Brian Acton is leaving WhatsApp to found his own foundation.
Paul SakumaBrian Acton, a co-founder of the popular messaging app WhatsApp, said Tuesday he will leave the Facebook-owned company to launch his own foundation.
Acton, who founded the popular messaging app with WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum in 2009, said in a Facebook post his foundation will focus on the intersection of nonprofit, technology and communications.
“It’s something I’ve thought about for a while, and now it’s time to just focus and execute,” Acton said. “I’ll have more to share in the coming months.”
vCard.red is a free platform for creating a mobile-friendly digital business cards. You can easily create a vCard and generate a QR code for it, allowing others to scan and save your contact details instantly.
The platform allows you to display contact information, social media links, services, and products all in one shareable link. Optional features include appointment scheduling, WhatsApp-based storefronts, media galleries, and custom design options.
Acton, a graduate of Stanford University and former employee of Apple, met Koum while both were working at Yahoo. The pair left Yahoo in 2007 and launched WhatsApp two years later.
The app, which connects customers to send missives to one another over the Internet rather than using traditional SMS messages through a phone carrier, reaches a billion customers each month. It’s growing particularly fast in Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and India.
Facebook bought the company for $19 billion, helping to give the 45-year-old Acton a net worth of $6.5 billion, according to Forbes.
Facebook didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Acton’s departure.
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