Co-Founder and Chairman at plyfe
Wireless | San Francisco Bay Area, US
Zaw Thet is a veteran entrepreneur who has been at the forefront of search, social networking, mobile, and advertising since the age of 19. In 2011, Zaw was selected as one of ten entrepreneurs to serve on the United Nations Foundation's Global Entrepreneurs Council. Currently, Zaw is incubating two stealth projects (plyfe.me just launched) as a co-founder and board member that cross between the mobile, social, gamification, ecommerce, video, and advertising sectors.
Most recently the Founder & CEO of 4INFO, which he founded 2004, the AdHaven division of 4INFO has become the largest mobile advertising platform in the US under his leadership: working with thousands of top tier publishers, advertisers, online advertising partners and platforms, and reaching hundreds of millions of mobile users every month. Among his many accolades, Zaw was selected as one of Business Week's "Mobile Barons" and he is quoted in the national press on a regular basis in publications such as the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. As a featured speaker, he has recently appeared at TechCrunch Disrupt, Dialog, Summit Series, EO Alchemy, Guardian Activate, , SxSW, ad:tech, the MMA, and the 4A's.
He is also dedicated to philanthropy and the nonprofit sector: Zaw is the Chairman & Founder of Palindrome Advisors, a nonprofit he launched in March 2011 whose mission is to change how leaders give back and over 100 elite business leaders that have taken Palindrome Pledge and are matched with nonprofit boards. He is also is on the national board of After School All Stars, founded by Gov. Schwarzenegger, the largest nonprofit serving underprivileged 6-8th graders across the country. He is also an honorary board member of the San Francisco SPCA. Zaw studied Political and Computer Science at Stanford, where he was a President's Scholar. He also received his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was a Soros Fellow, and is still the youngest graduate in the school's history.
Jan
2012 - Present
Spreecast Host (and Advisor) / Spreecast
Follow me here: http://www.spreecast.com/users/zaw and get ready for Weekly Interviews with Interesting, Insightful People and Ideas!
Apr
2011 - Present
Global Entrepreneurs Council Member / United Nations Foundation
The United Nations Foundation has brought together ten of the brightest entrepreneurs under the age of 40 to help the UN achieve a new level of innovation and impact in solving global problems. Together they form the first class of the Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurs Council - the next generation of great thinkers who pledge to help the UN create a better world. Learn more at:
http://www.unfoundation.org/press-center/press-releases/2011/un-foundation-announces-inaugural-class-global-entrepreneurs-council.html
2011 - Present
Co-Founder and Chairman / plyfe
Founded in 2011, plyfe (www.plyfe.me) is a revolutionary new company that gives any consumer the ability to be rewarded for their digital, social, mobile and real-world activities (through plyfe.me or on partners' properties), by competing in games with leaderboards to earn points that can be redeemed for real prizes and products. Its mission is to make your online, mobile and real-world activities more social, rewarding and fun. Full details and access to plyfe's gamification platform for partners will be announced in April. plyfe's primary headquarters are in New York City, with additional offices in San Francisco and Pittsburgh. Come play life with plyfe!
Jun
2010 - Present
Board Member / After-School All-Stars
May
2010 - Present
Chairman and Founder / Palindrome Advisors
Palindrome Advisors is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to change how leaders give back. With over one hundred Founding Advisors and thirty nonprofit partners, Palindrome links the nonprofit world with executive level leaders that give back through a number of programs, including but not limited to: serving on the board of a nonprofit (the Palindrome Pledge), mentoring the next generation of entrepreneurs, engaging in volunteering programs and nonprofit-based salons, and dedicating time and resources to building tools specifically for nonprofit partners. Palindrome was founded in May 2010 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.
2004 - Present
Chief Evangelist / AdHaven (a division of 4INFO)
AdHaven, a division of 4INFO, is rethinking mobile advertising with an innovative approach centered on mobile audiences that enables true audience targeting at scale.
The AdHaven Mobile Audience Platform includes a next-generation mobile ad server, audience and data management platform, and analytics platform that combine to deliver the most advanced targeting and highest ROI in the mobile advertising industry. AdHaven partners with the world’s leading data providers, inventory exchanges, and ad-sources to bridge the gap between mobile inventory and online advertising spend. Publishers and app developers use AdHaven to sell and manage mobile inventory or optimize revenue.
The AdHaven Audience Network serves targeted mobile ads for the world’s top agencies and brands like Ford, Universal Pictures, KFC, Kmart, Amtrak, and Proctor & Gamble. The AdHaven Audience network is made up of a large network of well-known web properties and apps, offering a complete suite of mobile ad units in mobile web, apps, video and SMS. Premium publishers include brands such as Gannett, CBS, NBC, Discovery Channel, Yahoo!, AOL, the National Basketball Association, IAC, E!, and The Weather Channel.
4INFO, the parent company of AdHaven, has been at the forefront of mobile innovation since 2004 and is headquartered in San Mateo, CA with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston.
Jul
2004 -
Nov
2011
CEO/Founder / 4INFO / AdHaven (a division of 4INFO)
Founded in 2004, with a consistent track record of innovation and reliability, 4INFO is a diversified mobile advertising, media, and technology company that reaches millions of mobile consumers daily and touches them billions of times a month. AdHaven by 4INFO, recently spun out as its own division, is the industry's first mobile audience platform and network. The AdHaven Mobile Audience Platform includes a next-generation mobile ad server with the most advanced targeting capabilities in the mobile advertising industry, and the AdHaven Audience Network. 4INFO originated the first mobile optimized search engine for SMS, and still offers an array of consumer services and an enterprise-class SMS publishing platform. 4INFO is headquartered in San Mateo, CA with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston. Learn more at http://www.4info.com.
Sept
2003 -
Sept
2004
Special Consultant / San Francisco 49ers
Mar
2003 -
Jun
2004
Director of Business Development / Spoke Software
Jan
2001 -
Apr
2002
Emerging Technology Analyst / IBM
Sept
1999 -
Jan
2001
Co-founder / GetInventory