Brad Chisum is the co-founder & CEO of Launch Factory, an entity that creates startup companies, focusing specifically on business execution. This focus, Chisum says, makes Launch Factory startups better suited to handle the business challenges in front of them.
The El Paso, Texas native attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where he studied electrical engineering and math. Although he went into college with aspirations to become a theoretical physicist, Brad always secretly wanted to become an entrepreneur at some point.
Challenging himself to live in each of the major US time zones, Brad began searching for a post-college job on both the east and west coasts. He narrowed it down to a job in San Diego and a job in Virginia, but what really sealed the deal was the lunch he had on the east coast. The team at the Virginia-based company told him they’d be taking him out to eat Mexican food and went to Chili’s. At that moment, Brad knew he needed to live in a place where he’d be able to eat authentic tacos whenever he craved one. And so, he made his way down to sunny San Diego, working for STMicroelectronics.
Several years in his career, Brad began working as an engineer at SPAWAR, where he met his now-co-founder, Richard Waters. It wasn’t long before the pair began working to build a venture of their own, all while Brad was pursuing an MBA at San Diego State University. Through the many years of Lumedyne, the duo and their team faced numerous setbacks and hardships before being acquired by Google. Brad remained part of the team post acquisition, until he left Google in 2016.
It wasn’t until 2018 that Brad began working on his next venture, Launch Factory. James Hereford, a former colleague of his, had the advanced skillset that Brad desired in a potential co-founder. The duo worked on developing Launch Factory, which aims to give startups all the tools and knowledge they need to become successful.
Listen in to hear all about Brad’s journey as a two-time founder, his plans for the future of Launch Factory, and his local favorite eats and brews.
Thanks to our partners Cox Business for their support in enabling us to grow the San Diego ecosystem.
Brad’s favorites
Tacos – Tacos el Gordo (various locations)
Beer – Stone Brewing
Keep up with Launch Factory:
LaunchFactory.com
LinkedIn
