1. Adelson's Internet career includes Netcom, DEC's Palo Alto Internet Exchange, co-founder of Equinix, Revision3 and Digg, and CEO of SimpleGeo, Inc In 2008, Adelson was named a member of Time Magazine's Top 100 Most Influential People in the World and was listed as a finalist on the same list in 2009.
Jay Adelson was born in Detroit, Michigan and lived in Southfield, Michigan as a child.
Jay Adelson attended Cranbrook Kingswood School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan until 1988.
Jay Adelson graduated from Boston University, where he studied Film and Broadcasting along with a concentration in Computer Science, in 1992.
In 1992, Jay Adelson moved to San Rafael, California to pursue a career in post-production sound engineering.
Jay Adelson commuted from New York to San Francisco to found and operate Revision3 and Digg, eventually moving back to Mill Valley, California in the summer of 2009.
In 1993, Jay Adelson joined Netcom, one of the first global ISPs, as an Installation Coordinator, and shortly moved-up to Director of Network Operations.
At the time of his departure in 1996, Jay Adelson was responsible for network engineering, operations and customer service.
In late 1996, Adelson worked for Digital Equipment Corporation's Network System Laboratory, specifically Albert M Avery IV, to build and operate the Palo Alto Internet Exchange.
Jay Adelson worked alongside Stephen Stuart and Paul Vixie to build a datacenter and services suited for scaling the core of Internet traffic.
Jay Adelson's efforts led to the facilities success as an Internet Exchange Point.
Jay Adelson served as Founder and Chief Technology Officer, responsible for the invention, design and construction of Equinix's datacenters and Internet Exchange Points.
Jay Adelson led research and development and was responsible for several patents.
Jay Adelson assisted in the raising of capital including private equity rounds, a high-yield new entrant bond deal, and an initial public offering in August 2000.
On December 5,2004 Kevin Rose, Owen Byrne, Ron Gorodetsky and Jay Adelson started Digg with a $6,000 investment from then 27-year-old Rose.
Jay Adelson continued to provide business mentorship throughout the company's first few months of operation, taking the position of CEO in February 2005.
Jay Adelson raised the first venture capital round which closed in September 2005.
Jay Adelson recruited the initial management team, set up the offices in San Francisco, and commuted from New York as CEO.
Jay Adelson raised two more rounds of capital, leading the company through its peak of over forty million unique visitors a month.
Jay Adelson left Digg in April, 2010 over disagreements with Rose and the board over the company's direction and leadership.
In November 2010, Jay Adelson assumed the role of CEO of SimpleGeo, Inc when co-founder Matt Galligan stepped down.
Jay Adelson had been advising the business, largely stemming from a relationship with the company's founder, Joseph Carl Stump, who served as Lead Architect at Digg, Inc previously.
In October 2011 SimpleGeo was purchased by Urban Airship and Jay Adelson resumed his advising role.
In early 2013, Jay Adelson co-founded Opsmatic with Mikhail Panchenko and Jim Stoneham.
On November 13,2013, Jay Adelson posted an article on GigaOm describing an alternative stock plan known as the Dynamic Stock Pool.
Opsmatic launched to the public in 2014 and Jay Adelson stepped back his active role in order to focus on a new pursuit of a venture capital firm, Center Electric.
In June 2014, Jay Adelson co-founded Center Electric with Andy Smith.
Jay Adelson calls itself Center Electric based on the company of the same name founded by Adelson's great-grandfather in Detroit in the 1940s.
In February 2019, Jay Adelson was appointed to IT service management company Megaport Limited's Board of Directors and named Chair of the company's Innovation Committee.
Jay Adelson met Brenda Shea in May 1994 and they married in June 1996.