Naveen Jain
Naveen K. Jain | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 6, 1959 India |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, business leader |
| Known for | Founder and former CEO of InfoSpace; co-founder of Moon Express; founder and CEO of Viome |
Naveen K. Jain (born September 6, 1959) is an Indian-American entrepreneur and business leader, recognized as the founder and former CEO of InfoSpace. Before the collapse of the dot-com bubble and ensuing legal challenges involving Jain, InfoSpace had grown into one of the largest internet firms in the American Northwest. In 2010, he co-established Moon Express, where he currently holds the position of Executive Chairman, and in 2016, he launched Viome, serving as its CEO.
Early life
Jain was born in 1959 into a Jain family and spent his childhood in New Delhi as well as rural areas within Uttar Pradesh, India. He completed an engineering degree at IIT Roorkee in 1979 before relocating to the United States that same year. Inspired by self-made technology visionaries such as Bill Gates, he embarked on a career within the tech industry.
Early career
His professional journey began in 1983 at Burroughs (now known as Unisys) in New Jersey through a business exchange initiative. Subsequently, Jain transitioned to Silicon Valley, gaining experience at several startups prior to joining Microsoft in 1989. During his tenure at Microsoft, he contributed to projects including OS/2, MS-DOS, Windows NT, and Windows 95, obtaining three patents related to Windows 95 and earning recognition as a program manager.
Jain was also involved in the management team responsible for launching Microsoft Network (MSN). After eight years with Microsoft and motivated by a desire for greater influence, he departed following Netscape Communications' landmark $2.2 billion IPO in 1995—a pivotal event that accelerated the dot-com boom. He then established InfoSpace with ambitions to take his company public swiftly.
Expansion
In March 1996, Jain founded InfoSpace with a team of six employees, primarily former Microsoft colleagues, concentrating initially on e-mail and telephone directory services. InfoSpace supplied content and services—such as phone directories, maps, games, and stock market information—to websites and mobile device producers. The company expanded rapidly while maintaining low operational costs through co-branding partnerships, eventually going public on December 15, 1998, and raising $75 million.
Jain’s personal wealth surged to $8 billion as he held a 47% ownership stake in InfoSpace. However, numerous lawsuits accused him of promising stock options to attract talent and partners but failing to fulfill those commitments. An internal board investigation uncovered indications that Jain may have reneged on contractual stock option agreements with former employees and collaborators. Many disputes centered on offers to purchase shares at low prices that never came to fruition due to altered terms or dismissals. Jain defended these actions by citing vesting requirements mandating employees remain for at least one year.
Decline and repercussions
Following the collapse of the dot-com bubble in March 2000, InfoSpace’s share price plummeted from $138 to $1.56 by July 2001. Despite this dramatic decline, Jain predicted that InfoSpace would eventually eclipse companies like Microsoft, Intel, and Cisco combined in market share. Early in 2001, he sold $80 million worth of shares at depressed prices. Jain orchestrated a merger with Go2Net paid for with InfoSpace shares; shortly after, Go2Net’s founder departed and the company underwent staff reductions. Post-merger leadership changes saw Go2Net CEO Russell Horowitz appointed as InfoSpace president.
In 2000, InfoSpace reported profits of $46 million based on disputed accounting methods despite recording a $282 million loss overall. Company executives bypassed SEC trading restrictions to sell substantial personal stock holdings. Jain reassumed his role as CEO in 2001 amid shrinking revenues but continued assuring investors of future growth prospects. Even while laying off approximately 250 employees, executives sold shares as stock prices climbed on optimistic forecasts. The firm engaged in questionable accounting practices—including reciprocal investments involving Jain’s brother—to artificially boost revenue figures.
A shareholder lawsuit filed in 2001 accused Jain and other executives of deceiving investors while profiting from peak stock sales; this initiated additional legal actions. The board removed Jain from his CEO position in 2002; by December that year, he was ousted from both chairman and CEO roles.
In 2003, Jain faced an order to pay $247 million for violating "short-swing trading rules" by purchasing and selling shares within six months while possessing insider information. However, upon appeal supported by the SEC, this amount was reduced through a $105 million settlement. Jain attributed these trades to inadequate legal and financial counsel and subsequently sued his advisors for negligence; courts including the Supreme Court ultimately dismissed his claims.
Also during 2003, InfoSpace filed suit against Jain alleging misappropriation of trade secrets for founding Intelius and breaching non-compete clauses; the court ruled there was no competitive conflict between the companies and dismissed the case. By December 2004, an $83 million settlement between InfoSpace and Jain conclusively resolved all pending litigation with prejudice.
Intelius
In 2003, Jain co-established Intelius, a firm focused on gathering and marketing personal background data. The company’s revenue surged from $18.1 million in 2004 to $88.5 million by 2007, generating profits of $22.5 million. Intelius submitted paperwork for an initial public offering in 2008. However, it encountered consumer grievances concerning marketing tactics after transactions, where customers were inadvertently enrolled in expensive subscription plans. In 2012, Jain reorganized the enterprise under the name Inome. By 2015, Intelius was acquired by a private equity group; Jain maintained a 25% ownership share and resigned from his CEO position.
TalentWise
Jain launched TalentWise, a background verification offshoot originating from Intelius, which was divested in 2016, representing a notable exit within the background screening sector.
Moon Express
In August 2010, Jain co-founded and assumed the role of chairman at Moon Express, a company focused on creating robotic spacecraft designed to extract lunar minerals such as gold, cobalt, platinum, and Helium-3 for nuclear fuel applications. The organization also plans to harvest water from the Moon’s south pole to manufacture rocket propellant for missions targeting Mars and beyond. Jain articulated an ambitious vision to establish permanent human settlements on the Moon by 2022.
Bluedot
Jain is the founder and CEO of Bluedot, founded in 2015, which commercializes innovations licensed from U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories. Additionally, he created Viome in 2016 as a spin-off from Bluedot; Viome provides nutritional genomics testing and microbiome analysis aimed at delivering customized dietary recommendations.
Other activities
Jain holds board positions with the Kairos Society—a community of undergraduate entrepreneurs initiated by his son—the Xprize Foundation, and Singularity University. Alongside his wife, he launched the Anu and Naveen Jain Women’s Safety Xprize in 2016, offering a $1 million prize to encourage development of an affordable device capable of sending rapid and discreet emergency alerts.
He is also an avid meteorite collector; by 2012, his collection of documented meteorite falls had accumulated costs totaling $5 million.
Personal life
Jain married in 1988 and subsequently moved with his family to Seattle. He has three children, one of whom is entrepreneur Ankur Jain.