# John Roa

> John Roa is a New York-based technology founder, investor and author. He founded the design consultancy ÄKTA, acquired by Salesforce in 2015, and founded AnthologyAI, the consumer intelligence business associated with the Caden app. In June 2026, he became Chief AI Officer and General Manager of Raptive Intelligence as Raptive acquired his separate venture AlchemyAI.

- **Role:** Chief AI Officer and General Manager of Raptive Intelligence at Raptive
- **Organizations:** Raptive, AlchemyAI, AnthologyAI, Caden, ÄKTA, Salesforce, Digital Hope, Roa Ventures
- **From:** Detroit, United States
- **Education:** Western Michigan University, Haworth College of Business
- **Known for:** Built ÄKTA and sold it to Salesforce in 2015., Founded AnthologyAI and its consumer-data venture Caden., Published a memoir with Viking/Penguin Random House in 2020.

## Career timeline

- **1999** — Started an on-site computer repair business with a friend, according to his 2011 account.
- **2010** — Founded ÄKTA, a digital design and experience consultancy in Chicago.
- **2015** — Salesforce acquired ÄKTA in September.
- **2016** — Announced the John Roa Entrepreneur Scholarship Fund with Western Michigan University.
- **2020** — Published A Practical Way to Get Rich . . . and Die Trying and hosted The John Roa Show.
- **2021** — Founded Caden, the venture subsequently branded AnthologyAI for its enterprise business.
- **2023** — Caden announced a $15 million Series A led by Nava Ventures in August.
- **2024** — AnthologyAI participated in the Spring LIFT Labs accelerator focused on Vertical AI.
- **2025** — AnthologyAI announced consumer intelligence interoperability with large language models in February.
- **2026** — Published The Last Interface in January; joined Raptive as Chief AI Officer and GM of Raptive Intelligence in June, alongside its acquisition of AlchemyAI.

## Achievements

- Built ÄKTA and sold it to Salesforce in 2015.
- Founded AnthologyAI and its consumer-data venture Caden.
- Published a memoir with Viking/Penguin Random House in 2020.
- Established an entrepreneurship scholarship without a minimum GPA requirement.
- Founded AlchemyAI, acquired by Raptive in June 2026.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — Raptive appointed Roa Chief AI Officer and General Manager of Raptive Intelligence and acquired his venture AlchemyAI.
- **2026-01** — Published The Last Interface, an essay on personal intelligence and agent-mediated commerce.
- **2025-02** — As AnthologyAI founder and CEO, announced interoperability between its consumer intelligence platform and LLMs.

## Links

- Website: https://www.roa.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnroa/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/johnroa
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnroa/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnroashow

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/john-roa
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-26