Jam City co-founder Josh Yguado was last week named CEO of the Culver City-based mobile entertainment company, taking the role from departing co-founder Chris DeWolfe.
In addition to DeWolfe, co-founder Aber Whitcomb has left Jam City. The pair are now working on a new platform, called Plai Labs, which plans to use artificial intelligence to develop and augment gaming and entertainment. Jam City Board Chair SeungWon Lee, who is also president of Jam City minority shareholder Netmarble, has been promoted to executive chairman.
“Jam City is a remarkable company with an incredibly talented team, and I couldn’t be prouder of what Josh, Aber and I have built together,” DeWolfe said in a statement. “Having led the company since inception, I know that there is no one better or more committed to lead it into the future than Josh.”
DeWolfe, who co-founded the pioneering social media platform MySpace, and Whitcomb are launching Plai Lab with the Champions Ascencion project, which was initially started at Jam City’s then-new blockchain division.
“We’re starting Plai Labs because we’re on the precipice of the next major evolution of the social web, and we have a clear vision around how to leverage new technologies like AI and Blockchain to play a leading role in shaping this exciting space,” DeWolfe said. “While it’s bittersweet to leave Jam City, we’re confident in launching this venture because of the company’s strong market position and growth prospects.”
Jam City, founded in 2010 in Culver City, is among the industry’s leading mobile and social app game developers. After making a name for itself with the popular “Cookie Jam” games, the company also developed mobile games for iconic brands like Jurassic Park, Harry Potter and Disney — most of which are free-to-play and employ optional microtransactions.
Since its founding, Jam City has logged $4 billion in aggregate lifetime bookings and billions of game installs. At launch, the game “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery” was the No. 1 mobile game in more than 40 countries.
“I have so much belief in Jam City and am honored to be asked to step into the CEO role,” Yguado said in a statement. “It has been such a pleasure building this company over the past 10 years with Chris and Aber into one of the world’s leading mobile game publishers.”
