Joel Hyatt is a seasoned entrepreneur and investor. He co-founded Current, a digital bank, and has a proven track record of innovation.
Hyatt has also made significant contributions to the media industry, serving as the co-founder of Current TV, a pioneering cable network.
As a pioneer in the digital banking space, Hyatt has been at the forefront of disrupting traditional financial services.
Life and Career
Joel Hyatt graduated from Dartmouth College and Yale Law School.
He briefly practiced law as an associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison before pursuing a career in politics and business.
Hyatt co-founded Hyatt Legal Services in 1977 as a low-cost legal service, making legal services available to millions of middle- and lower-class Americans.
He later founded Hyatt Legal Plans, which became the country's largest provider of employer-sponsored group legal services.
Hyatt was a founding member of the U.S. Senate Democratic Leadership Circle and served from 1981 to 1986.
He was also the Democratic National Committee's assistant treasurer from 1981 to 1983.
Hyatt is the son-in-law of former U.S. Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, who he helped campaign for in his first two successful bids for the Senate.
Hyatt ran to replace Metzenbaum in 1994, but lost to then Lieutenant Governor Michael DeWine.
He was appointed to the California Public Utilities Commission in June 1999 by Governor Gray Davis and served six months of a six-year term.
Hyatt resigned in December 1999, just six months after his appointment.
He served as National Finance Chair for the Democratic party in 2000 and is a business partner of former U.S. Vice President Al Gore.
In 2004, Hyatt and Gore purchased Newsworld International, a cable news channel, which they later relaunched as Current TV.
Hyatt and Gore sold Current TV to Al Jazeera Media Network in 2013 for $500 million.
Hyatt taught entrepreneurship at Stanford University Graduate School of Business from 1998 to 2003.
He is a member of the board of trustees of Morehouse College and of The Brookings Institution.
Hyatt was elected to the board of directors of Hewlett-Packard Company in 2007 and of The RAND Corporation in 2015.
He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
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Business Ventures
Joel Hyatt is a fourth-time entrepreneur, which is a rare breed in Silicon Valley. He's had a diverse range of business ventures, starting with a nationwide discount law firm called Hyatt Legal Services.
Hyatt's first tech-related venture was Hyatt Legal Plans, which allowed companies to provide lawyers to their employees and was eventually sold to MetLife. This shows that Hyatt has a knack for identifying innovative business ideas.
After selling Hyatt Legal Plans, Hyatt teamed up with Al Gore to launch Current TV, a pioneering broadcast venture that was later sold to Al Jazeera. This experience likely prepared Hyatt for his next venture.
Hyatt is now at the helm of Globality, a company that connects high-end service providers with multinational companies. In theory, Globality will revolutionize the way big companies find service providers like lawyers and ad agencies outside their own country.
Hyatt's track record suggests that Globality may disrupt the traditional business model of big law firms, ad agencies, and management consultants. His vision is to make Globality a go-to platform for these companies.
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Biography
Joel Hyatt was born in 1950 as Joel Hyatt Zylberberg. He graduated from Dartmouth College and Yale Law School.
Hyatt briefly practiced law as an associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. He co-founded Hyatt Legal Services in 1977 as a low-cost legal service.
Hyatt later founded Hyatt Legal Plans, which became the country's largest provider of employer-sponsored group legal services. It was acquired by MetLife in 1997.
Hyatt served as a founding member of the U.S. Senate Democratic Leadership Circle from 1981 to 1986. He was also the Democratic National Committee's assistant treasurer from 1981 to 1983.
Hyatt is the son-in-law of former U.S. Sen. Howard Metzenbaum. He ran to replace Metzenbaum in the Senate in 1994, but lost to R. Michael DeWine.
Hyatt was appointed to the California Public Utilities Commission in June 1999, by Governor Gray Davis. He served six months of a six-year term, resigning in December 1999.
Hyatt taught entrepreneurship at Stanford University Graduate School of Business from 1998 to 2003. He is a member of the board of trustees of Morehouse College.
Hyatt was elected to the board of directors of Hewlett-Packard Company in May 2007.
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