Co-Founder of Dolfin Ventures
A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, CA, Loia is using his Silicon Valley knowledge, having launched one of the first mobile game studios in the U.S. and now is working alongside the Beaufort Digital Corridor (BDC) and the University of South Carolina Beaufort (USCB) to help aspiring founders in the gaming industry. The reach for those in this field is a global one, with an estimated 3 billion gamers around the world.
Referred to as a “digital accelerator and incubator,” Dolfin Ventures seeks to assist those who dream of creating web and mobile games and apps from concept to creation and quite possibly to a full startup company. For Loia, startup culture is in his DNA, having spent years working alongside some of the legends in the mobile game industry, including names like Trip Hawkins (founder of Electronic Arts) and Ilkka Paananen (co-founder of Supercell). Among his credits is serving as COO in several venture-backed game companies, president of AnchorFree, and CEO of CyberGhost, two leading cybersecurity VPN companies.
Having spent two whirlwind decades in various Silicon Valley startups, Loia was in “pre-retirement” mode when he started contemplating a change of scenery. Gravitating toward the coastal community lifestyle in the South, he found the “hidden gem of Beaufort” and relocated to the Lowcountry. After arriving in Beaufort, Loia’s drive to launch yet another startup was sparked again by running into his now business partner, Beaufort native Andrew Branning. Branning, a serial entrepreneur with his own digital marketing startup, proposed joining forces to launch Beaufort’s first-ever game incubator. Branning and Loia soon discovered the Beaufort Digital Corridor (BDC) while looking for office space, and after confirming with Jessie O’Brien, the Executive Director of the BDC, that there indeed seemed to be a healthy local interest in high-tech and gaming, Dolfin Ventures was officially launched at the BDC in October 2021.
To learn more about Jason and all the good he’s doing, visit: BeaufortLifestyle.com
Innovations in interactive media are fostering the convergence of video games, entertainment and film. From story lines, to aesthetics, to mechanics, to funding, to production, so many similarities and yet, so many differences. This panel brings together local experts to discuss how these industries are converging.