Pierre Omidyar
Founder of eBay and philanthropist
- Age
- 59 yrs
- Birthday in 227 days
- Works listed
- 1
- Website
- Honours
- 0
- Awards & distinctions
- Profile views
- 2
- 0 followers
Pierre Omidyar is a French-born Iranian-American entrepreneur who founded eBay in 1995 as AuctionWeb, a site where anyone could sell to anyone. eBay became one of the internet’s first great successes. He now funds philanthropy and investing through Omidyar Network.
Biography
Background
Omidyar was born in Paris to Iranian parents and moved to the United States as a child. He studied computer science at Tufts University and worked on software at Claris and General Magic.
AuctionWeb
Over the Labor Day weekend of 1995 he wrote AuctionWeb. The first item sold was a broken laser pointer, to a collector of broken laser pointers. Renamed eBay in 1997, it went public in 1998.
Philanthropy
He and his wife Pam founded Omidyar Network in 2004, investing in microfinance, open government and civic technology.
Media
He founded First Look Media and The Intercept in 2014.
Timeline
-
1967
Born in Paris, France
-
1995
Launches AuctionWeb
-
1997
Renamed eBay
-
1998
eBay IPO; Meg Whitman becomes CEO
-
2004
Founds Omidyar Network
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2014
Founds First Look Media
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2015
Leaves eBay chairmanship
Notable works
-
1995
AuctionWeb (eBay) Website
Did you know?
-
1
eBay’s name came from his consulting firm, Echo Bay Technology Group.
-
2
The broken laser pointer sold for $14.83.
-
3
He lives in Hawaii.
Connections
Frequently asked
Who is Pierre Omidyar?
Pierre Omidyar is a French-born Iranian-American entrepreneur who founded eBay in 1995 as AuctionWeb, a site where anyone could sell to anyone. eBay became one of the internet’s first great successes. He now funds philanthropy and investing through Omidyar Network.
How old is Pierre Omidyar?
Pierre Omidyar is 59 years old, born on 21 June 1967 in Paris, France.
Where is Pierre Omidyar from?
Pierre Omidyar was born in Paris, France.
What is Pierre Omidyar known for?
Pierre Omidyar is best known for Founding eBay (1995); Omidyar Network; First Look Media.
References
- Pierre Omidyar — Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Pierre Omidyar — Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Pierre Omidyar — IMDb. IMDb. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Pierre Omidyar (Q348483) — structured data. Wikidata. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
Includes material from the Wikipedia article “Pierre Omidyar”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. That text is available under the same licence. Learn more
External links
About this profile
- Researched by the TrackFame editorial team; reviewed by Sanjay Sokal under our editorial policy
- First published 4 November 2026
- Last updated
Cite this page
“Pierre Omidyar.” TrackFame, last updated 5 November 2026. https://trackfame.com/person/pierre-omidyar
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