Kevin Rose is a technology entrepreneur best known for co-founding Digg, a social news website. He became a millionaire primarily through the following ways:
- Co-founding Digg: Digg was launched in 2004 and quickly grew in popularity, becoming one of the top 100 most visited sites on the internet at its peak. Digg pioneered mechanisms for user-curated content, allowing users to vote up (digg) or vote down (bury) stories, influencing their prominence on the site. This model attracted a large user base and significant advertising revenue.
- Venture capital investments: After his success with Digg, Rose became a venture capitalist and angel investor, founding the VC firm Milk, which was later acquired by Google. Rose also joined Google Ventures (now known as GV), where he was involved in investments in successful companies like Twitter, Facebook, Square, and Nextdoor, further increasing his wealth.
- Founding other companies: Besides Digg and Milk, Rose has also founded or co-founded several other companies, including Revision3 (an internet television network), Pownce (a microblogging site), and the mobile app development company North Technologies. These ventures have also contributed to his net worth.
Despite the fact that Digg was eventually sold for a much smaller amount than its peak valuation, Rose’s early success with the company, along with his savvy investments and other entrepreneurial efforts, have made him a millionaire.