Ali Partovi

CEO, Neo / Co-founder, Code.org

Ali Partovi is an Iranian-American entrepreneur, angel investor, and technology executive. He is the CEO of Neo, a mentorship community and communal VC fund, and the co-founder of the non-profit organization Code.org, which promotes computer science education. Partovi has a long history in tech, having co-founded LinkExchange (acquired by Microsoft) and iLike (acquired by MySpace), and was an early investor and advisor in major companies like Facebook, Uber, Airbnb, and Dropbox.

Master's, Harvard University

United States

Instagram3.8K

Twitter33.1K

Facebook

Entrepreneurship

Companies Founded

5+ Unicorns

Early Investments

Millions of Students

Code.org Reach

27.5K

LinkedIn Followers

Search More

Work Experience

Neo

CEO

Jul 2017 - Present

Responsibilities

Neo is a mentorship community and communal VC fund that brings together a diverse group of tech veterans to accelerate tomorrow's leaders. Together we'll shatter the old boys' club.

Sway

Co-Founder

Jan 2025 - Present

Responsibilities

Reimagine democracy. This is the most ambitious idea I've ever conceived.

Code.org

Co-Founder

Jan 2013 - Present

Responsibilities

Helped start Code.org (and the "Hour of Code") and funded it together with my twin brother Hadi Partovi. My role in this has been marketing, PR, evangelizing, and proudly watching my brother kill it.

Dropbox

Advisor

2006 - Mar 2018

Responsibilities

Early investor and active advisor to Dropbox.

Airbnb, Convoy, Facebook, Uber, Zappos, etc

Angel investor and advisor

1998 - Dec 2017

Responsibilities

I've backed many startups including Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, Uber, and Zappos. Current portfolio includes: Convoy, FiveStars, Thrive Market, Thumbtack, Viagogo. Past portfolio: Nervana (acquired by Intel), OPOWER (IPO 2014), BlueKai (acquired by Oracle), IronPort (acquired by Cisco), XL2Web (now Google Spreadsheets), Flixster (acquired by Warner Bros), Tellme (acquired by Microsoft), Edusoft (bought by Houghton Mifflin).

Hampton Creek Foods

Chief Strategy Officer

Sep 2014 - Sep 2014

Responsibilities

9 days. Draw your own conclusion: https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/09/20/former-hampton-creek-executive-says-he-will-not-advise-company/

MySpace

SVP, Business Development

Sep 2009 - Apr 2010

Responsibilities

I served as head of Business Development following the successful sale of my startup, iLike, to Myspace. During this time, I brought together multiple different biz-dev groups and established processes and databases to coordinate their efforts. I personally focused on deals in the music and ticketing space. In Apr 2010, I stepped down from this role to become a "Strategic Advisor," freeing up my time to focus on other interests.

iLike, inc

CEO

2002 - 2009

Responsibilities

Acquired by Myspace in late 2009, iLike was a rapid-growth social music discovery startup, best-known for its highly successful Facebook app, iPhone app, iTunes Plug-in, and iGoogle gadget. The iLike brand was launched in late 2006 thanks primarily to the efforts of my twin brother and co-founder Hadi Partovi, who joined me as part of an effort to re-invent Garageband.com. (I had been running Garageband.com since 2002, having bought the assets from prior shareholders and bringing it from the brink of bankruptcy to profitability.)

Self Employed

Would-be screenwriter :)

2000 - 2001

Responsibilities

Attempted to co-write a feature film screenplay with roommate and close friend Alan "Shusterbaby" Shusterman. Highlights included a trip to LA where we tried to make some connections, and instead had all our luggage including laptops stolen.

Microsoft Corporation

Lead PM

Nov 1998 - Jul 2000

Responsibilities

Following Microsoft's acquisition of LinkExchange, I spent two years trying to get Microsoft into paid search, long before Google AdWords. In early 2000, my efforts yielded fruit and MSN launched a trial service called "MSN Keywords" that was quite similar to what Google would launch years later. I set the product vision, developed every technical spec, oversaw the database architecture, and designed the UI, as well as personally managed all the marketing and sales/support staffing for the project, and led biz-dev overtures to other search engines (Yahoo, Google, Excite, etc) in hopes they would let us resell their spots. Keywords grew fast but threatened to cannibalize banner ads, so Microsoft shut it down, and I left.

LinkExchange, Inc

Founding partner

Aug 1996 - Nov 1998

Responsibilities

I joined fellow Harvard alumni Tony Hsieh and Sanjay Madan who started LinkExchange in 1996. Although I was initially recruited because of my proficiency in computer programming, it quickly became obvious that what the company needed even more badly was not my coding skills but a "business guy." I was responsible initially for sales, marketing and finance; and eventually focused on biz dev. LinkExchange was acquired by Microsoft in Nov 1998 for $265 million and became Microsoft Small Business.

Oracle

Software Consultant

Sep 1994 - Apr 1996

Responsibilities

This was my first job out of college. I worked on one of Oracle's most important projects (at the time), namely the "Interactive TV" / "Media Server" strategy. I was an engineer in the field and helped build custom deployments of interactive TV trials for major telco or cable customers such as BellSouth, British Telecom, etc.

Education

Harvard University

A.B. and S.M.

1990 - 1994

Field of Study

A.B. and S.M. - Computer Science

Professional Skills

Start-ups

Expertise in launching and scaling new ventures, having co-founded LinkExchange, iLike, and Code.org.

Strategy

Driving competitive advantage and long-term organizational value through high-level strategic planning and execution.

Business Development

Proven ability to identify, negotiate, and execute strategic alliances and commercial deals across various sectors.

Strategic Partnerships

Developing long-term, mutually beneficial relationships crucial for market expansion and business growth.

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Ali Partovi

CEO, Neo / Co-founder, Code.org

Master's, Harvard University

United States

Instagram3.8K

Twitter33.1K

Facebook

Entrepreneurship

Companies Founded

5+ Unicorns

Early Investments

Millions of Students

Code.org Reach

27.5K

LinkedIn Followers

Search More

Work Experience

Neo

CEO

Jul 2017 - Present

Responsibilities

Neo is a mentorship community and communal VC fund that brings together a diverse group of tech veterans to accelerate tomorrow's leaders. Together we'll shatter the old boys' club.

Sway

Co-Founder

Jan 2025 - Present

Responsibilities

Reimagine democracy. This is the most ambitious idea I've ever conceived.

Code.org

Co-Founder

Jan 2013 - Present

Responsibilities

Helped start Code.org (and the "Hour of Code") and funded it together with my twin brother Hadi Partovi. My role in this has been marketing, PR, evangelizing, and proudly watching my brother kill it.

Dropbox

Advisor

2006 - Mar 2018

Responsibilities

Early investor and active advisor to Dropbox.

Airbnb, Convoy, Facebook, Uber, Zappos, etc

Angel investor and advisor

1998 - Dec 2017

Responsibilities

Hampton Creek Foods

Chief Strategy Officer

Sep 2014 - Sep 2014

Responsibilities

9 days. Draw your own conclusion: https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/09/20/former-hampton-creek-executive-says-he-will-not-advise-company/

MySpace

SVP, Business Development

Sep 2009 - Apr 2010

Responsibilities

iLike, inc

CEO

2002 - 2009

Responsibilities

Self Employed

Would-be screenwriter :)

2000 - 2001

Responsibilities

Microsoft Corporation

Lead PM

Nov 1998 - Jul 2000

Responsibilities

LinkExchange, Inc

Founding partner

Aug 1996 - Nov 1998

Responsibilities

Oracle

Software Consultant

Sep 1994 - Apr 1996

Responsibilities

Education

Harvard University

A.B. and S.M.

1990 - 1994

Field of Study

A.B. and S.M. - Computer Science

Professional Skills

Start-ups

Expertise in launching and scaling new ventures, having co-founded LinkExchange, iLike, and Code.org.

Strategy

Driving competitive advantage and long-term organizational value through high-level strategic planning and execution.

Business Development

Proven ability to identify, negotiate, and execute strategic alliances and commercial deals across various sectors.

Strategic Partnerships

Developing long-term, mutually beneficial relationships crucial for market expansion and business growth.

Ready to get more information?

Start for free

Ali Partovi

Work Experience

Education

Professional Skills

Recent Posts

Ready to get more information?

Ali Partovi

Work Experience

Education

Professional Skills

Recent Posts

Ready to get more information?