In 1997, he co-founded Pixelworks Inc., a fabless semiconductor company targeting the rapidly growing advanced display market. From inception, he led the marketing and sales efforts where he was responsible for identifying the initial market opportunity and entry strategy, developing key customer relationships and distribution channels leading to global revenues that reached $140 million in 2003 mainly in Asia. He hired and oversaw a global sales, marketing and applications support organization that spanned offices in China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and Europe. He was actively involved in several acquisitions including a company largely based in China. The company conducted an IPO in May of 2000 and is listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol PXLW.
Prior to founding Pixelworks, Mr. Zenger led marketing, service and new business development teams for In Focus Systems, the market leader in the digital projection market. He was part of the team that grew In Focus' revenues from $50M, when he joined in 1992 to nearly $250M in 1996 when served as Director of Marketing and left to form Pixelworks. While at In Focus, in addition to driving new market and business initiatives, Mr. Zenger focused on building teams and processes that could scale in the context of rapid revenue growth. Prior to In Focus, Mr. Zenger worked in Customer Support management roles at KLA Instruments, a capital equipment supplier to global semiconductor companies.
Mr. Zenger has been a member of the Board of Councilors for the China-U.S. Center for Sustainable Development, where his most recent focus had been evaluating the opportunity for local biofuels and renewable energy development in China. Mr. Zenger began his career in energy and technology as a naval submarine officer supervising ship's operations including the ship’s nuclear power plant.
ChallengeThe sustainable economy is characterized by growing demand for clean energy and water, green buildings, green materials, and healthy food. And while demand is growing, it is not yet at the pace of adoption needed to transform our use of resources. If the world is serious about the consequences related to a petroleum-based economy - consequences such as climate change and energy insecurity—then the pace of adoption for new approaches must increase significantly. The Northwest United States historically has been a bellwether and is well known as a leader in the emerging sustainable economy. Here we have a strong early adopter market, supportive policies and access to large markets including California and China. However, given all of these assets, there is a lack of capital aimed at this opportunity. That is what inspired us to create Sustainability Investment Fund in 2007 and now Pivotal Investments.”
Education: BSME University of Notre Dame and M.B.A. from Santa Clara University.
Boards: SeQuential Biofuels
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Pivotal InvestmentsSeQuential Biofuels
