Jim Xiao

Jim Xiao is the Founder and CEO of Mason, a hardware-as-a-service platform based in Seattle, Washington. He established the Y Combinator-backed technology company in 2015 to provide infrastructure for enterprises to build, deploy, and manage custom smart devices. Under his leadership, Mason secured a $25 million Series A funding round led by Coatue Management in 2019 to scale its end-to-end hardware operations. The platform enables companies to develop dedicated hardware ecosystems similar to those utilized by prominent industry leaders like Square. Prior to founding Mason, Xiao worked in software engineering at Microsoft and held roles in venture capital, where he evaluated early-stage hardware startups and emerging wireless communication technologies. His current focus centers on democratizing hardware creation by bridging the complex gap between traditional software development, Internet of Things connectivity, and enterprise mobility infrastructure.