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Brandon Wu
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About
- I've always been obsessed with design, music, books, and games. So, after pursuing an MBA and doing what I was "supposed to do", I made the scary decision to leave my corporate job at Sony and follow these passions. I began a game studio, Studio Pepwuper, and co-founded a digital publishing company, 30 Day Books, in early 2010 and I've never looked back.With experience in both the corporate and independent creative world, I have a keen eye for business strategy, spotting trends, start up market analysis and forecasting in the tech and creative industries.Previously:
- Sony Corporation, Tokyo. Headquarters Strategy Division, Network Products and Services
- Electronic Arts. Maxis Studio (The Sims series)
- University of Southern California, MBA 2007. Concentration: Entrepreneurship, Technology Commercialization
- University of California, Berkeley. BA in Economics 2002
- Social Profiles: Twitter - Linkedin - Google+ - Quora
Some of the other things I've done:
- Bestselling Amazon Author - aced the GMAT within a month (99th percentile, 780), and wrote/published a book about it. The book is now among the best selling GMAT books on Amazon and Kindle and is in its 3rd Edition.
- Performed at Carnegie Hall in 2009, with celloist Yo-Yo Ma and conductor Daniel Harding in New York City with the Sony orchestra (he played violin) .
- Proposed at one of the world's busiest intersections in Shibuya, with a picture of me and my now-wife on the TV display. (and did it without spending a dime.)
- Survived living in Japan for 3 years without speaking much Japanese.
Selected Media Appearances:
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Info
- Tablet and Mobile Development | Gaming and Unity 3D | Founder of Studio Pepwuper | Occasional Author & SpeakerComputer Games | Greater Seattle Area, USSummary
I'm a multidisciplinary entrepreneur with 10 years of experience in games, books, web, and mobile.
The intersection between technology, art, and business excites me like nothing else. When combined beautifully, I believe they can change the world for the better. To that end, I'm the founder of Studio Pepwuper, a mobile tablet game production company, and the co-founder of 30 Day Books; a book and eBook studio.
We work with clients to produce the game they have in their head, and take it to fruition on mobile and/or tablet devices. We also work on our game IP, My Giants, which will be alpha-released in Spring 2013 (built with the game engine Unity 3D).
I run the Unity 3D user group in Seattle, which meets monthly and is growing close to 400 enthusiastic Unity 3D users. I'm also a bestselling author on Amazon.com and an avid violin player. I teach a course on Skillshare about how to make a video game in 4 weeks using Unity 3D: http://skl.sh/SwBox6.
Experience- Nov 2012 - PresentStrategy Consultant, http://BrandonWu.co / Strategy Consultant
I've always been obsessed with design, music, books, and games. So, after pursuing an MBA and doing what I was "supposed to do", I made the scary decision to leave my corporate job at Sony and follow these passions. I began a game studio, Studio Pepwuper, and co-founded a digital publishing company, 30 Day Books, and I've never looked back.
With experience in both the corporate and independent creative world, I have a keen eye for business strategy, spotting trends, start up market analysis and forecasting. People often tell me I'm from the future... I just think I'm good at spotting the next big thing! I'd love to do this for your business or project.
Industries:
Consumer Technology, Mobile, Tablets, Internet, New Media, Digital Publishing, Games & Apps, Unity 3DAsk me about:
Feasibility Analysis, Market Sizing, Market Trends, Emerging Business Models, Competitive Analysis - Nov 2011 - PresentFounder & Organizer / Seattle Unity 3D User Group
Organize monthly events for the Seattle Unity 3D Community.
- Feb 2010 - PresentFounder and CEO / Studio Pepwuper
Founder and CEO of Studio Pepwuper. Studio Pepwuper handles client work, while also working on our own game, My Giants. We believe games should be fun, accessible, and always fresh, and have a strict 'No gun policy'. It's time to play something new!
We use Unity 3D to build games, apps and tools for individuals, small businesses, and large corporations alike.
A team of game and tech industry veterans, we create games to extend your brand and influence onto new mobile platforms. From simple puzzle games, 3D adventures, to multiplayer experiences, we’d love to turn your idea into a reality.
- Jan 2010 - PresentCo-founder, Author / 30 Day Books
Co-founder of 30 Day Books and author of "30 Day GMAT Success" - the No.1 bestselling GMAT guide on Amazon Kindle store.
- 2007 - 2010Manager, Global Business / Sony Corporation (Japan)
Internal Strategic Consulting - New Business Incubation at Sony Headquarters Strategy Division. Built economic models and projection for large-scale new business developments in the consumer Internet sector to evaluate opportunities and risks. Conducted primary consumer research and industry analysis to understand market/revenue potential, and the growth and profitability of various sectors in the Internet and Mobile industries.
Business Development and Strategic Alliances. Established and oversaw multiple partnerships with high-tech start-ups and corporations in Silicon Valley and in Japan. Worked closely with partners to launch successful initiatives and new venture in the Internet and Consumer Electronics space.
- 2003 - 2004Quality Assurance Lead / Electronic Arts
Led quality assurance team in developing and implementing cost-effective testing process in the largest video game publisher with revenues of $3.1B and 6,100 employees. Maintained high quality of the product, resulting in a successful $50M product launch.
Education-
2005 - 2008University of Southern California - Marshall School of Business
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2000 - 2003University of California, Berkeley
Additional Information-
Websites:
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Tweets
- Official house party glass found! - We Will Use Your Phone as a Coaster Since You Don't Have Any Manners http://t.co/NrFWnzc81Y #design
- Remember to Iterate! "unfortunately all we ended up creating was what we had originally planned" - Miyamoto http://t.co/Vd4bREHF2A
- Want to boost growth? Support start-ups | The World Economic Forum http://t.co/Xn1HQw5FqS
- RT @paulg: America's Worst Charities: http://t.co/4ZCJem3DJj
- Review: Minecraft and the Secret to a Video-Game Phenomenon via MIT Technology Review http://t.co/Tnt2RaUFNQ @TechReview #indiegames
- Something to think about - Lucas and Spielberg on storytelling in games: 'it's not going to be Shakespeare' http://t.co/sK2vNhvInl
- The real world battle of superheroes - RT @TheEconomist: the big-screen battle between DC and Marvel http://t.co/gld15ORot4…
- RT @BosUnityGroup: Jul 8 Boston Unity Group meeting featuring Unity employees @krobulous, @dana_ramnarine and Randy - http://t.co/ynvpE6tXa…
- "Why I keep investing in a game that no one cares about" http://t.co/roLBKoUdDV via @gamasutra #indiegames
- Just caught up on Sony @Playstation Press Conference. Beautiful. http://t.co/0dBcDzY3R6Jun 11, 13 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- RT @LauraPepWu: Whazzam! Issue 2 of The Write Life Magazine is HERE! It makes for super weekend reading :) http://t.co/TCApCKOGQ8
- RT @rhiandavies1985: Saturday afternoon downtime #thewritelifemag @LauraPepWu http://t.co/yyJOwvDFp4
- RT @designtaxi: Café accepts kisses as ‘payment’ for coffee http://t.co/NrkNEmDnUh
- @RonnieAshlock and talent you've got! :)
- RT @AmsterdamMama: So excited to be part of #thewritelifemag 2nd issue! Thanks @LauraPepWu for the opportunity! ck it out! http://t.co/Bqmn…
- At the awesome Seattle WordCamp! @berkun putting WORDS back into WordPress #wordcamp #wcsea http://t.co/6CpHcOzrM8
- Yes! Issue 2 of #thewritelifemag done and submitted. Thx for the hard work @LauraPepWu ! Now the much needed sleep. TGIF!
- "putting boxes on a page" or more? - Are coders worth it? http://t.co/O7SdKnPA0I
- RT @geekwire: The No. 1 reason startups fail: Premature scaling http://t.co/vTZYJlM3pl [Startup Tip]
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Projects
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Posts
- May 26, 13
Stage One: No, thank you. My first thought when learning about the new iOS game “Running with Friends” from Zynga: “Another endless running game, really?” Running games on mobile are popular; Canabalt, Temple Run, Mirror’s Edge are great examples of … Continue reading
- May 11, 13
We work with technology. We love our smartphones and tablets and thin light air-inspired laptops. We love the shiny new app that makes everything faster, easier, cheaper, and more stable, more secure, more intuitive. We love the new features with … Continue reading
- Dec 26, 12
Everyone games. From Wii Sports to Scrabble to Temple Run to Draw Something to Clash of Clans, games are being played by more people than ever. Yet we are still stuck with the term “gamers”. We don't call people going … Continue reading
- Dec 23, 12
You see Angry Birds generating millions of downloads, becoming an international sensation out of nowhere. You say to yourself, heck, I can make that too. So off you go, building the next physics based puzzle game with cutesy animal characters. … Continue reading
- Dec 19, 12
I had an anger inside, much like Nick in the sitcom New Girl with a persistent, almost comical, fire burning internally. It took me some time to realize what I was angry about – an anger stemmed from the sharp … Continue reading
- Nov 29, 12
A little more than a year ago, I started the Unity3D User Group in Seattle (link). And I must first admit that the reason I started the group was rather selfish. Let me start the story from the very beginning. After … Continue reading
- Nov 28, 12
(My dog in the uber packed car when we drove up to Seattle from LA) I was going through all the drafts I’d written for this blog, and found this post I started in December 2011. Laura and I had … Continue reading
- Nov 20, 12
I saw this question on Quora – “Epiphany: What is the most profound epiphany you ever had?“ I don’t have epiphanies very often, so I had to share the one that jumps to mind and add my two cents to … Continue reading
- Sep 19, 12
“What is indie?” the younger boy asked. “Indie means you have to work harder.” the older brother answered. I watched a Japanese film called I Wish in July. It’s a story about two little brothers trying to re-unite their separated … Continue reading
- Jul 16, 12
Washing up, the act of cleaning dirty bowls and dishes, became a meditating ritual for me a year into starting the business. It was by no means intentional. I never liked doing washing up. In college, my roommate and I … Continue reading
Previously a strategiest at Sony and a developer at Electronic Arts (EA), Brandon is the founder of Studio Pepwuper and co-founder of 30 Day Books. He's also a bestselling author on Amazon.com and an avid violin player.
Email: brandon@pepwuper.com
