Ian Tien

Yo, have you heard about Ian Tien? Dude’s a straight-up tech legend, and his story is pretty wild. So, he’s the CEO and co-founder of Mattermost, which is this super secure, open-source collaboration tool. Think Slack but open source, used by big enterprises, governments, all kinds of essential orgs. That’s no small feat. The platform’s so good it snagged the 2018 Gartner Cool Vendor Award, yeah, that’s legit.

But Ian didn’t just pop up outta nowhere with Mattermost. He’s been grinding in tech for a minute. Before that, he built SpinPunch, this award-winning online video game company that had millions of players across 190 countries. Like, he’s been in the trenches making stuff people actually use. That’s the kinda founder who’s been tested by real user demands, not just ideas in a room.

His background’s pretty stacked, too. He’s worked at Microsoft, leading product teams on SkyDrive/OneDrive, Hotmail/Outlook.com, and even Microsoft Office. Imagine running those huge products, talk about scaling and managing complexity. Plus, he’s been at Trilogy Software, a place known for powering some of the earliest SaaS startups, while still in school. That shows he’s always been about that startup hustle.

He’s also got some serious research cred, over a dozen patents in analytics apps, which means he’s not just about building; he’s innovating at the tech level. And he’s got a solid academic background too, studied at Waterloo, then went to Stanford GSB, where he even TA’d for legends like Andy Grove and Myron Scholes. That’s advanced smart.

What’s crazy is, all this points to someone deeply motivated by solving real problems, not just chasing fame or money. He’s jumped into different domains, gaming, enterprise, social media, collaboration, and crushed it at each. It’s like he’s got this relentless drive to create tools that make a difference, whether it’s bringing millions of gamers together or helping governments securely communicate.

Now, he’s based out in Palo Alto, always close to the heart of Silicon Valley innovation. But if you think about his process, it’s about more than just startups. It’s about a guy who’s been pushing the boundaries, always learning, always building. That’s why he’s so important, he’s not just riding the wave, he’s creating the wave.

Long story short? Ian Tien’s a true tech builder, a serial entrepreneur who’s been through the trenches, innovated at the highest level, and now leads one of the coolest open-source projects out there. If you wanna see what real startup grit looks like, look no further.