Amir Satvat
Amir Satvat | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 1, 1982 Farmington, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Occupation | Business executive |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Known for | Business development director at Tencent Games; founder of Amir Satvat's Games Community; volunteer support for video game industry jobseekers |
Amir Satvat is an American business executive currently holding the position of business development director at Tencent Games since 2023. He is widely acknowledged for his volunteer efforts aimed at supporting jobseekers and individuals who have been laid off within the video game industry.
Beginning in November 2022, Satvat launched a spreadsheet on his LinkedIn profile that aggregated video game employment opportunities gathered through web scraping. This project grew into a network comprising 13 job support resources spread across various platforms, ultimately assisting more than 3,900 individuals in obtaining roles in the gaming sector.
Early life
Born on April 1, 1982,[1] Satvat was raised in Farmington, Connecticut, where he continues to reside and work remotely.[2] He completed his secondary education at the Loomis Chaffee School in 2000 and later earned a bachelor's degree in finance from Boston College.[3]
Over a span of five years, Satvat attained three master's degrees: one in biotechnology from the University of Pennsylvania, an MBA specializing in healthcare administration from the Wharton School, and a Master of Public Administration focusing on health policy from New York University.[4]
On April 13, 2013, he married Jessica Ellen Leight at the Peabody Essex Museum located in Salem, Massachusetts.[5]
Professional career
Although Satvat’s ambition to enter the video game industry began at age four, he initially opted against relocating to the West Coast to remain close to family in New England. His professional background spans 15 years within finance and technology sectors, including positions as an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs and various roles in business development and strategy at companies such as Dell EMC, VMware, and Veeam. In 2019, he assumed the role of chief operating officer for Amazon Inc.’s Amazon Web Services cloud sales center. By 2020, he shifted focus to gaming, becoming business development lead for Prime Gaming, followed by his appointment as principal publishing producer at Amazon Games’ studio in Montreal. In August 2023, Satvat joined Tencent Games as a business development director.
In November 2022, Satvat took initiative to support laid-off game developers by designing a publicly available spreadsheet featuring job listings. Utilizing his proficiency with spreadsheet macros and web scraping techniques, this tool—hosted on Google Sheets—organizes thousands of listings across 20 different sectors and is updated monthly. By September 2024, it had expanded to include over 15,000 postings. This endeavor matured into Amir Satvat's Games Community, which operates with volunteer assistance and offers 13 job-seeking resources such as job boards and mentorship programs distributed over multiple platforms.
Outside of his role at Tencent, Satvat contributes to the advisory network of Vivrato, a strategic consultancy for the gaming industry founded by Adam Boyes. Additionally, he acts as a special advisor to the Zero Abuse Project, dedicated to preventing child abuse through educational initiatives. His Games Community also participates annually in Gamers for CHOC, supporting the Children's Hospital of Orange County.
Recognition
Satvat was honored with the first-ever Game Changer Award at the Game Awards 2024, acknowledging his influential contributions to the gaming sector. His heartfelt acceptance speech was widely praised as the standout moment of the ceremony. However, some commentators associated Satvat’s tenure at Tencent with recent industry job cuts and pointed out that the event did not address this issue. Shortly after, Satvat revealed that he had been targeted with numerous hateful messages, including antisemitic attacks directed at his spouse, and clarified that he had never been involved in layoffs or mergers and acquisitions during his time at Tencent or Amazon.
In 2025, Satvat was recognized with the Giving Award from Games for Change, celebrating his notable efforts in community support such as fundraising and career development assistance. Additionally, he received the first Industry Impact Award from Game Dev Heroes for his role in helping thousands secure employment amid a difficult period for the industry.
That same year, Amir Satvat's Games Community became an official Industry and Media Partner of the Game Developers Conference, contributing 240 Expo Passes valued at over $100,000 to assist jobseekers. The community also gained recognition as the largest grassroots career support initiative within gaming through its participation in the Gamescom Cares program.
Since 2023, Satvat has been acknowledged as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Video Games, an accolade given to members whose content consistently generates high engagement and positively influences their communities.
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