George Kurtz

George Kurtz is the co-founder, president, and CEO of CrowdStrike, a leading company in the cybersecurity industry. Kurtz has contributed to the development of vulnerability management, defining key terminology, workflows, and services that remain central to cybersecurity operations. He has played a significant role in advancing cloud-based cybersecurity architectures and has more than 30 years of experience in information security, enterprise technology, and organizational growth.

Kurtz began his entrepreneurial career by founding Foundstone, where he helped establish the concept of cybersecurity incident response. He led Foundstone through its acquisition by McAfee, where he later served as worldwide chief technology officer, general manager, and executive vice president of enterprise. At McAfee, Kurtz championed early cloud and virtualization security initiatives and gained insight into the limitations of legacy antivirus models, which influenced his approach to building CrowdStrike.

Kurtz, along with Gregg Marston and Dmitri Alperovitch, co-founded CrowdStrike, launching the company's flagship product, "Falcon," which introduced a cloud-native, intelligence-driven approach to endpoint security. Under Kurtz's leadership, CrowdStrike completed its initial public offering on Nasdaq and was added to the S&P 500 index. The company has achieved significant revenue milestones and is recognized as one of the fastest-growing cybersecurity software companies.

Kurtz has been recognized by Fortune magazine in its "100 Most Powerful People in Business" list and by Cybercrime Magazine as "Cybersecurity Person of the Year." He has also been acknowledged by Time Magazine and EY for his leadership in cybersecurity.

As an author, Kurtz co-wrote "Hacking Exposed: Network Security Secrets & Solutions," a widely referenced book in the cybersecurity field. He is frequently cited by media outlets such as CNN, CNBC, Fox News, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal for his expertise on cyber attacks, eCrime, and nation-state threats. Kurtz is known for his work in security strategy and adversary tradecraft, advising leaders in both government and the private sector on preventing security breaches. His leadership was tested during a major software update incident that affected Microsoft Windows systems globally, where he responded with transparency and accountability.

In addition to his work in cybersecurity, Kurtz is an endurance racing driver. He has secured the GT World Challenge Team and Drivers' Championships, earned multiple wins across several series, claimed the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup title, and achieved a class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Kurtz is a recipient of IMSA's Trueman Cup and Sportscar365's Bronze Prototype Driver of the Year honors, and he competes in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. He also co-owns the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team, serving as a technology adviser and steering-committee member.