Brian Pontarelli is founder and CEO of FusionAuth, a Denver-based software company that provides a free identity management platform. Brian start programming at 8 on an Apple 2e using Apple Basic. He taught himself Pascal, Assembler and C during middle and high school. Initially thinking that he had enough programming for a while, we started studying electrical engineering at the University of Colorado, only to quickly realize that differential equations and circuits gave him recurring heartburn. He switched to electrical and computer engineering midway through and started helping teachers review books, teach classes and tutor students. After college, Brian coded at various companies including XOR, US Freightways, BEA, and Orbitz. Growing up in a family of entrepreneurs, Brian always knew he would start his own company. In 2007, Brian quit his day job and took the plunge into starting a software company. Outside of work, Brian is an author and a regular speaker at numerous conferences and meetups.