Mark Pincus

Mark Pincus is recognized in the technology industry as the founder of Zynga, the social and mobile gaming company behind titles such as "FarmVille," "Words With Friends," "CityVille," and "Zynga Poker." Pincus has founded 10 companies throughout his career, contributing to advancements in consumer internet, social networking, social gaming, and venture investing. He holds a Bachelor of Science in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Prior to Zynga, Pincus founded FreeLoader, Inc., an early web-based push technology service, and Support.com, a help desk automation software company that went public on NASDAQ. He also launched Tribe.net, one of the earliest social networks, and made early investments in Napster, Twitter, and Facebook, highlighting his involvement in transformative technology platforms.

Pincus led Zynga as CEO, guiding the company to become a leader in the social gaming industry and reaching a global user base. Zynga went public with a $1 billion IPO and was later acquired by Take-Two Interactive. Pincus received recognition at The Crunchies technology awards and served on the Board of the Presidio Trust.

Beyond Zynga, Pincus co-founded Reinvent Capital with Reid Hoffman, investing in companies such as SpaceX, Joby Aviation, and Aurora, and launched multiple SPACs. He teaches a strategic product management course at Stanford Graduate School of Business and is a signatory of The Giving Pledge. His philanthropic work includes support for educational initiatives addressing the digital divide.

Pincus authored the book "Life at the Speed of Play: Launch Products People Love!" published by Harper Business, which outlines his product-building philosophy and "Proven, Better, New" framework. The book serves as a guide for founders, product managers, and innovators in the technology and artificial intelligence sectors. With a career spanning multiple technology cycles, Pincus is regarded as a significant voice in entrepreneurship and product innovation.