An entrepreneur rebuilding global trade
Ryan Petersen transformed international shipment by use of software, real-time data and AI to make global logistics transparent
BETHESDA, MARYLAND — A renowned quote by Tim Berners-Lee is “Data is an important thing and will last longer than the systems themselves.” In the year 2002, after graduating from business school, Petersen joined his brother to do imports on eBay. This is where Import Genius came to be, a search engine for shipping manifests. It looked at enormous data in the supply chain; anytime you import, it tells you who imported the product, who sold it, and the companies and factories involved, and their customers.
During that time, he was a jack of all trades, doing multiple jobs to make money, especially because by the time he was graduating, he had a debt of up to $140k. He managed to get flexible jobs; he wrote case studies for Colombia about tech companies in Africa, worked for an SEO consulting firm, and developed landing pages to see if he could get subscribers.
Petersen embodies obsession, and attention to detail is his currency. When he started Import Genius, he got access to Apple’s public data on shipping records. Apple was importing “electric computers,” and he posted it online. He saw revenue spike from $0 to $50k in a couple of weeks, showing that data contains plain-sight opportunities. He had to be answerable to Apple as to where he got the data. Furthermore, he got a call from US Customs and later made peace with Steve Jobs through a letter stating the data was always public.
eBay emerged as a major thing on Amazon at a time he was in China, importing motorbikes and scooters from China to the U.S. with his brother. With his passion for international travel, he speaks multiple languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese, making him an international entrepreneur. This was the narrative he gave to get into business school. “Having a business degree has helped immensely in understanding principles of accounting and revenue recognition and all you know, like real fundamental basic finance,” said Ryan on Y Combinator, a YouTube channel.
Growing up in Bethesda, Maryland, his mother was already an entrepreneur and his father a government economist. Ryan’s business mindset started at a tender age, helping his mother sell sodas. At the age of 15, he was selling Domino’s pizza. From his mother to his brother and to him too as an entrepreneur. Ryan has been a voice of impact who has been explaining the supply chain before and after COVID-19.
“I had felt the pain firsthand of freight forwarding,” said Ryan, explaining his WHY on the Y Combinator YouTube channel. This is what led to Petersen revolutionizing a centuries-old industry through technology. The global trade had been a black box to customers in favor of freight forwarders, and they used that against the traders. This was a global challenge that even impacted bigger companies.
Over the years, global trade has adopted advanced technology, but it still has fragmented, inefficient systems for customers. But a solution was lying with Petersen; it was only that he had a challenge of getting a license for his innovation.
Cargo ship navigating blue ocean waters in Spain on May 8, 2026 at 10:01 PM. Photo: aire images/Getty Images. © 2026 Getty Images
Fast-forward to 2013: his idea, Flexport, got licensed, and massive populations could not deny the impact it brought. Petersen believed the solution to the fragmented system was transparent software with real-time and enormous amounts of data. The real advantage it has brought is visibility in the entire supply chain workflow. He also believes that technology gives businesses resilience. Today, big industries have embraced Flexport for freight forwarding.
Logistics is a complex system, and a single mistake can erase months of efficiency. Ryan is embracing AI in the system to help with automation; instead of customers spending time on long calls or writing emails, Flexport has a user interface with AI that guides and informs in real time.