Garrett Camp | |
---|---|
![]() Camp in 2018 | |
Born | Calgary, Alberta, Canada | October 4, 1978
Alma mater | University of Calgary (BSc, MSc) |
Occupation | Founder, Expa Co-founder & board member, Uber Founder & chairman, StumbleUpon |
Website | garrettcamp |
Garrett Camp (born October 4, 1978) is a Canadian billionaire entrepreneur.[1][2] He has helped build a series of companies, including founding StumbleUpon, a web-discovery tool; co-founding Uber;[3][4] and founding Expa, a startup studio.[5] Camp is chairman of Mix, the successor to StumbleUpon, and served on the board of directors of Uber until 2020.
Early life and education
Camp was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.[6] His father was an economist, and his mother an artist, and both later became home builders.[7] He graduated from the University of Calgary with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 2001, and later earned a master's degree in software engineering, researching collaborative systems, evolutionary algorithms and information retrieval.[6]
Career
StumbleUpon
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20220814065742im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Garrett_Camp_%282403518878%29.jpg/220px-Garrett_Camp_%282403518878%29.jpg)
Camp co-founded StumbleUpon in 2002. It was the first web-discovery platform[8][9][3][10] and personalized recommendation engine.[11][12] The service enabled users to discover web content with a single click,[clarification needed] during the Web 2.0 era.[13] In 2006, StumbleUpon relocated to San Francisco, after receiving its first round of funding from Silicon Valley angel investors. In 2007, StumbleUpon was included on the Time magazine's "50 Best Websites" list,[14] and on its 2013 "50 Must-Have iPad Apps" list.[15]
StumbleUpon was acquired by eBay for $75M[16][17] in 2007 and spun-out in 2009,[18][19][20][21] becoming an independent company again.[22][23] Following its spin-off, Camp worked to expand its offerings to include mobile phone app discovery and social networking.[21] He grew the company to over one hundred employees and over 25 million registered users[24] as its founding CEO before stepping down in mid 2012 to work on other ventures.[25] In August 2015, he acquired it again, after resetting all previous shareholders at $0/share.[26] The platform continued to have standalone web and mobile apps until mid 2018, when its users were transitioned to the Mix.com, a venture built in part through Camp's studio startup company, Expa.[27][28]
Uber
Camp founded Uber as UberCab[4][29] in early 2009 while he was CEO of StumbleUpon, and self-funded the seed round of $250K.
Uber launched in San Francisco in mid 2010 with just a few cars on the road and, in late 2010, raised $1.25M in venture capital.[30] In 2011, the company continued to expand across the United States and abroad, including major markets such as New York City and Paris.[31][32] Uber's motto is "Everyone's Private Driver"[33] and, in mid-2012, launched UberX[34][35] and Uber SUV[36] to offer customers low cost options and more vehicle choices. In late 2012, Uber launched UberTAXI,[37][38] allowing taxi drivers to use the application with taxi-like fares for customers, and, in early 2013, CEO Travis Kalanick announced that Uber would begin offering a ride-sharing service,[39][40][41] allowing community drivers to use the application.
Uber was listed in Forbes's Top 10 Companies of 2012,[42] and was ranked number 6 in Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies of 2013.[43] Uber is based in San Francisco, and has expanded in the US and abroad, offering service in over 600 cities worldwide.[44]
Expa
Camp formed Expa in 2013,[5][45] integrating his ten years of start-up experience into a system for building new companies. Expa is a startup studio to create and launch new companies by providing early-stage startups with starting capital, a workspace, and technical advice.[46][47] Companies that partner with Expa work from offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver or, most recently, London.[48]
In March 2014, Expa raised its first $50 million from investors[49][50] to fund the design and development of new companies. In March 2016, Expa raised an additional $100 million to fund the creation of new startups. Expa has helped to build and launch a number of companies, including Mix.com, Haus.com and Cmd.com, among others.[51][52][53]
On April 29, 2020, Expa announced that David Clark would join the company as its European partner to set up a new headquarters in London.[54][55]
Eco
Camp is currently working on a cryptocurrency he calls Eco. Camp is striving to make it a digital global currency that facilitates daily transactions between business as a form of payment in order to improve commonly occurring issues with digital currencies.[56] Eco also aims to be the most energy efficient currency in terms of transaction verification and token generation.[56]
Investments
Previously, Camp invested in Prism Skylabs;[citation needed] SoundTracking;[citation needed] WillCall;[citation needed] PSDept;[citation needed] and BlackJet, an on-demand private aviation service.[57]
Awards and honors
Camp was named to the TR35 List of Top Innovators[58] under the age of 35 at Technology Review's Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT in 2007.[59] In 2008 Camp was named by Bloomberg Businessweek as one of Tech's Best Young Entrepreneurs.[60] Camp was honored at the 2013 Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards for his accomplishments at both StumbleUpon and Uber.[61]
Wealth
In 2015, he was the 283rd-richest person in the world and the third-richest Canadian, with an estimated wealth of US$5.3 billion according to Forbes.[62] As of March 2019, Camp's net worth is calculated at US$4.6 billion according to Forbes.[63]
Allegations of exploitation
In June 2019, Camp bought a newly built, 11,000-square-foot mansion in Trousdale Estates of Beverly Hills for $72.5 million.[64] Camp's purchase drew the ire of activists and Uber drivers, who protested the firm's labor practices and advocated for better working conditions for drivers. Karim Bayumi, a Los Angeles Uber driver and labor organizer, said "this guy is buying lavish houses with our money, our hard-earned money that they are unjustly taking from us."[65]
Philanthropy
Camp has joined The Giving Pledge, a commitment to give away half of his wealth to charity. In a personal blog post announcing his plans, Camp spoke of recent travels to Kenya, where he connected with people living without access to basic services like clean water, food and electricity.[66] In 2018 Camp established the Camp Foundation, a non-profit research organization to support research into infrastructure, sustainability, and conservation projects that will have a significant global impact.[67]
Personal life
Camp lives in San Francisco.[7]
References
- ^ McCullough, Michael (21 September 2011). "Stumbling upon success". Canadian Business. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
- ^ Camp, Garrett (2011-10-22). "The Start-Up Advantage". The New York Times.
- ^ a b "Interview with Garrett Camp, StumbleUpon Co-Founder". CenterNetworks. Archived from the original on 2012-05-20.
- ^ a b "UberCab Takes The Hassle Out Of Booking A Car Service". TechCrunch.
- ^ a b "Garrett Camp Distills His Uber And StumbleUpon Expertise Into New Holding Company Expa". TechCrunch.
- ^ a b Plana, Vincent. "17 Facts You Didn't Know About Uber Co-Founder's $68 Billion Fortune". www.narcity.com. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ^ a b "Bloomberg profile: Garrett Camp". Bloomberg LP. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
- ^ Helft, Miguel (2007-10-07). "A Way to Find Your Corner of the Internet Sky". The New York Times.
- ^ "Garrett Camp: "one-size-fits-all in search is history"". The Next Web.
- ^ "SoMa-Based StumbleUpon Provides a "Forward Button" for Discovery on the Internet". 7x7SF.
- ^ "Q&A With Garrett Camp, Founder & Chief Architect, StumbleUpon". Search Engine Land.
- ^ "The Serendipity Of StumbleUpon - an interview with Garrett Camp, Chief Architect". ReadWriteWeb.
- ^ Waters, Darren (29 March 2007). "Web 2.0 wonders: StumbleUpon". BBC News. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
- ^ "StumbleUpon: 50 Best Websites 2007". Time. 2007-07-08. Archived from the original on July 12, 2007.
- ^ "StumbleUpon: 50 Must-Have iPad Apps". Time. 2013-04-15. Archived from the original on 2013-04-19.
- ^ "eBay's StumbleUpon Acquisition: Confirmed at $75 Million". TechCrunch.
- ^ Fost, Dan (2007-06-24). "Company Stumbles its Way to 75 Million". The San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ "StumbleUpon Beats Skype In Escaping EBay's Clutches". TechCrunch.
- ^ "StumbleUpon's Garrett Camp Speaks (About Being a Born-Again Start-up)!". AllThingsD.
- ^ Joyner, April (July 2011). "Garrett Camp: Buying Back the Company". Inc.
- ^ a b Mangalindan, JP (29 February 2012). "How StumbleUpon saved itself". Fortune. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- ^ Borzo, Jeanette (November 15, 2010). "Interview with Garrett Camp: The Perils of Being the Little Fish". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Tsotsis, Alexia (March 17, 2011). "StumbleUpon's Garrett Camp On What It's Like To Buy Back Your Company". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Ha, Anthony (April 26, 2012). "StumbleUpon Reaches 25M Registered Users, Plans For Global Expansion And API". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Ha, Anthony (May 8, 2012). "Mufassil Steps Down As StumbleUpon CEO, Will Serve As Chairman". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Olanoff, Drew (August 26, 2015). "Co-Founder Garrett Camp Buys Back Majority Share In StumbleUpon". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Camp, Garrett (May 23, 2018). "SU is moving to Mix". Medium. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ Carson, Biz (August 1, 2018). "Uber Cofounder Garrett Camp Is Back To An Old Problem: Finding Interesting Things On The Internet". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
- ^ "A Peek Under the Hood at Uber". 7x7SF.
- ^ "UberCab Closes Uber Angel Round". TechCrunch.
- ^ Jeffries, Adrianne (26 April 2013). "After long battle, Uber becomes first taxi app to get approved in New York City". The Verge. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ Schechner, Sam (13 November 2014). "Uber Launches Car Pooling Service in Paris". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "The Uber Experience: Everyone's Private Driver". Bloomberg Businessweek.
- ^ "Uber Opens Up Platform To Non-Limo Vehicles With "Uber X," Service Will Be 35% Less Expensive". TechCrunch.
- ^ "A Status Symbol Moves Down Market: The Context for Uber's Lower-Priced Launch". AllThingsD.
- ^ "SF, You Now Have the Freedom to Choose". Uber Blog.
- ^ "Despite NYC Delay, Uber Launches Taxi Option In SF". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Uber wins in NYC lawsuit filed by limo lobby, clearing the way for city to test e-hail apps". The Verge.
- ^ "Uber Moves Deeper Into Ride Sharing, Promises To Roll Out Services Where Regulators Have Given 'Tacit Approval'". TechCrunch.
- ^ "Uber Policy White Paper 1.0 by Travis Kalanick". Uber Blog.
- ^ "Uber will 'aggressively' pursue carpooling model, but only when lawmakers say it's okay". The Verge.
- ^ Prive, Tanya. "Uber: Top 10 Tech Companies Of 2012". Forbes.
- ^ "Uber: Most Innovative Companies 2013". Fast Company.
- ^ Dara Kerr and Marrian Zhou, "Uber to acquire Middle East competitor Careem for $3.1B," CNET, March 26, 2019.
- ^ "Garrett Camp's Expa Aims to Channel StumbleUpon and Uber Lessons Into New Companies". AllThingsD.
- ^ "Inside Expa Labs, Uber co-founder's take on the startup accelerator". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- ^ Yeung, Ken (30 March 2016). "Expa raises $100 million to build more companies, launches startup accelerator". VentureBeat. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ Williams, Hannah (2020-04-29). "Expa Launches UK Office For European Startups". Computerworld. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- ^ "Expa Raises $50M". expa.com.
- ^ "Garrett Camp's Expa Raises $50M To Build New Startups". TechCrunch.
- ^ Crook, Jordan (1 August 2017). "Garrett Camp's latest Expa project, Mix, aims to curate the web". TechCrunch. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ Crook, Jordan (28 July 2016). "Uber co-founder launches new real estate venture for Expa called Haus". TechCrunch. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ Sawers, Paul (26 February 2019). "GV leads $15 million investment in stealth Canadian cybersecurity startup Cmd". TechCrunch. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ^ "Former Uber Exec to set up startup funding HQ in London". Invezz. 2020-05-01. Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- ^ "Expa Taps Former Uber and Virgin Galactic Executive David Clark to Open New London Office". Retrieved 2020-06-25.
- ^ a b "Uber co-founder Garrett Camp is creating a new cryptocurrency". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
- ^ "Celeb-backed BlackJet Is Grounded. Again". Fortune.
- ^ "Innovators Under 35". MIT Technology Review.
- ^ "Garrett Camp Named to Technology Review's Prestigious TR35 List of Top Young Innovators". PR Newswire.
- ^ "Garrett Camp: Tech's Best Young Entrepreneurs". Bloomberg Businessweek.
- ^ "Garrett Camp: 2013 Honoree". Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards.
- ^ Forbes' 29th Annual World's Billionaires Issue, Forbes, March 2, 2015
- ^ "Garrett Camp". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
- ^ "Uber co-founder Garrett Camp quietly shells out $71 million for Beverly Hills mansion". Los Angeles Times. 2019-06-28. Retrieved 2019-07-27.
- ^ Levin, Sam (2 Jul 2019) "Uber co-founder buys record-breaking LA mansion for $72.5m as drivers fight for wages." The Guardian. (Retrieved September 3, 2019.)
- ^ Kolodny, Lora (2017-11-22). "Uber and Infosys co-founders are latest billionaires to join The Giving Pledge". CNBC. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
- ^ "The Camp Foundation".