Expert Resume/CV

Investor, advisor, resource and deal-guy. Introductions and strategic relationships.

Rick Gibson has had a 35-year career building businesses. He founded and co-foundedseveral successful technology companies and has advised over (75) others. He is 59-years old. Since 2000, Rick has served as Managing Director of HOTventures , a "mentorcapital fund" for the Southwest U.S., which invests in and advises fast-growth companies,specializing in Information Technology, BioSciences, GreenTech and Media. As an investorand entrepreneurial activist, he’s totally immersed in early-stage growth companies...findingthem and making them great. Rick’s been involved with several companies that have hadliquidity events. Rick has served as an expert witness regarding technology business cases.

Rick has been an investor, advisor or board member in: Avisere, Beamz, The Book Patch,Bourque Industries, CopperKey, DisImpact, Flypaper, Funding Universe, GridCoNet, HighThroughput Genomics, Medipacs, MedSphere, MDS VetInfo, MojoVideo, MSDx, Octopi, RealTime Companies, Regenesis, Sokikom, StrongWatch, World Wide Wheat and Kind Vines. Hehas been a limited partner in Solstice Capital II (one of the largest venture capital funds inArizona) and is a shareholder in Bill Gross’ Idealab.

In Tucson, Rick is on the Executive Board and Screening Committee of the Desert Angelsand on the board and a mentor for UA’s Arizona Center for Innovation (AZCI). Forseveral years, was Adjunct Instructor and then Practitioner Faculty for UA’s Eller SchoolEntrepreneurship Program, and also served on the MBA Advisory Council.

In Phoenix, Rick has been on the board of Arizona State University's Technopolis andwas an Entrepreneur-in-Residence, an instructor for both the LaunchPad and LaunchPrepentrepreneurship programs, and a mentor for ASU TechBA, coaching companies fromMexico. He is on the Executive Committee and Selection Panel for the Invest SouthwestCapital Conference. He was creator of "Entrepreneur's Resource Guide" for bizAZ magazineand a member of the Philanthropic Development Council of the Banner Alzheimer'sFoundation.
In Flagstaff, Rick is on the Executive Board and is Treasurer of NACET (Northern ArizonaCenter for Emerging Technologies) and is also a mentor.

Elsewhere, Rick has been a judge for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Awards,and on the Angel Capital Association’s National Collaboration Committee. He is also on theselection committee for the Rocky Mountain Life Science Investor Conference. He was aguest instructor for the Power of Angel Investing seminar for Angel Capital Association 2008Summit.

Rick was an early shareholder in Bill Gross' Idealab and founded one of its first companies,E-Ticket Inc, which merged with the Nederlander Organization's RealTime SyndicationNetwork to become FeatureCast Inc. Rick served as Vice-Chairman. FeatureCast securedthe online license for and executive-produced: Fox's America's Most Wanted, Teen Magazineand National Enquirer. Rick participated in strategic planning with the ten original IdealabCEOs. Idealab is known for its creation and investment of several well-known technologycompanies including: Overture (acquired by Yahoo), United Online (was NetZero and Juno),Aptera, Internet Brands, CitySearch, Energy Innovations, eSolar, Desktop Factory, Picasa,Tickets.com, eToys and Evolution Robotics. [See http://idealab.com]. 1998-2000, Rick wasan advisor to the board of directors of Petersen Publishing, producers of 100+ magazinesincluding Motor Trend, Hot Rod and Teen.

Rick co-founded GNP Development Corp and in 1986 they sold it to Lotus DevelopmentCorp for $10 million. In 1991, they co-founded Knowledge Adventure Inc, which in1996 they sold to Cendant for $100 million. Knowledge Adventure became the world'slargest children's CD-ROM edutainment software company (almost $400 million in annual revenues), owned by Vivendi-Universal, known for its 'JumpStart' (20 million units sold)and ‘Blaster’ series.

1986 through 1991, Rick consulted to several software companies including Ashton-Tate,Que Software/Macmillan and SPSS Inc, and arranged sales of technology to Symantec,Microlytics and Paramount Publishing. Rick directed a division of Ashton-Tate and wasChairman of 4-5-6 WORLD, a direct marketer of Lotus products. Earlier, Rick directednational sales and or marketing and helped start or re-start: Fisher Corp, KLH, Ultralinearand Androbot Inc (the personal robot start-up by Nolan Bushnell, who founded Atari andChuck E Cheese). Rick began his career as one of the first store managers for The GAP Inc,which now has over 3,000 stores including Old Navy and Banana Republic.