Home › Timeline › Contemporary era
Contemporary era
Born 1970-1999 — the internet's arrival, globalization and the end of the Cold War order.
–1699
Colonial era
9
1700–1779
Founding era
46
1780–1819
Early Republic
77
1820–1864
Antebellum & Civil War era
132
1865–1899
Industrial & Progressive era
156
1900–1929
Early 20th century
327
1930–1949
Mid-20th century
251
1950–1969
Late 20th century
127
1970–1999
Contemporary era
51
2000–
Digital era
51 people, oldest first
The people
Andre Agassi b. 1970Frontier & SportTennis star whose comeback from personal struggles and eight Grand Slam titles inspired millions.
Angela Duckworth b. 1970Ideas & MediaPsychologist whose research on grit reshaped conversations about success and character education.
Ketanji Brown Jackson b. 1970Government & PoliticsFirst Black woman appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States.
MacKenzie Scott b. 1970Business & LaborNovelist and philanthropist who has given away billions to hundreds of organizations with no strings attached.
Marc Andreessen b. 1971Technology & BuildingCo-author of the first web browser and co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, a leading venture capital firm.
Sara Blakely b. 1971Business & LaborFounder of Spanx who became the youngest self-made female billionaire in America.
Elon Musk b. 1971Technology & BuildingEngineer and entrepreneur whose companies have advanced electric vehicles, reusable rockets, and neural interfaces.
Pete Sampras b. 1971Frontier & SportTennis legend who held the record for most Grand Slam men's singles titles for over a decade.
Tupac Shakur 1971–1996Arts & LettersRapper and actor whose work and persona became enduring symbols of hip-hop’s social and personal tensions.
Ryan White 1971–1990Reform & RightsTeenager with HIV/AIDS whose fight against discrimination changed public perception of the epidemic.
Amy Coney Barrett b. 1972Government & PoliticsSupreme Court justice appointed in 2020 whose vote consolidated the Court's conservative majority.
Eminem b. 1972Arts & LettersBest-selling rapper in history, and the one who forced the argument about who hip-hop belongs to.
Mia Hamm b. 1972Frontier & SportSoccer star whose success helped make women’s soccer a major American sport.The Notorious B.I.G. 1972–1997Arts & LettersRapper who remade East Coast hip-hop in two albums before his murder at 24
Shaquille O'Neal b. 1972Frontier & SportDominant NBA center and entertainer whose larger-than-life personality transcended sports.
Sundar Pichai b. 1972Technology & BuildingCEO of Alphabet and Google who oversees the world's dominant search engine and AI research.
Rebecca Skloot b. 1972Ideas & MediaSpent a decade reporting the family behind the HeLa cells and turned informed consent into a public argument.
Sergey Brin b. 1973Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Google who helped develop the PageRank algorithm and expanded into AI and autonomous vehicles.
Rachel Maddow b. 1973Ideas & MediaMSNBC host and author whose in-depth political analysis has made her a leading progressive voice.
Larry Page b. 1973Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Google whose search algorithm became the foundation of the modern internet economy.
Leonardo DiCaprio b. 1974Arts & LettersOscar-winning actor and environmental activist whose career spans blockbusters and prestige dramas.
Ta-Nehisi Coates b. 1975Ideas & MediaAtlantic correspondent whose essays on race, including The Case for Reparations, reshaped national discourse.
Marissa Mayer b. 1975Technology & BuildingFormer Yahoo CEO and early Google engineer who was one of Silicon Valley's most prominent female executives.
Tiger Woods b. 1975Frontier & SportGolf icon who revolutionized the sport and became one of the most famous athletes in the world.
Jack Dorsey b. 1976Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Twitter and Square who shaped social media and mobile payments.
Nikole Hannah-Jones b. 1976Ideas & MediaPulitzer Prize-winning reporter who created The 1619 Project for The New York Times Magazine.
Travis Kalanick b. 1976Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Uber who popularized the gig economy and transformed urban transportation worldwide.
Sal Khan b. 1976Ideas & MediaFounder of Khan Academy, whose free online lessons have reached hundreds of millions of learners globally.
Tom Brady b. 1977Frontier & SportNFL quarterback with seven Super Bowl titles, the most in league history.
Kobe Bryant 1978–2020Frontier & SportNBA legend whose 20-year career with the Lakers and Mamba Mentality inspired millions worldwide.
Venus Williams b. 1980Frontier & SportSeven-time major singles champion who won women equal prize money at Wimbledon
Beyoncé b. 1981Arts & LettersSinger, songwriter, and performer whose cultural influence extends far beyond music into fashion and activism.
Brian Chesky b. 1981Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Airbnb who created the global home-sharing marketplace that disrupted the hotel industry.
Serena Williams b. 1981Frontier & SportTennis champion with 23 Grand Slam singles titles, widely considered one of the greatest athletes ever.
Diana Taurasi b. 1982Frontier & SportWNBA's all-time leading scorer and three-time Olympic gold medalist.
Drew Houston b. 1983Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Dropbox who made cloud file storage simple and ubiquitous for millions.
Alexis Ohanian b. 1983Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Reddit and venture capitalist who has championed open internet and paternity leave.
Elizabeth Holmes b. 1984Crime & NotorietyTheranos founder convicted of fraud over false claims about the company's blood-testing technology.
LeBron James b. 1984Frontier & SportNBA superstar and philanthropist considered one of the greatest basketball players in history.
Dustin Moskovitz b. 1984Business & LaborFacebook co-founder who left to build Asana and became one of the youngest self-made billionaires.
Mark Zuckerberg b. 1984Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Facebook who built the world's largest social media platform and reshaped global communication.
Sam Altman b. 1985Technology & BuildingTechnology executive and investor whose leadership in generative artificial intelligence has had major but still-unsettled historical consequences.
Priscilla Chan b. 1985Business & LaborPediatrician and co-CEO of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative investing billions in science and education.
Michael Phelps b. 1985Frontier & SportSwimmer who won 23 Olympic gold medals, the most by any athlete in history.
Aaron Swartz 1986–2013Technology & BuildingInternet activist and Reddit co-founder whose work on open access and web standards left a lasting legacy.
Ronan Farrow b. 1987Ideas & MediaInvestigative reporter whose exposé of Harvey Weinstein helped launch the #MeToo movement.
Colin Kaepernick b. 1987Reform & RightsQuarterback who knelt during the national anthem in 2016 and never played in the NFL again.
Kendrick Lamar b. 1987Arts & LettersRapper whose albums won a Pulitzer Prize and multiple Grammy Awards.
Taylor Swift b. 1989Arts & LettersSinger-songwriter whose commercial reach, fan culture, and control of her catalog reshaped the modern music business.
Evan Spiegel b. 1990Technology & BuildingCo-founder of Snapchat who pioneered ephemeral messaging and augmented reality social media.
Simone Biles b. 1997Frontier & SportGymnast widely regarded as the greatest of all time, with the most World Championship medals.