The state-by-state proliferation of medical and legal cannabis has opened up the industry to outsiders looking to capitalize on its growth. One group that has shown considerable interest is Silicon Valley, where many have ditched high-ranking jobs to jump into the industry. Business Insider profiled eleven companies that have been started by or that have attracted technology execs, all of which should be familiar to our readers. The execs include Eric Eslao of Défoncé Chocolatier, Keith McCarty of Eaze, Mark Williams of Firefly, Cy Scott of Headset, Drew Reynolds of Leafly, Jessica Billingsley and Amy Poinsett of MJ Freeway, Tyler Goldman of Pax Labs, Jake Heimark of Plus, Seibo Shen of VapeXhale, Justin Hartfield of Weedmaps and Jazmin Hupp of Women Grow
While most of the companies are focused on technology, including online advertising and information services, consumption devices, software and data analytics, two of the entrepreneurs have started companies that sell cannabis edibles, Défoncé Chocolatier and Plus. With more states likely to legalize next week, the trend of ditching Silicon Valley jobs for cannabis start-ups is likely to accelerate.
Read Melia Robinson’s “11 successful tech execs who left Silicon Valley to disrupt the marijuana industry”: http://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-players-marijuana-industry-2016-10
