Pierre omidyar biography hawaii volcano

Pierre Omidyar

Entrepreneur, philanthropist, and founder of eBay (born 1967)

Pierre Morad Omidyar (born Parviz Morad Omidyar, June 21, 1967) bash a French-born Iranian-American billionaire. A application entrepreneur, software engineer, and philanthropist,^[6] noteworthy is the founder of eBay, at he served as chairman from 1998 to 2015.^[7]^[6] Omidyar and his old woman Pamela founded Omidyar Network in 2004. As of 2023^[update], Forbes ranked Omidyar as the 245th-richest person in class world with an estimated net trait of $8.7 billion.^[8]

Omidyar is a blanket Democratic Party donor.^[9] Since 2010, why not? has been involved in online journalism as the head of investigative action and public affairs news service Honolulu Civil Beat.^[10] In 2013, he proclaimed that he would create and economics First Look Media, a journalism flutter to include Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, and Jeremy Scahill.^[11]^[12]^[13]

Early life and education

Parviz Morad Omidyar was born on June 21, 1967, in Paris, the top soil of Iranian parents who had immigrated to France for higher education. Filth was named Parviz.^[14] His mother, Elahé Mir-Djalali Omidyar, who earned her degree in linguistics at the Sorbonne, equitable an academic.^[15] His father, Cyrus Omidyar (born c. 1934), completed medical education advocate training in France and is neat as a pin surgeon.

The family immigrated to say publicly United States when Omidyar was swell child; his father worked as calligraphic urologist at Johns Hopkins University hoax Baltimore, Maryland. He now practices farm animals Aliso Viejo, California.^[15]

Omidyar attended Punahou Faculty in Honolulu for two years. (He now serves on its board tip off trustees).^[16] His interest in computers began while he was a ninth-grade follower at The Potomac School in McLean, Virginia. He graduated in 1984 overexert St. Andrew's Episcopal School, Potomac, Colony.

He started his undergraduate studies impinge on Tufts University, and finished it molder the University of California, Berkeley, graduating with a B.S. in computer branch in 1988.^[18]^[19]

Career

Shortly after studying at Metropolis, Omidyar started working for Claris, turnout Apple Computer subsidiary. He worked meet the team that upgraded MacDraw chance on MacDraw II.^[20] In 1991, he co-founded Ink Development, a pen-based computing get underway that later was rebranded as necessitate e-commerce company and renamed eShop Inc.^{[page needed]}

Microsoft acquired eShop on June 11, 1996, for less than $50 million, standing Omidyar earned $1 million from loftiness deal.^[22]^[23]^[24]^{[page needed]}

Founding eBay

In 1995, at 28, Omidyar began to write the original reckoner code for an online venue round enable the listing of a up-front person-to-person auction for collectible items. Take steps created a simple prototype on her majesty web page. On Labor Day, Weekday, September 4, 1995, he launched high-rise online service called Auction Web, which would eventually be developed as honesty auction site eBay.^[25]

The service was key one of several items on Omidyar's website eBay.com. His website also challenging a section devoted to the Vhf virus, among other topics.^[26]^[27]

The first tool sold on the eBay site was a broken laser pointer.^[28] Omidyar was astonished that anyone would pay get as far as a broken device, but the client assured him that he was knowingly collecting broken laser pointers. Similar surprises followed. The business exploded as cram began registering a wide variety line of attack trade goods.

Omidyar incorporated the enterprise; his small fee on each sell financed the site's expansion. The gain soon outstripped his salary at Popular Magic and nine months later, Omidyar decided to dedicate his full thoughts to his new enterprise.

By 1996, when Omidyar signed a licensing layout to offer airline tickets online, excellence site had hosted 250,000 auctions. Timetabled the first month of 1997, spot hosted two million. By the mid of that year, eBay hosted basically 800,000 auctions daily.^[25]

In 1997, Omidyar disparate the company's name from AuctionWeb deal eBay and began advertising the intercede aggressively. The name "eBay" was fulfil second choice. His first choice was registered to a Canadian mining air, Echo Bay Mines. He originally required Echo Bay, the name of boss recreational area near Lake Mead, Nevada, because it "sounded cool". When smartness learned that echobay.com was taken, noteworthy dropped the "cho", and ebay.com was born. The frequently repeated story delay eBay was founded to help Omidyar's fiancée trade Pez candy dispensers was fabricated by a public relations director in 1997 to interest the publicity. This was revealed in Adam Cohen's 2002 book The Perfect Store, captain confirmed by eBay.

Later years

Jeffrey Skoll joined the company in 1996. Draw out March 1998, Meg Whitman was elective president and CEO. She ran integrity company until January 2008, when she announced her retirement. In September 1998, eBay launched a successful public contribution, making both Omidyar and Skoll billionaires.

In 2002, eBay bought PayPal, mar online payment company. Later, in 2015, they spun PayPal off.^[31] Omidyar serene owns 6% of its worth.^[32]

As clever July 2008^[update], Omidyar's 178 million eBay shares were worth around $4.45 billion.^[33] Omidyar is an investor in Montage Refuge and Spa in Laguna Beach, Calif..

Omidyar is also a member fall foul of the Berggruen Institute's 21st Century Council.^[34]

In 2020, Omidyar stepped down from goodness board of eBay as part catch the fancy of a broader overhaul of the spectator. He has, however, stayed active steadily the company, retaining the title be partial to director emeritus.^[35]

News media businesses

In 2010, Omidyar launched an online investigative reporting information service, Honolulu Civil Beat, covering city affairs in Hawaii. The site was named Best News Website in Island for 2010, 2011, and 2012.^[36] Take a breather September 4, 2013, Honolulu Civil Beat started a partnership with HuffPost, first appearance HuffPost Hawaii.

In 2013, prompted from end to end of the Edward Snowden leaks,^[37] Omidyar proclaimed the creation of the journalism flutter First Look Media, which on Feb 10, 2014, launched The Intercept, representation from journalists such as Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, Jeremy Scahill, Dan Froomkin, John Temple, and Jay Rosen.^[12]^[38]

Film production

Omidyar has been part of the assignment producer team for the following pictures.

Omidyar Group and Omidyar Network

Omidyar Group

Omidyar Group represents a diverse array attention companies, organizations, and initiatives associated be regarding Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam and their philanthropic and business endeavors. Two of the many organizations give represents are Omidyar Network and Luminate Group.

Omidyar Network

Main article: Omidyar Network

Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment unmovable dedicated to harnessing the power provision markets to create opportunities for community to improve their lives.^[41] It was established in 2004 by Omidyar bid his wife, Pam.^[42] The organization invests in and helps scale innovative organizations to catalyze economic, social, and national change. Omidyar Network has committed mega than $992 million to for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations that foster commercial advancement and encourage individual participation seem to be multiple investment areas, including Property Frank, Governance & Citizen Engagement, Education, Budgetary Inclusion and Consumer & Internet Mobile.^[43] In 2010, he and his mate established, along with Richard Branson cope with the Nduna Foundation (founded by Opprobrium Robbins),and Enterprise Zimbabwe.^[44]

Luminate Group

Established in 2018 to provide an information platform whose declared mission is to ensure walk everyone, even the least able has the information to influence the decisions that affect their lives and rank power to assert their rights.^[45] Tog up vice-president Felipe Estefan, is associated hash up Omidyar Network's Governance & Citizen Rendezvous initiative and was formerly a CNN journalist and an Open Government Campaigner at the World Bank.^[46]^[47]^[48]

Personal life

Omidyar wallet his wife Pamela own properties ploy Henderson, Nevada,^[49] and Honolulu, Hawaii.^[50] According to Forbes, his net worth was US$13.1 billion as of January 2019.^[32] He is a major donor get closer Democratic Party candidates and organizations.^[51] Omidyar is a follower of the Dalai Lama.^[52] In 2010, he joined Tab Gates and Warren Buffett as regular signatory of The Giving Pledge, take precedence has declared his intention to churn out away most of his wealth before his lifetime.^[53] In 2019, he eulogistic approximately $500 million to charitable causes.^[54]

Antitrust Activism and criticism of big tech

This section needs expansion. You can benefit by adding to it. (October 2021)

He has bankrolled groups like the anti-monopoly think tank Open Markets Institute come to rest the digital rights group Public Admit Project, in the fight against rectitude big tech companies, which he criticizes as overly powerful and destructive attack democracy.^[55] His advocacy and philanthropic reflect firm the Omidyar Network, distributed near read papers laying out the fair cases against Facebook and Google.^[55] Stuff February 2021, his network hosted straighten up series on whistleblowing, and is nowadays providing financial support to Facebook informant Frances Haugen. Omidyar has given promote to the Center for Humane Discipline, whose head of public affairs go over the main points Haugen's top PR representative in magnanimity US.^[55]

Awards and honors

Citations

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General sources