Joris Poort

Joris Poort
Born	(1983-07-05) July 5, 1983 Netherlands
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, business executive
Known for	Founder and CEO of Rescale

Joris Poort (born July 5, 1983) is an American entrepreneur and business executive, serving as the founder and CEO of the enterprise software company Rescale.

Known within Silicon Valley as "a silent genius," Poort has been instrumental in enhancing computing solutions for engineers and scientists, championing the adoption of high-performance computing and supercomputing through cloud platforms.

Early life and education

Originally from the Netherlands, Poort relocated to the United States where he graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering complemented by a minor in applied mathematics. He then obtained a Master of Science in aerospace engineering from the University of Washington, graduating with honors (magna cum laude), followed by an MBA earned with distinction at Harvard Business School.

Boeing

Poort’s professional journey began at Boeing, where he worked as an engineer on the development of the 787 Dreamliner. His efforts focused on creating the first commercial aircraft wing made from carbon fiber composites, utilizing multi-disciplinary optimization alongside machine learning techniques. This innovation led to notable reductions in weight and costs, earning acclaim within the airline sector as "poetry in motion."

McKinsey & Company

In 2010, Poort joined McKinsey & Company in Amsterdam as a consultant.

Rescale

Poort established Rescale in 2011, a cloud computing platform tailored for large-scale enterprises operating in aerospace, manufacturing, energy, and life sciences industries. The company attracted investments from prominent figures such as Sam Altman, Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Chris Dixon, Paul Graham, and Peter Thiel. By 2021, Rescale had raised over $100 million with support from major corporations including Microsoft, Nvidia, Samsung, and Hitachi, positioning itself as a leader in cloud-based high-performance computing. Funding exceeded $200 million by 2022, with the company's valuation surpassing $1 billion, marking Rescale as the inaugural unicorn in cloud high-performance computing.

World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum recognized Poort as a Global Innovator for its 2023 Annual Meeting Unicorn Track, honoring his contributions to sustainable computing, advanced manufacturing technologies, and accelerating research and development innovation across multiple sectors.