Russia's invasion of Ukraine is being felt across the country's tech ecosystem—the origin of some of the world's top internet brands—after months of military buildup on its borders. Ukraine has discreetly developed as a centre for technological apps, which now occupy a stunning place worldwide.
Users all across the globe are acquainted with applications like PayPal, Grammarly, and WhatsApp, and they use them regularly, unaware that the products originated in Ukraine and were created by Ukrainian entrepreneurs.
Jan Koum, a Ukrainian emigrant, invented WhatsApp. He was born in 1976 to a Jewish family near Fastiv, where Russia is now conducting military operations. He co-founded WhatsApp, which Facebook purchased in 2014 for $19.3 billion.
Grammarly was created by three Ukrainians, Max Lytvyn, Alex Shevchenko, and Dmytro Lider, worth $13 billion. It is a service that helps individuals write grammatically perfect and error-free text. Its headquarters are still in Kyiv.
Also Read | 'Doing for grandkids': 80-year-old man tries to enlist in Ukrainian army
Looksery, a Ukrainian firm based in Odessa, developed the masking technology utilised in Snapchat. Yurii Monastyrshin was the driving force behind it, and the firm now has offices in both the United States and Ukraine. Snap also has a large presence in Kyiv and Zaporizha.
Also Read | The morning after Russia pounded Ukraine capital Kyiv
A Ukrainian-American software developer named Maksymilian Rafailovych "Max" Levchin co-founded the firm that became PayPal. One of the first methods of making digital payments was through the worldwide payment service. Levchin was also a Yelp investor, and the producer of the film Thank You for Smoking.
Also Read | Facebook bans Russian state media from advertising, monetising content
MacPaw, located in Kyiv, created CleanMyMac, an all-in-one Mac cleaner that eliminates terabytes of unwanted rubbish and spyware. McPaw stated that following the country's invasion, "For our customers, and all of our items will function flawlessly. We have been planning for these conditions and have assured that there will be no interruptions in the support and development of our goods."
Also Read | Russian 'special Ukraine operation' reaches outskirts of Kyiv