Brian Wong is a Canadian Internet entrepreneur. In 2010, Wong co-founded Kiip, a mobile app rewards platform that lets brands and companies give real-world rewards for in-game achievements. In 2019, Wong was dismissed as Kiip CEO and replaced by Jason Lapp due to sexual assault charges.
Early life and education
Wong was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, to parents of Hong Kong descent. His father was an accountant and his mother was a nurse. He received his high school diploma at the age of 14 after twice skipping two grades at the University Transition Program at UBC. Wong received a bachelor's degree from the University of British Columbia at the age of 18. While at university, Wong launched his first company, FollowFormation, which Mashable called "the easiest way to follow the top Twitterers by subject matter or topic." One of his most recent ventures, Kiip, made him one of the youngest internet entrepreneurs to raise venture capital. In 2010, Wong worked for the business development of Digg, leading the development and release of the Digg AndroidMobile App. Soon after a joining and after a disastrous redesign, Digg had a round of corporate layoffs. Wong was let go after five months, an experience that eventually led to him opening his own business.
Kiip
Wong, at 19, received the initial inspiration for Kiip on an airplane as he observed his fellow passengers interacting with their iPads. He noticed that many passengers were playing games, and felt that the games' advertisements took up screen space without adding any real value. Because he perceived that games are a "holy grail of achievement," Wong wanted to leverage key moments of achievement—such as level ups and high scores—with a targeted, relevant rewards program that enabled brands to reach consumers when they were most engaged. In July 2010, Wong teamed with his fellow former Digg employees Courtney Guertin and their mutual friend Amadeus Demarzi to found Kiip. Kiip sends achievement-based rewards like coupons to 100 million consumers monthly, and has raised more than $32 million of venture capital from companies like Relay Ventures, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, True Ventures, Verizon Ventures, Crosslink Capital, and others. Kiip has offices in San Francisco, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Tokyo and London. The company has established strategic partnerships with more than 40 major brands, including 1-800-Flowers, Amazon.com, American Apparel, Best Buy, Carl's Jr., Disney, Dr. Pepper, GNC, KY Jelly, Pepsi, Playboy, Popchips, Sephora, Victoria's Secret, Vitamin Water and others. Kiip is on track to do more than $20 million in revenue in 2017. In 2019, Kiip replaced Wong as CEO with Jason Lapp. His removal came after an indefinite leave of absence with Kiip CRO Bill Alena serving as interim CEO in his stead.
Recognition
In 2010, Wong became one of the youngest company leaders to ever receive funding from a venture capital firm. He was also self-made by the time he was 20 years old. He has spoken at several popular conferences, including TEDx and SXSW. In addition, Wong and Kiip have been profiled in such global publications as Forbes, Entrepreneur, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Inc. Magazine. Wong was on the cover of the September 2014 issue of Entrepreneur as one of the young millionaires changing the world. Wong was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30/Social/Mobile list in 2011.
Publications
Wong is author of "The Cheat Code: Going Off Script to Get More, Go Faster, and Shortcut Your Way to Success," which is "aimed at helping young people just starting their careers." It was published in September 2016.
Sexual assault charges
In 2019, Wong was indicted on felony charges for sexual assault. Although the trial is still ongoing, Wong allegedly sexually assaulted a date after the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, in March 2016.
