Danny Burlage Profile picture
Founder & CEO @ Wortell | Empowering people through technology for 27+ years Microsoft Technology & AI Expert | Helping C-suite leaders innovate their digital
Feb 13 18 tweets 5 min read
The Dutch have a secret weapon:

One man built 6 million-dollar companies. Alone. No employees. No investors.

His method shocked Silicon Valley. Anyone can copy it.

Here's the counterintuitive rule he followed to build an empire alone: Image Meet Pieter Levels.

His story embodies everything about Dutch innovation and entrepreneurship.

Working alone, he's launched multiple successful projects that serve global audiences.

But his approach revealed something extraordinary about modern business...
Feb 7 18 tweets 5 min read
Elon Musk's secret weapon is a 19-year-old dropout:

He left college to join Neuralink in 2024.

Now he's the youngest expert at DOGE.

Here's what a teenager wants to do with America's most sensitive data: Image Meet Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old Northeastern University freshman.

He's majoring in mechanical engineering and physics.

But college wasn't his end goal.

Like Zuckerberg and Gates, he wanted to build his own tech empire.

But his path took an unexpected turn that's raising serious alarms...Image
Feb 4 19 tweets 6 min read
These two teenagers became Pentagon proteges.

By 17, they were so good at hacking, their ISPs sent warning letters.

Today, they've paid out $230M to ethical hackers worldwide.

Here's how two Dutch kids revolutionized cybersecurity forever: Image It started in a garage filled with broken electronics.

Two 6-year-old boys, Jobert Abma and Michiel Prins, were fascinated by how things worked.

Their first project? Taking apart walkie-talkies to understand wireless communication.

But that was just the beginning...
Jan 23 17 tweets 6 min read
Your entire digital life exists because of one crazy meeting.

In 1998, an unknown Dutch engineer named Cees Links walked into Apple...

...and convinced Steve Jobs to bet everything on an impossible dream.

The price was laughable. The technology didn't exist.

Here's how one forgotten meeting created WiFi:Image
Image
The stakes were high.

Apple needed something innovative for their upcoming iBook laptop.

In 1998, when Cees Links and his team from Lucent Technologies arrived at Apple HQ, they had no idea what to expect.

But what happened in that room would change technology forever:
Jan 17 18 tweets 6 min read
Most families lose their wealth by the third generation.

But this Dutch immigrant's legacy grew from a small newspaper...

into one of America's largest conglomerates...

This is the Koch's secret formula for building (and keeping) generational wealth: Image The story begins in 1867 with Harry Koch, a printer's apprentice in The Hague and Germany.

In 1888, he made the bold decision to cross the Atlantic, arriving with little more than his printing skills and determination.

But something unexpected was about to happen...
Jan 16 20 tweets 7 min read
In 1640, a Dutch teenager stepped off a boat in New Amsterdam.

He couldn't even afford his own ticket.

227 years later, his family would control America's largest railroad empire.

The incredible story of how the Vanderbilts built (and lost) their fortune: Image In 1640, a Jan Aertszoon, of De Bilt, arrived in New Amsterdam as an indentured servant.

He was forced to work 3 YEARS just to pay off his boat ticket.

That teen would become the patriarch of America's wealthiest dynasty...

The Vanderbilts.
Jan 7 20 tweets 6 min read
In 1973, a Dutch tech pioneer did something radical:

He split his company into tiny, independent units.

No hierarchy. Just small teams with total autonomy.

By 1996, his company had 10,000 employees across 20 countries.

What Eckart Wintzen would say about today's workplace: Image Most people have never heard of BSO/Origin.

But this forgotten company pioneered a revolutionary management style that tech giants are scrambling to replicate today.

The secret? Cellular division.

Just like biology, but for business... Image
Jan 3 20 tweets 5 min read
They had the future in their hands.

Worth billions, dominating their industry.

Then one decision destroyed everything.

The Kodak story isn't just history - it's happening again right now with AI: Image Companies leveraging AI are seeing significant productivity gains.

Organizations implementing AI in sales report substantial lead generation improvements.

AI adoption is driving major cost efficiencies.

Yet most executives are hesitating. Here's why that's dangerous: Image
Dec 26, 2024 15 tweets 5 min read
At 13, he built a website for homework.

By 15, he was a millionaire.

Today, he owns a $100M+ empire of comparison sites.

The wild story of Ben Woldring - and how a school assignment changed his life forever: Image 1998. Groningen, Netherlands.

13-year-old Ben Woldring gets a simple homework assignment:

Create a website about something you care about.

Most kids would've made a basic site about their hobbies. But Ben? He saw an opportunity no one else did:
Dec 17, 2024 20 tweets 6 min read
This Dutch immigrant was shocked by American coffee.

So he opened a tiny shop in Berkeley with just 10 pounds of beans.

And brought Dutch expertise to the New World.

Here's how one man's refusal to accept mediocrity created a billion-dollar industry: Image 1955: Alfred Peet lands in San Francisco.

Coming from a family of Dutch coffee roasters, he's shocked by what he finds:

Americans - the richest people in the world - are drinking the worst coffee imaginable.

Freeze-dried beans from a can. But that's just the beginning...