Lyndon Rive, a native of South Africa, is the man behind SolarCity, a company that leases out solar panel systems to homeowners. By leasing solar panels, homeowners can experience a significant reduction in the electric bills and spend less on the actual panels than if they actually purchased them. His genuine concern and passion for the environment was his inspiration and driving force to come up with the idea for SolarCity. He co-founded the company with his brother Peter in 2006 in the hopes that more people make the switch to renewable energy sources. Two years after the company was founded, SolarCity has expanded its reach to over 300 communities in 3 states.
Rive has been an entrepreneur for most of his adult life. He started his first company while still living in South Africa when he was just 17. He also co-founded a company called Everdream, which was later on acquired by Dell Computers in 2007. His talent for business has landed him praise from various business, technology, and media insiders including The San Francisco Business Times which named him to their 40 Under 40 list for 2012. He is also included in the MIT Technology Review’s TR35 in 2010 as one of their Innovators Under 35.