Origins & Staff
Get to Know Us
Hacker Paradise was created in 2014 by a coder and an entrepreneur. Casey and Alexey wanted to build cool tech with like-minded peeps, while living somewhere extraordinary.
From their first location in Costa Rica, they hosted beach hackathons, grew the business and built a small community. These original trips gave birth to the world’s very first remote work and travel community.
They understood that a massive shift was underway, which would see people breaking free from the traditional life path of graduate –> work your butt off –> buy a house –> retire.
They saw energy and potential in gathering people together to live differently, travel differently, work differently. These entrepreneurial, non-conformist roots ground how we form our community, our trips, and our ethos today.
The HP TEAM
Troubleshooting, rose-drinking, karaoke-singing, and all-round superheroes, our kick-ass support staff are destined to become your new BFFs.
Sara Magnabosco
COO
Sara, from Italy, joined Hacker Paradise as Community Facilitator after spending four years in rainy Belgium running one of the most active coworking space in Europe. With a background in Sociology, she loves being surrounded by people and help them to connect and create meaningful relationships.
Tea drinker by day, she never refuses a beer at night.
Bryan Stewart
Advisor
Bryan, who led Hacker Paradise until handing it off in December 2024, hails from the US but now calls Canggu, Bali, home. After completing a post-grad in International Business, he built a career connecting companies in developing countries with investors. Bryan has pounded the pavement from Shanghai to Jakarta & advised a few NGOs in Eastern Europe & South Asia along the way.
In his personal time, Bryan has been known to foster a fair few rescue pups, and get pitted on local surf breaks.
Casey Rosengren
Founder
Casey is one of our founders! He started Hacker Paradise in 2014 after working remotely in Costa Rica and discovering a need for more community. Before starting Hacker Paradise, he spent a number of years in the startup scenes in Philadelphia and Tokyo.
He is the founder of the Gopher Gala, Recess Labs, and always has a new project up his sleeve.
Borislav Hristov
Head of Finance
Boris has a background in International Business Management. Before joining HP, he worked briefly for ASML, the largest supplier of lithography systems in the semiconductor industry and Outpost, one of the best co-working spaces in Bali.
He has lived/worked/studied on 3 continents and travelled to over 20 countries in the last 4 years.
Samantha Stokes
Community Facilitator
Sam hails from the east coast of the US and has been nomading the world since 2021. She started in accounting, but quickly realized the corporate game wasn’t for her. Switching to the startup world, Sam found her love for bringing people together and watching the magic happen. Sam’s laid back demeanor and quirky nature make it impossible for you to not feel comfortable spending time in her orbit.
Do you want to learn how to do a headstand, question why our Hogwarts letter got lost in the mail, or geek out on stories of deep playa??? Sam’s your gal!
Bryan Stewart
CEO
Bryan, the ship’s captain, hails from the US but now calls Canggu, Bali, home. After completing a post-grad in International Business, he built a career connecting companies in developing countries with investors. Bryan has pounded the pavement from Shanghai to Jakarta & advised a few NGOs in Eastern Europe & South Asia along the way.
In his personal time, Bryan has been known to foster a fair few rescue pups, and get pitted on local surf breaks.
Marketa Machalkova
Destinations Scout
Marketa spent years freelancing as a custom travel manager in Prague, hiking and cycling tour guide around Europe and corporate English teacher. Before joining HP she backpacked around the world, ticking off bucket list items along the way. Ever wanted to live on a boat and learn how to sail and dive in the Caribbean? She’ll tell you how.
And if you’re looking for a coffee, beer or hiking buddy, look no further!
Deana Hughes
Community Facilitator
Though born in the US, Deana calls where ever she lays her hat “home”. After spending 3 years in plumbing sales, she decided to go a different route. Most recently before joining HP, she spent 6 months teaching and volunteering in Thailand. She’s passionate about giving back, spreading kindness and adventure.
Have any strange quirks? She has many. Never hesitate to be your most authentically weird self around her.
Michaela Murray
Head of Marketing
Michaela, a South African native, joined HP after traveling the world for two years doing operations and branding within the work-while-travel space. Prior to this, she was an active Criminologist working for the Australian government.
When she’s not hunting out the best speakeasies in a destination, Michaela is likely eating aged cheese somewhere with a good view.
Isabelle Dapprich
Community Facilitator
As soon as she finished school, Isabelle traded Germany for the open road and has since travelled across five continents with a carry-on backpack and an open mind. Along the way, she got a degree in tourism and took on almost every role in hospitality imaginable.
People are what make each destination unique and memorable for her. She’s always up to connect with you during a spontaneous hike, coffee date or city exploration!
Sara Vergari
Community Facilitator
Sara is Italian, born and raised. Before joining HP she worked in Barcelona and then in Sri Lanka in a coworking/coliving space. She is really ppasionate about it! You’ll find her energetic and always with a smile!
She enjoys traveling, trying new food and of course, cooking her favorite dishes. Do you want to know how to make a good tiramisu? Ask her for the secret recipe! 😉
Juan Poon
Community Facilitator
Juan was born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina after his family moved there from Hong Kong. Before joining HP, Juan spent 10 years working in the hospitality industry, while traveling the world. He has lived in 11 countries and speaks five languages. He loves to hang with the locals of whichever destination he’s exploring, drink coffee, hike and catch sunsets.
Wanna practice your Spanish? This guy will teach you to speak the lingo with some real Argentinian flare.
Ashley Gapusan
Community Facilitator
Ashley has been a nomad of sorts all her life. She was born in Spain, then lived in Japan until moving to the US when she was 6. Her professional background lies in supply chain operations. She did this as a digital nomad for 3 years before deciding it was time to go all in on traveling and community building.
Ashley loves creating meaningful connections and helping nomads find their people. She’s always adventuring, trying new food, being silly and / or all of the above all at once. If you ever need hyping up, need to vent or just simply want to have a chat Ashley’s your girl!!
Alexis Ramos
Head of Marketing
Alexis, born and raised in Los Angeles, now calls Warsaw, Poland her home base. Before diving into the world of Marketing, she came from an educational background, having worked in the USA, Poland, Ukraine and Armenia in this capacity.
Whether she’s exploring new countries with Hacker Paradise or venturing out solo, Alexis is a globetrotter at heart. When she’s not exploring someplace new, you’ll find her immersed in Fantasy/ScIFi books, learning new languages or passionately discussing financial literacy.
Miladin Balos
Community Facilitator
Miša is a versatile individual with a passion for exploring life’s many facets. With over a decade of experience in hospitality and a background in videography, Miša’s journey has been a quest filled with positivity, diversity, and new experiences. In 2016, after graduating from UCF, he embarked on a one-way journey to Southeast Asia. This transformative adventure taught him the value of cultural integration and revealed the abundance that can be found with very little.
Miša’s mission is not merely to share moments with people but to craft unforgettable experiences and lasting memories, embracing the beauty of this incredible journey we call life with the occasional dad joke to add a bit of extra flavor to the day. If you want to get a tissue to dance, Miša’s the guy to put a little boogie in it.