Michelle Shocron: Building in the World of Artificial Intelligence

The short answer: Michelle Shocron — “Mich” — is an Argentine entrepreneur and the founder of Continuum, with a background in economics and a master’s in management and analytics, who built her career around data and artificial intelligence. Her Global Impact magazine profiled her path from a curious kid in Buenos Aires to roles at Coca-Cola, Mercado Libre, and Pedidos Ya, and on to founding AI companies — a story defined, in her own words, by daring to take the leap and not fearing failure.

Curiosity first

Born in Buenos Aires, Shocron was, by every account, an intensely curious child — the kind whose enthusiasm showed the moment something caught her interest. From a young age she worked in her father’s company on administrative tasks and helped her mother in real estate, early experiences that taught her resourcefulness and gave her practical footing in the working world.

She studied economics at Universidad de San Andrés, tailoring her degree through electives until she found her passion: data science and big data. An internship at Coca-Cola, doing data analysis, was the moment she knew she wanted a career in technology.

A decade across fintech and e-commerce

Her path then ran through some of Latin America’s most demanding companies:

• Mercado Libre — the region’s leading e-commerce company, where she worked in its new credit-market business unit. “I was doing fintech at the best time and with the best company in Latin America. I learned so much,” she recalls.
• Pedidos Ya — overseeing corporate business development and the fintech division for users.
• A master’s in Management and Analytics during the pandemic, focused on using data for business management.
• A freelance stint with AdoreMe, a U.S.-based online startup, which gave her a fresh perspective on the entrepreneurial world.

Becoming a founder

After a series of offers to help startups build new areas and shape their strategy, she realized she missed having her own business. She partnered with a collaborator and founded her first AI venture — a platform to bridge artificial intelligence and its practical use inside organizations, designed to address how little most teams understood about applying tools like ChatGPT to real business needs.

That work — making AI genuinely usable, and genuinely useful, for the people inside a company — is the same thread that runs through Continuum today.

On women, work, and not fearing failure

Shocron is vocal about women’s empowerment and the value of community. Through the Her Global Impact Innovation Academy, she connected with other professional women navigating similar paths.

“We must work to ensure that more of us dare to take the leap and not fear failure,” she stresses.

Her parting message in the profile captures the temperament behind the résumé:

“Listen to your heart with confidence — life will give you what is meant for you.”

This article draws on the Her Global Impact profile “Michelle Shocron: Enterprising in the World of Artificial Intelligence” (June 29, 2023).