{{BLP sources|date=May 2015}} {{Short description|American entrepreneur (born 1972)}} {{Infobox person |name = Matt Williams |image = |image_size = |caption = Matt Williams |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1972|8|21|mf=yes}} |birth_place = Dallas, Texas, U.S. |alma_mater = University of Arizona |occupation = CEO of Pro.com |known_for = CEO of Digg.com, Amazon executive |website = }}
'''Matt Williams''' (born August 21, 1972 in Dallas, Texas) is an American Internet entrepreneur and the CEO of Pro.com.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/05/13/pro-com/?ncid=rss|title=Former Digg CEO Matt Williams Launches Pro.com To Connect Homeowners With Nearby Contractors|work=Tech Crunch|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref> Previous positions include CEO of Digg.com, executive roles at Amazon, and Entrepreneur-In-Residence at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.<ref name="seattle times">{{cite web|url=http://blogs.seattletimes.com/brierdudley/2014/05/13/16734/|title=Amazon vets launch home-improvement site|work=Seattle Times|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
==Early life and education== Williams was born in Dallas, Texas, and grew up in the Pacific Northwest, attending Shorecrest High School near Seattle, Washington. His parents were both entrepreneurs: his father starting radio stations, including KUBE 93.3 in Seattle<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.geekwire.com/2014/former-digg-ceo-raises-3-5m-jeff-bezos-andreessen-horowitz-others-pro-com-new-way-get-price-estimates-home-projects/|title=Ex-Digg CEO raises $3.5M from Jeff Bezos, Andreessen Horowitz and others for Pro.com, giving you price estimates for home projects|work=GeekWire|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=May 2015}} and his mother starting Lake Forest Park Montessori in North Seattle. Williams graduated from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mcguireexperience.com/2014/04/judges-announced-mcguirenvc/ |title=Judges Announced for 2014 McGuire New Venture Competition and Showcase |work=McGuire Experience |accessdate=May 30, 2014 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140514164927/http://mcguireexperience.com/2014/04/judges-announced-mcguirenvc/ |archivedate=May 14, 2014 }}</ref>
==Career==
===LiveBid.com=== In 1996 Williams and high-school friend Sky Kruse cofounded Seattle-based LiveBid.com, a proprietary software site that partnered with traditional auction houses to stream their events online, allowing Internet bidders to participate in bidding.<ref name="Livebid sale">{{cite web|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/1999/04/19/story3.html?page=all|title=Looking for auction|work=Puget Sound Business Journal|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19990412/2954785/amazoncom-buying-online-auction-firm----deal-with-seattle-based-livebid-expands-services|title=Amazon.Com Buying Online Auction Firm -- Deal With Seattle-Based Livebid Expands Services|work=The Seattle Times|access-date= May 30, 2014}}</ref> The firm was acquired by Amazon in 1999.<ref name="Livebid sale"/>
===Amazon=== Williams remained at Amazon until 2010, he occupied several executive roles, including General Manager of Payments.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2010-08-31/digg-names-amazon-com-manager-matt-williams-as-chief-executive|title=Digg Names Amazon.com Manager Matt Williams as Chief Executive|date=August 31, 2010|website=Bloomberg|access-date=2019-12-08}}</ref> He was responsible for early iterations of various web products, including Amazon's Selling on Amazon and WebStore by Amazon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abu/y208/m02/abu0209/s02|title=Amazon: We Want Sellers. An Interview with Matt Williams|work=EcommerceBytes|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
In 2001, Williams initiated a partnership between Amazon and the Annual Today Show Holiday Drive, a project of the Today Show Charitable Foundation, Inc. The partnership allowed Amazon customers to select and purchase a wish list of toy products for needy children from the site.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.today.com/id/15381058/ns/today/t/today-launches-th-annual-holiday-gift-drive/|title='Today' launches 13th annual holiday gift drive|work=today.com |date=23 October 2006 }}</ref>
===Digg.com=== In September 2010, Williams became CEO of social news aggregator Digg.com. He inherited a number of challenges: the technically marred release of site redesign Digg v4 had resulted in a decline in customer usage and an alienation of the site's core audience; at the same time, changes in the internet milieu - most particularly Google's search algorithm - had made Digg's news aggregation model less relevant.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://allthingsd.com/20120712/betaworks-buys-digg-assets-and-john-borthwick-becomes-ceo/|title=Betaworks Buys Digg Assets and John Borthwick Becomes CEO|work=All Things D|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref> After the departure of former CEO Jay Adelson, founder Kevin Rose had run the company, making Williams the company's third CEO within a span of months.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thenextweb.com/socialmedia/2010/06/08/diggs-looking-for-a-replacement-ceo/|title=Digg's Looking For A New CEO|work=The Next Web|date=8 June 2010 |accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
During Williams' tenure, the firm's metrics began to rebound. Site engagement increased significantly: Diggs and time on site by 20%, the total number of comments submitted per day by 50%.<ref name="Techcrunch">{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/03/21/interview-with-digg-ceo-matt-williams-on-future-of-digg/|title=Interview With Digg CEO Matt Williams On Future Of Digg|work=TechCrunch|date=21 March 2011 |accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref> Despite this, the company's burn rate remained high, resulting in layoffs of 40% of staff and cuts in operational costs in order to approach cash flow positive in 2011.<ref name="Techcrunch" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2010/10/25/digg-to-lay-off-37-percentof-staff/|title=Digg To Layoff 37% Of Staff, Product Refocus Imminent|work=TechCrunch|date=25 October 2010 |accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
In July 2012, Williams completed the sale of Digg in three parts: some staff members were transferred to ''The Washington Post'''s SocialCode project for $12 million, a suite of patents were sold to LinkedIn for $4 million, and the Digg brand and website was sold to Betaworks for stock plus at least $500,000 cash.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slashgear.com/digg-sale-splits-the-company-three-ways-for-16m-total-13238530/|title=Digg sale splits the company three ways for $16m total|work=Slash Gear|date=13 July 2012 |accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
===Pro.com=== In mid-2013, Williams became CEO of the Internet startup Pro.com, a home services marketplace where users receive instant price estimates from home professionals and schedule appointments online.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/05/13/pro-matt-williams-digg-amazon-home-maintenance-market/8998041/|title=Pro.com wants to make home repairs easier for consumers|work=USA Today|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
==Other activities== In 2012 Williams became Entrepreneur in Residence at the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.<ref name="seattle times" /> Williams is a Member of the Board of Directors for SmartThings.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smartthings.com/about/|title=About SmartThings|work=Smarthings.com|accessdate= May 30, 2014}}</ref>
== References == {{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
== External links == * [https://pro.com/ Pro.com website]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Matt}} <!--- Categories ---> Category:1972 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century American businesspeople Category:American chief executives in technology Category:Amazon (company) people Category:University of Arizona alumni