Alissa Chavez

Alissa Chavez, award-winning entrepreneur, author, public speaker and youngest Latina patent holder in the United States. She is best known for her product, Hot Seat, an alarm system that prevents children from being accidentally left in a hot car. Hot Seat started as a science fair project and became an award-winning product and the first product launched by Chavez’s company, Assila. Assila is her name backwards, inspired by Oprah’s Harpo. Chavez was raised by her single mother in Albuquerque, NM. She grew up working at her mother’s childcare business which was the inspiration behind her company’s first product. As a teenager, Chavez heard so many stories about children dying after they were accidentally left in a hot car. These stories hit close to home after working with children for so many years. She couldn’t imagine such a tragedy and wanted to do something to prevent this type of accident. Chavez created Hot Seat for her school science fair that year. She won the science fair that year and her passion for innovation was ignited. Chavez knew she wanted to turn this project into something more. Chavez applied for a patent that same year which was granted 3 years later. She is believed to be the youngest Latina Patent holder in the US, receiving her first patent at just 17 years old.

Since founding her company Chavez has received national recognition and accolades including Glamour Magazine Women of the Year, American Business Award winner, Teen Business top 20, Albuquerque Business 40 Under 40, Albuquerque Business Inno Under 25 and more. Chavez has continued to grow the company with the launch of her newest product EasyFlo, an eco-friendly baby bottle designed to reduce plastic waste associated with making a baby bottle on the go. Chavez has won 10+ national and international business competitions including “Best Elevator Pitch” at the World’s Largest Business Competition at Rice University.

Chavez is so grateful for the support that her company has received and feels a great responsibility to pay it forward. She is an ambassador for Technolchicas, an organization that promotes young Latinas to explore careers in STEM. She is a speaker for Microsoft’s Digi Girls and Boys camp, TEDX speaker and has dedicated time to speaking at schools to share her story in hopes of inspiring the next generation of innovators. Chavez added author to her resume in 2024, writing her first children’s book, “The Inventive Adventures of Chavez,” inspired by her own adventures in innovation. She hopes to inspire the next generation of innovators to stay creative and believe in themselves. She is also featured in the children’s book “Girls Think of Everything” by award-winning author Catherine Thimmesh.

Chavez is proud UNM Lobo recently graduating from the University of New Mexico earning a Master’s Degree in Public Administration. She completed her bachelor’s degree in Communication. In her free time, Chavez enjoys traveling, spending time outdoors (the beach especially) spending time with her family and friends and is an animal lover and activist. Going intothe future, Chavez plans to continue to grow her company with a desire to leave a positive impact on our world.