Felix Ruano (L) and Michael Vilardo (R), co-founders of Emile Learning.
Hayden Grant
Michael Vilardo and Felix Ruano are living the American Dream. The son of Mexican immigrants, Ruano grew up in the inner city of Los Angeles and attended LA public schools before studying at Harvard University and eventually landing a job at McKinsey. Vilardo, whose family is from Colombia, was the first person from his high school to attend an Ivy. He started higher education in community college and attended seven schools in five years before finishing his degree at the University of Pennsylvania. Vilardo later worked at Uber, where he helped launch Uber Freight.
Coming from similar backgrounds, Vilardo and Ruano noticed discrepancies between themselves and classmates at their respective Ivy League institutions. The resources their peers enjoyed and the mentors they were exposed to from an early age prepared them for professional success. Combining their experience in technology, education, and entrepreneurship — and leveraging the connections they formed in school and at work — they launched Emile Learning in October 2020, an online educational platform offering “bingeable” accredited courses which many students can access for free.
Their mission, providing a quality education to every student in the world, led to $5.3 million in angel investment from backers including Softbank, Owl Ventures, and Kleiner Perkins (which has backed two of the most successful online education companies, Duolingo and Coursera, both now public).
As Latino entrepreneurs, the young executives provide needed representation in a tech start-up scene dominated by white founders. Vilardo remains steadfast in his mission: “To help kids who look like the two of us.”
Wealth, education and success
Vilardo attributes much of his success to the power of education and networking. He experienced firsthand how higher education, particularly at prestigious universities, opened new doors and connected him with mentors who would later be instrumental in growing his business and raising capital. His network at Uber played a transformative role in the company, as executives from the Uber Alum Syndicate invested in the start-up and connected Vilardo with Uber alumni. Of their first 40 employees, approximately 30% were from the ridesharing platform.
For Vilardo, education is the key to success, and Emile Learning aims “to help kids unlock any opportunity anywhere,” because not everyone has access to an Ivy League education or a network at a major corporation with a market cap near $60 billion.
“At the end of the day, what zip code you’re born into or how much wealth your family has largely dictates your education and your education dictates your trajectory throughout life,” Vilardo said. “We want to provide [someone from] any socioeconomic status or zip code with a top-tier education that …….
