Noah Kerner is chief executive and chairman of Acorns, the Irvine, California, app that says its customers have saved and invested more than $33B. "Put the purpose first and figure the business out next," is how he sums up his approach. Read our review of Acorns.
A Hip Hop DJ in the East Village
He was born and raised in New York City's East Village, where he still lives, and worked as a DJ as a kid in the city's hip hop scene. He was stage DJ for J. Lo and performed in nightclubs and arenas across the country, according to his Acorns bio. He studied psychology and economics at Cornell University.
Founding Noise, Say, and Soundproof
He started the creative agency Noise, which created Facebook's first application, Chase +1, a credit card designed to reward financial responsibility, and Vice's music platform Noisey. He also founded Soundproof, a music production company that signed producers including Quincy Jones, and Say, a shareholder advocacy platform that serves companies such as Tesla. He is co-author of Chasing Cool, written with the chief executive of Barneys.
Leading Acorns
Kerner became Acorns chief executive in November 2014, according to his Acorns author page, shortly after joining as an adviser, investor, and board director. Acorns says it has become the largest subscription service in US consumer finance.
When Acorns shelved a planned $2.2B SPAC merger in early 2022, he told TechCrunch it "wasn't the right time to go public" and that the company would pursue a traditional IPO.
