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Andrew Conru

American internet businessman

Andrew Conru is an American internet businessman, who is the founder and former CEO of FriendFinder Networks Inc., as well as other e-commerce, advertising, online dating, and personal ad sites including W3, AdKnowledge, WebPersonals, FriendFinder, and Adult FriendFinder.2

From Wikipedia’s article on Andrew Conru (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born 2000.1

Companies

Early life and education

  • Date not recordedStanford University School of Engineering3
  • Date not recordedRose–Hulman Institute of Technology3
  • Date not recordedStanford University3

Conru was born into a Lutheran family of steelworkers and grew up on a farm in northern Indiana, where he would sell vegetables from the family garden. Conru was interested in programming and engineering from a young age, and reportedly coded as early as in elementary school, using a Commodore 64.

Conru attended high school in Michigan City, before attending Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, earning undergraduate degrees in both economics and chemical engineering. In 1991, Conru enrolled at Stanford University and attended its Center for Design Research, receiving a doctorate in mechanical engineering.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andrew Conru (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: business executive.5

Known for: Adult FriendFinder.6

Conru had worked on various projects for General Motors during his enrollment at Rose-Hulman. While enrolled at Stanford, Conru founded W3.com, an early interactive website development firm that was the first company to develop commercial software for membership management. The company created PWS (Personal Web Site), an early customized advertising product used by Hewlett-Packard and Egghead Software. In 1997, the company released a product called AdOptimizer Network, the first centralized ad server, which allowed sites to manage advertising across a network of sites. He also founded Adknowledge, a web-based banner advertising company. In 1994, Conru founded WebPersonals.com. Considered to be one of the first internet dating sites, Conru sold the company in 1995.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andrew Conru (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Personal life

  • CitizenshipUnited States7
  • ResidenceIndiana8

Philanthropy

Human Diversity Foundation

In October 2024, Hope not Hate discovered through an undercover investigation that Conru had donated over $1 million to the far-right Human Diversity Foundation (HDF) which publishes discredited ideas of eugenics and racism through podcasts, online magazines and dubious papers. In response to the investigation, Conru said he has stopped funding the HDF, remarking that he was "deeply troubled" by the findings of the investigation and stated he rejects "racism, discrimination or hateful ideology."

From Wikipedia’s article on Andrew Conru (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Politics

In 2010, Conru launched the non-profit foundation Compute.org, which awards internet and software startups with grants in amounts of $50,000–100,000. One startup that has been awarded is CityRoof.org, a social network for homeless people that helps the homeless connect with necessary resources.

In 2014, he delivered the keynote address at AVN Internext Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andrew Conru (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Sources

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