# Nat Friedman

> American computer programmer

**Wikidata**: [Q92955](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q92955)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nat_Friedman)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/nat-friedman

## Summary
Nat Friedman is an American computer programmer and entrepreneur best known for his leadership in the open-source software community. He co-founded Ximian, served as CEO of Xamarin, and was CEO of GitHub from 2018 to 2021. His career has centered on advancing developer tools and platforms.

## Biography
- Born: August 6, 1977
- Nationality: United States
- Education: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; St. Anne's-Belfield School
- Known for: Co-founding Ximian, leading Xamarin and GitHub
- Employer(s): GitHub (CEO), Xamarin (CEO), Arc Research Institute (board member)
- Field(s): Computer science, software engineering, open-source development

## Contributions
Nat Friedman co-founded Ximian (originally called Helix Code) in 1999, a company focused on developing and promoting open-source software, particularly the GNOME desktop environment and the Evolution email client. Ximian was acquired by Novell in 2003, where Friedman became vice president of developer platforms. He later co-founded Xamarin in 2011, a company that created tools for building cross-platform mobile applications using C# and .NET, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2016. As CEO of GitHub from 2018 to 2021, Friedman oversaw the platform's growth as the world's largest host of open-source code, including the launch of GitHub Sponsors and the acquisition of npm. His work has consistently advanced developer productivity and open-source collaboration.

## FAQs
### Q: What is Nat Friedman best known for?
A: Nat Friedman is best known for co-founding Ximian, leading Xamarin, and serving as CEO of GitHub, where he advanced open-source software development and developer tools.

### Q: Where did Nat Friedman go to college?
A: Nat Friedman attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for his higher education.

### Q: What companies has Nat Friedman led?
A: Nat Friedman has led Ximian, Xamarin, and GitHub as CEO, and serves on the board of directors at Arc Research Institute.

## Why They Matter
Nat Friedman has been a pivotal figure in the open-source and developer tools ecosystem. His leadership at GitHub helped solidify it as the central hub for collaborative software development, influencing how millions of developers share and build upon each other's work. Through Ximian and Xamarin, he championed cross-platform development and the adoption of open-source technologies in enterprise environments. His work has lowered barriers for developers worldwide, enabling faster innovation and broader participation in software creation. Without his contributions, the modern open-source landscape and developer tooling would be significantly less advanced.

## Notable For
- Co-founding Ximian, a pioneer in open-source desktop software
- Leading Xamarin, enabling cross-platform mobile development with .NET
- Serving as CEO of GitHub, the world's largest code hosting platform
- Advancing open-source software adoption in enterprise and mobile development
- Board member at Arc Research Institute

## Body
### Early Career and Ximian
Nat Friedman co-founded Ximian (originally Helix Code) in 1999 with Miguel de Icaza. The company focused on developing open-source software, particularly the GNOME desktop environment and the Evolution email client. Ximian was acquired by Novell in 2003, where Friedman became vice president of developer platforms.

### Xamarin and Cross-Platform Development
In 2011, Friedman co-founded Xamarin, a company that created tools for building cross-platform mobile applications using C# and .NET. Xamarin's technology allowed developers to write shared code across iOS, Android, and Windows, significantly reducing development time and cost. Microsoft acquired Xamarin in 2016, integrating its technology into the broader .NET ecosystem.

### GitHub Leadership
Friedman became CEO of GitHub in 2018, succeeding Chris Wanstrath. Under his leadership, GitHub launched GitHub Sponsors to support open-source maintainers and acquired npm, the Node.js package manager. He oversaw the platform's growth to over 100 million developers and its acquisition by Microsoft in 2018.

### Open-Source Advocacy
Throughout his career, Friedman has been a strong advocate for open-source software, contributing to projects like GNOME and promoting developer collaboration. His work has helped shape the modern software development landscape, making powerful tools and platforms accessible to developers worldwide.

## References

1. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
2. [Nat Friedman](https://nat.org/)