Ryan Wyatt, the former head of YouTube’s gaming division, has left the company and is now the CEO of Polygon Studios, a company that was founded to build on the Ethereum sidechain, Polygon.
Wyatt will leave his position as Global Managing Director of YouTube Gaming in March to become the CEO of Polygon Studios, a new company focused on building on the Ethereum sidechain Polygon.
Despite YouTube’s own growing interest in blockchain and NFTs, Wyatt says it’s time for a new venture. “I came to YouTube almost eight years ago to help give gamers a voice and represent the gamer’s needs every day,” Wyatt wrote on Twitter.
“In my role at Polygon Studios, I will be focused on growing the developer ecosystem through investment, marketing, and developer support and bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3. I’ll be leading the Polygon Studios organization across Gaming, Entertainment, Fashion, News, Sports, and more.”
The addition of Wyatt to the Polygon Studios team is crucial. Youtube Gaming increased to approximately 3X the amount of visitors between 2018 and 2020 under Wyatt’s guidance, transforming Youtube’s game streaming service into a profitable business branch capable of competing with other rapidly rising social networks like Tiktok or even Facebook Gaming.
Wyatt was the driving force behind YouTube Gaming’s live streaming efforts, gaining exclusive arrangements with big names like TimTheTatman, Ludwig, and Dr. Lupo. As a result, YouTube Gaming has established itself as a competitor to Twitch in the video game live-streaming industry, with its high broadcasting quality and roster of A-list creatives.
Wyatt was also named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list as one of the world’s Top Young Designers, Executives, and Players. He was also named to the Forbes 40 Under 40 list a few years later, and he has garnered numerous more awards in the video game business.
Polygon Studios announced in December 2021 that it will invest $100 million in gaming firm GameOn for future Web3-related projects. Polygon Studios’ official site lists Atari and Animoca Brands as partners, as well as NFT marketplace OpenSea and metaverse project Decentraland.