Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Sunday, June 22, 2025
    961
    Instagram Facebook LinkedIn TikTok
    • Breaking News
    • Guides
    • Food & Drink
    • Listicles
    • Join the Team
    • Whatsapp
      • 961
      • 961 News
    • AUB Outdoors ☀️
    Advertise with Us Get the App
    961
    Home»Diaspora»Canada
    3 Mins Read

    This Lebanese-Canadian Woman Just Ranked Among CNN’s ’10 Startups to Watch’

    By Jasmin Lilian DiabNovember 24, 2019Updated:April 28, 2021
    Facebook WhatsApp Copy Link

    Born in Montreal, Quebec in 1982 and raised in Beirut, entrepreneur, inventor, and interactive artist Ayah Bdeir reportedly credits her late father entrepreneur Saadi Bdeir and her mother banker Randa Bdeir for the inspiration behind every business venture she delves into.

     

    Raised by her parents to love math, science, and design, Bdeir says her parents encouraged her and her sisters to pursue their passions in the field of their choosing. Bdeir would reportedly take things apart, break them open to see what was inside. She was given chemistry sets and programming lessons on Commodore 64 when she was just twelve years old.

    Via Axios

    Her parents championed their girls to be scientists and engineers and pushed them to be career women. Bdeir earned a Master of Science degree from the MIT Media Lab and undergraduate degrees in Computer Engineering and Sociology from the American University of Beirut.

     

    In 2008, she was awarded a fellowship at Eyebeam in New York City. She has also taught graduate classes at New York University’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) and Parsons The New School for Design.

    In 2010, Bdeir served as a design mentor on the reality TV show, Stars of Science, one of the Arab World’s leading innovation and edutainment shows.

    In September 2011, she founded littleBits Electronics, a New York City-based startup that makes an open-source library of modular electronics that snap together with small magnets for prototyping and learning.

     

    The company’s goal is to democratize hardware the way software and printing have been democratized. The littleBits mission is to “put the power of electronics in the hands of everyone, and to break down complex technologies so that anyone can build, prototype, and invent.”

    Via Reuters

    Today, LittleBits units are available in more than 70 countries and used in more than 2,000 schools. The company was named among CNN’s 10 Startups to Watch for 2013, and currently boasts investors such as True Ventures, Foundry Group, and Two Sigma. Ayah Bdeir also made it this year to BBC’s 100 Influential Women List 2019.

     

    In 2016, littleBits joined the Disney Accelerator program. It has also partnered with Pearson, one of the leading curriculum companies in the world to co-create curriculum to support their Science and Engineering program.

    Bdeir was named to the Popular Mechanics’ 25 Makers Who Are Reinventing the American Dream in 2014, and she has spoken on multiple international platforms on the importance of democratizing technology.

    Via Inc.com

     

    @littlebitsembedded via  

    Bdeir is also a proponent of the Open Hardware Movement, an initiative aimed at ensuring that technological knowledge is accessible to everyone, and co-founded the Open Hardware Summit, an annual conference organized by the Open Source Hardware Association.

     

    Prior to littleBits, Bdeir worked as an interactive artist. She has exhibited work around the world at the Peacock Visual Arts gallery (Aberdeen), the New Museum (New York), Ars Electronica (Linz) and the Royal College of Art (London).

    Follow us on Instagram @the961 and on Twitter the961com. Also, join us on Facebook @The961Lebanon to engage with our fans in Lebanon and across the world.

    Canada She961
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email

    For You

    massad boulos

    Massad Boulos Was Just Appointed By Trump As Senior Advisor for Middle Eastern Affairs

    donald trump 961

    Donald Trump Just Won The US Presidential Elections

    Donate to Lebanese Charities

    You Can Now Donate to Lebanese Charities Without Any Fees At All – Here’s How

    us presidency

    Who Do Lebanese Want to Win the US Presidency? We Asked, Here Are the Results

    rebuild south lebanon

    Canada Is Offering To Help Rebuild South Lebanon

    Ottawa Wants To Be Granted Title Of “Shawarma Capital Of Canada”

    Low-Cost Lebanese Airline 961

    We Might Finally Be Getting A Low-Cost Lebanese Airline – Here’s What We Know

    lebanon jounieh cyprus by ferry 961

    You’ll Soon Be Able To Travel Between Lebanon & Cyprus By Ferry

    June 8, 2025
    Michel Hayek

    Michel Hayek 2025: Predictions For The World

    December 31, 2024
    whish pay lebanon 961

    You Can Now Use Whish Pay At Shopify Stores

    June 13, 2025

    20 Celebrities You Probably Didn’t Know Had Lebanese Roots

    April 22, 2019
    Michel Hayek

    Michel Hayek 2025: Predictions For Lebanon

    December 31, 2024
    lebanon cybergames 2025 hacking 961

    Lebanon Just Won A Global Hacking Competition

    June 10, 2025
    Michel Hayek

    Michel Hayek 2025: Predictions For The Middle East

    December 31, 2024
    lebanese beer brands almaza beirut beer 961

    Lebanese Beer Brands Are Publicly Throwing Shade, And It’s Getting Frothy

    June 7, 2025

    Lebanon’s Shawarma Is Going Viral in The Philippines

    April 21, 2019
    961 Logo
    Facebook WhatsApp TikTok Instagram

    Popular Topics

    • Guides
    • Eat & Drink
    • Listicles
    • Lebanon News
    • Diaspora
    • Explained

    961

    • About
    • WhatsApp Channel
    • News WhatsApp Channel
    • Corrections Policy
    • Ownership & Funding

    Services

    • Advertise
    • Careers
    • App Waitlist
    • Contact Us
    • Newsletter
    961™ | All Rights Reserved ©2025
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Okay