieval Europe by combining military conquest with administrative innovation, proving that successful entrepreneurs know when to fight — and when to build systems. Royal entrepreneurs understood that sustainable success required more than taking territory: they had to create lasting institutions, legal frameworks, and cultural identities. Like modern startup founders, they often died young, worked insane hours, and bet everything on their vision of what the world could become.
The Explorers
Christopher Columbus was history's most successful pitch-deck presenter, convincing multiple royal courts to fund what everyone thought was a mission toward certain death to find a new route to Asia. These maritime entrepreneurs combined wanderlust with hardcore business acumen, understanding that geographic discovery meant economic opportunity. Look at Marco Polo, who opened up entirely new trade markets between East and West. Ernest Shackleton's failed Antarctic expedition became one of history's greatest leadership case studies, showing how true entrepreneurs turn disasters into legends. These adventurers risked everything on the ultimate unknown market: undiscovered lands that could contain unimaginable wealth… or impending doom.
#7: The Artists
Sure, you might be familiar with the Sistine Chapel ceiling, but what you might not know is that Michelangelo was running a Renaissance multimedia empire, negotiating contracts with popes and managing teams of apprentices like a modern creative agency. Leonardo da Vinci epitomized the entrepreneur-inventor hybrid, constantly pitching new ideas from flying machines to military engineering while funding his research through commissioned artwork. Pablo Picasso didn't accidentally stumble into Cubism; he deliberately disrupted the art market by creating a completely new visual language, then brilliantly marketed himself as the face of modern art. “The Artist” reveals that artistic vision means nothing without the ability to find patrons, manage projects, and build personal brands that could sustain lifelong careers.
The Inventors
All good ideas have to come from somewhere. Thomas Edison was the world's first innovation entrepreneur, creating the concept of the research and development lab while holding over 1,000 patents. The Wright Brothers combined mechanical genius with business savvy, not only achieving powered flight but immediately recognizing the commercial potential and founding the Wright Company. Nikola Tesla represented the classic dilemma of the entrepreneur: brilliant innovation coupled with poor business skills, showing why technical genius alone isn't enough for commercial success. Forward-thinking inventors saw problems that others accepted as permanent limitations and dedicated their lives to creating solutions, often facing years of ridicule before achieving breakthrough moments that changed civilization.
The Scientists
They were challenged, laughed at, and in some cases even ostracized — until they were proven right by history. Charles Darwin spent decades building the case for evolution, understanding that revolutionary scientific ideas require the same marketing and persuasion skills as any startup trying to disrupt an established market. Marie Curie broke through multiple barriers — scientific, institutional, and gender-based— to build a research empire that won her two Nobel Prizes in different fields. Galileo faced the ultimate hostile takeover attempt when the Catholic Church tried to shut down his heliocentric model, but his scientific entrepreneurship eventually won out over institutional resistance. These game-changers promoted theories that challenged conventional wisdom, knowing that paradigm shifts require both brilliant insights and relentless advocacy.
The Businesspeople
The capital that brings history’s greatest art to life has to come from somewhere. The Medici family created the Renaissance by strategically investing in art, architecture, and human capital across multiple generations, essentially becoming history's most successful venture capitalists. Cornelius Vanderbilt built his railroad empire through ruthless competition and strategic vision, understanding that transportation infrastructure was the key to unlocking America's economic potential. John D. Rockefeller pioneered vertical integration and aggressive market consolidation, creating business strategies that modern entrepreneurs still study and emulate. So what do we have to learn from their business school? That traditional business success requires the same visionary thinking and calculated risk-taking that drives any revolutionary movement, focused on profit rather than social change.
The Media Barons
Control the flow of information, and you control everything. William Randolph Hearst didn't simply own newspapers: he created the template for media empires by understanding that, influencing public opinion and even political outcomes. Rupert Murdoch built a global media conglomerate by recognizing that news is both product and platform, creating synergies between traditional journalism and entertainment that redefined the industry. Towering figures like Hearst and Murdoch understood something that modern social media moguls are just rediscovering: that content creation, distribution, and audience engagement are all part of the same entrepreneurial equation. They built massive fortunes by recognizing that information itself could be packaged, marketed, and sold like any other commodity, fundamentally changing how societies communicate and make decisions.
The Technologists
Johannes Gutenberg's printing press was a disruptive technology platform that democratized knowledge and essentially created the information age 500 years before the internet. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak combined technical genius with design thinking and marketing savvy to create Apple, proving that successful technology entrepreneurship requires both engineering excellence and deep understanding of human needs. Bill Gates showed how software could become more valuable than hardware, building Microsoft by recognizing that intellectual property and scalable systems would dominate the digital economy. These technological entrepreneurs understood that breakthrough innovations mean nothing without the ability to manufacture, distribute, and convince people to adopt new ways of working and living.
The Storytellers
It could be argued that storytellers are the ultimate entrepreneurs, whose products reshape how entire civilizations see themselves and their possibilities. Homer created the entire Western literary tradition with the Iliad and Odyssey, essentially building the world's first multimedia franchise that has been generating content, adaptations, and derivative works for over 2,500 years. Walt Disney built an entertainment empire by understanding that stories could be packaged across multiple platforms, creating the modern concept of intellectual property licensing. William Shakespeare demonstrated that artistic integrity and commercial success aren't mutually exclusive when you truly understand your market. Homer, Disney, Shakespeare, and more realized something crucial: humans are driven by stories, and whoever controls the stories controls culture itself.
Think we missed any game-changing entrepreneur types? Let us know in the comments below!
