ALEXANDRU COCINDAU

Entrepreneur

SUMMARY

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Alexandru Cocindau (born April 20, 1987) is a Romanian businessman, investor, and blockchain enthusiast. He is the founder of Active Design (an IT company established in 2006) and runs several companies in different industries, such as information technology, fintech, real estate, and education.

Alex was born and raised in Galati, Romania. He briefly attended the University of Electronics & Telecommunication before launching his own business at the age of 18. The beginning of his career was challenging due to entrepreneurs being unaware of the impact that the internet would have on the development of their business, making customer acquisition nearly impossible. Alexandru Cocindau, the CEO of Active Design at the time, responded to challenges launched by major freelancing sites with determination, hard work, and passion for his dream and realised successful projects in partnership with numerous international companies.

The company, led by the vision of Alexandru Cocindau, has been a benchmark in the IT market since 2006, constantly pursuing the excellence of the services provided, expanding its network of partners, and looking for new opportunities.

Throughout his business career, he began to invest in various fields, expanding his portfolio in areas such as education, retail, fintech, civil engineering, smart transportation, and hospitality.

CAREER

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As the co-founder and investor of "DEADLOCK," Mr. Alexandru Cocindau has masterfully blended intricate narrative elements with innovative gameplay mechanics. Set on the mystical Island of Convergence, inspired by Iceland's rugged landscapes, the game features a unique setting where the natural and supernatural intertwine. Modern structures incongruously placed amidst primordial scenery underscore the disruptive influence of "The Convergence," a mysterious sphere that alters the island’s reality.

DEADLOCK explores the ecological and cultural impact of this phenomenon. The game's environment responds dynamically to The Convergence, affecting weather, flora, and fauna, as well as the behaviors of 'corrupted' humans—once ordinary people now driven by unknown forces. Players engage with these elements through puzzles and strategic interactions, using unique Reality Artifacts and Anchored Relics to navigate challenges and uncover the island's deep-seated mysteries.

Mr. Cocindau's innovative vision has not only crafted a compelling world but also pushed the boundaries of traditional gameplay, making DEADLOCK a testament to his leadership and creativity in game development.

As a visionary leader and serial entrepreneur with over 18 years of experience in various sectors he founded TeachMeCode Institute, one of the largest IT school in Dubai, which offers a revolutionary new approach to education. The school's practical training and state-of-the-art facilities are designed to address the shortage of skilled talents in the IT sector. This innovative approach to education emphasises the value of investing in oneself to secure a successful future, especially in the rapidly growing IT industry.

Mr. Cocindau is pioneering a new model of job placement by connecting students directly with potential employers through their own professional page, generating immense value for both students and companies. His leadership, vision, and entrepreneurial spirit make him a driving force in the IT industry.

The movie about the life of Victor Stroie who had to flee Bessarabia due to the war and was adopted by another family in Romania, was brought to life with the help of Mr. Cocindau Alexandru. Passionate about theater and movie production and drawing from his experience in the IT industry, Mr. Alexandru played an important role in the production stages of the movie, actively participating as an executive producer.

Overall, the collaboration between the filmmakers and Mr. Alexandru brought 77 Years Back's story to a wider audience and highlighted the importance of pursuing one's passions, even in the face of adversity.

When starting a business, a founder's vision typically involves identifying a gap in the market and developing a solution to address it. In the case of CustomCards.com, Mr. Cocindau has noticed a lack of personalisation options for credit and debit cards and saw an opportunity to create a business that could fill that void. His vision included the goal of creating a versatile online software that allows users to customise the design of their cards in a way that is both easy and intuitive.

Additionally, Mr. Cocindau's vision included the desire to offer customers an upgraded card made of metal, which would not only look more stylish but also be more durable than traditional plastic cards. In the case of CustomCards.com, Mr. Cocindau's vision likely played a critical role in bringing the business to life and continues to guide the company's growth and development.

As CTO of Gold Standard Group, Alexandru Cocindau developed a new blockchain, a technology that allowed individuals and companies to generate almost instantaneous transactions on a network without middlemen. Under the utility blockchain, users took advantage of the many products created under his watch. One of the biggest achievements of Alexandru Cocindau and his team of developers was transferring voice, chat, and emails in a decentralized environment through the service called "G999 Voice Chat & E-mail Over Blockchain," creating a new level of security where no single party could take control over accounts or private messages.

As a result of the obvious lack of qualified developers provided by local universities, Alexandru Cocindau decided to create his own educational structure using alternative methods by replacing regular coding lessons with a more efficient technique by allowing students to actively participate in tech projects with a senior developer as a teacher.

These methods were later proven to have a large impact on the operating industry and were capable of constantly providing new talents to his team. The achievements of the students represent the project's success; more than 300 students have graduated from the Active Academy, and more than 60% of them were able to find a workplace afterwards.

Alexandru Cocindau, a visionary at the time, created Menuo, the first digital alternative to the traditional restaurant menu. A piece of technology that can now be found in any restaurant was designed to give consumers a pleasant experience along with major savings for the business owner. It was designed to remove the reliance on menu changes while providing multiple options for the customer to navigate.

The first app to offer the possibility to read a live restaurant menu translated into an individual’s own language, resulting in a positive reputation for the restaurants on feedback websites.

Multiple advantages, such as the possibility to schedule the menu according to seasons, setting up a dynamic menu using a timer, and turning the restaurant into an evening bar.

In 2017, Menuo was invited to participate in the Web Summit in Lisbon alongside over 10,000 start-ups in one of the industry's largest technology events, where it was recognized as a potential unicorn and received a €500,000 investment ticket from Venture Capital.

Started in 2006 as a website development company, Active Design's services have expanded over the years to include marketing, web design, 3D & navy design, search engine optimization, mobile development, and, most recently, becoming one of the most sought-after companies for e-commerce development. More as an oriented e-commerce development company, the management decided to push the limits even further and became the first certified Prestashop company in Romania. By the end of 2013, the team's senior developers had passed the training and exams and offered a full stack in e-commerce development, beginning with planning the online business, creating the wireframes, design, implementation, and platform modules upgrade & maintenance.

Active Design, with an internationally recognized company, a great seven-year portfolio of numerous successful projects, and a certified team by one of the world's most prestigious e-commerce platforms, offered the assurance of quality service and experience in the field, deciding to shift the entire development team into the creation of Prestashop modules.

The team's experience as e-commerce developers and market analysis aided in the development of a solid and long-term strategy. The team began by reverse engineering existing modules on the market, adding new features and improving the user experience. Identifying the missing puzzle pieces still remains a challenge in the e-commerce business; however, we now have more than 30 awarded modules, grossing above expectations and confirming the dedication, passion, and brilliant development team that is always up to date with the latest tech requirements.