Evan Spiegel
Evan Spiegel | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 4, 1990 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Known for | Co-founder and CEO of Snap Inc. |
Evan Thomas Spiegel (born June 4, 1990) is an American entrepreneur who co-founded and currently serves as CEO of Snap Inc.. In 2015, Spiegel held the distinction of being the youngest billionaire worldwide. As of June 2025, Forbes estimated his net worth at $2.6 billion.
Early life and education
Spiegel was born in Los Angeles, California, to attorneys John W. Spiegel and Melissa Ann Thomas. Raised in Pacific Palisades, California within an Episcopalian family, he attended the Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences before enrolling at Stanford University.
Prior to his time at Stanford, Spiegel pursued design studies at both Otis College of Art and Design and the Art Center College of Design located in Pasadena. His early professional experiences included an unpaid sales internship with Red Bull, paid roles at a biomedical company, a position as a career instructor in South Africa, and work on the TxtWeb project during an internship at Intuit. He is also affiliated with the Kappa Sigma fraternity.
Career
In April 2011, Spiegel introduced the concept of an app featuring self-deleting messages as part of a product design course. Later that year, alongside Stanford peers Bobby Murphy and Reggie Brown, he developed a prototype initially named "Picaboo," which was eventually rebranded as Snapchat. The application quickly gained traction, prompting Spiegel to leave Stanford in 2012 to concentrate on Snapchat's growth before completing his degree. By the end of that year, Snapchat had amassed one million daily active users. Spiegel finished his remaining academic requirements and graduated in 2018. Time magazine recognized him among the 100 most influential individuals worldwide in both 2014 and 2017.
In February 2017, Spiegel and Murphy committed over 13 million shares of Class A common stock to create the Snap Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering opportunities within the creative economy for underrepresented youth in Los Angeles. During the COVID-19 crisis, this foundation contributed $3 million to support impacted communities. Following Snap Inc.'s initial public offering in March 2017, Spiegel and Murphy retained control over more than 70% of voting rights while holding approximately 45% ownership of total shares.
In 2021, Spiegel joined the board of directors at investment management firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.
Personal life
Spiegel began a relationship with Australian model Miranda Kerr in 2015. The couple became engaged on July 20, 2016, and subsequently married in a private ceremony held in Los Angeles on May 27, 2017. Before their engagement, Spiegel acquired a $12 million residence spanning 7,164 square feet in Brentwood, West Los Angeles—a property previously owned by Harrison Ford and Owen Reilly. Together, Spiegel and Kerr have three sons and share a stepson from Kerr’s earlier marriage to Orlando Bloom.
By 2021, Spiegel was ranked number 55 on the Forbes 400 list with a net worth of $13.8 billion. At age 26 in 2017, he became one of the youngest CEOs leading a publicly traded company when Snap debuted on the stock market. Additionally, Spiegel serves on the Berggruen Institute's 21st Century Council as well as its board of directors.
A devoted Francophile, Spiegel learned French and obtained French citizenship for himself and his son Hart in 2018 through naturalization provisions favoring those contributing to France’s cultural or economic sectors. In November 2022, he joined the board of directors at Gagosian Gallery.
Philanthropy
That same year, Spiegel contributed $20 million to Stockton Scholars, a scholarship initiative based in Stockton, California.
During the 2022 commencement ceremony at Otis College of Art and Design, Spiegel and Miranda Kerr declared their intention to settle the student loan debts of the graduating students.
Controversies
In 2014, emails from Spiegel’s time at Stanford were made public, exposing sexist and homophobic comments, including suggestions to use excessive alcohol consumption as a means to influence women. These messages also featured derogatory language and mentions of underage drinking.
Spiegel issued a statement expressing that he was "deeply ashamed and embarrassed" by the content of those emails. He apologized for his previous conduct and highlighted that such opinions do not represent his current character or his respect toward women.