James Gwertzman

James Gwertzman

Lead Artist, Temple of the Moon at Burning Man Project
San Francisco Bay Area

James Gwertzman is currently a Scout at Andreessen Horowitz, Lead Artist for the Temple of the Moon at Burning Man Project, Board Member at Mudstack, Advisor at Snapser, and Founder & Lead Artist at The Moonlight Collective. He founded Moonlight Collective, PlayFab (acquired), and Sprout Games (acquired). His expertise includes immersive experience creation and leadership in the game industry.

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Andreessen Horowitz hires Seattle gaming vet James Gwertzman as first Seattle-based general partner

Andreessen Horowitz has hired Seattle gaming veteran James Gwertzman as its first general partner based in the Seattle region to join the firm’s consumer investing team focused on gaming. Gwertzman, who sold PlayFab to Microsoft in 2018 and will leave Microsoft later this month, joins a16z as it doubles down on gaming alongside hires like Riot’s Jon Lai and investments such as a $5 million round in Seattle-based Irreverent Labs.

Organizations

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  • Burning Man Project Lead Artist, Temple of the Moon 2026–present · current
  • Mudstack logo
    Mudstack Board Member 2026–present, CEO 2024–2026 · current
  • Andreessen Horowitz Scout 2023–present, General Partner 2021–2023 · current

Education

  • Harvard University A.B., Computer Science · 1991–1995
  • Horace Mann 1987–1991
  • St. Albans 1985–1991
  • St. Patricks 1978–1985

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