Jack Conte

Jack Conte is an American musician and the co-founder and CEO of Patreon, born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is best known for the musical duo Pomplamoose, which he performs with his wife Nataly Dawn, and he also co-leads the band Scary Pockets and founded the band Magaziine. Conte maintains an active career as a working musician alongside his business responsibilities.

Patreon launched in 2013 when Conte cofounded the company with his college roommate Sam Yam. The platform grew out of frustration: Conte saw platforms like Facebook monetizing creator content while the creators themselves saw little return. What began as a tool to promote his own music videos on YouTube became a direct-support model that hundreds of thousands of creators now rely on.

Under Conte leadership, Patreon has grown into the backbone of the direct-support economy, processing billions in creator payouts. He has become a prominent voice on platform accountability, publicly criticizing AI companies for training on creator content without compensation. His SXSW 2024 keynote addressed the tension between follower-driven social platforms and sustainable creator economics.

Conte also hosts the podcasts Digital Spaghetti and Dead Wax, and has built a personal brand around the intersection of music, technology, and creator advocacy.