CHRISTOPHER A. SMITH

20 Years Building, Scaling & Exiting Global Platforms

Executive operator. Exited founder. Award-Winning Author.

Now advising founders, executives, and boards ready to accelerate growth.

Advisory Areas

01.

Founder & Operator Frameworks

The real decisions, frameworks, and lessons from building, scaling, and exiting platform businesses, applied to your specific situation.

02.

Product Strategy & GTM

From zero-to-one product architecture through go-to-market execution, helping define what to build, who to sell it to, and how to scale.

03.

Revenue, Partnerships & Ecosystem Development

Building the commercial infrastructure—partnerships, channels, ecosystems, and revenue models—that compound over time.

04.

AI Strategy & Emerging Technology

How AI is reshaping competitive landscapes, product strategy, and operational infrastructure, and how companies can position themselves ahead of the shift.

05.

Identity, Trust & Platform Strategy

Helping companies navigate digital identity, authentication, privacy, and trust as strategic business capabilities.

06.

Emerging Infrastructure & Market Opportunities

Evaluating how identity, trust, regulatory shifts, and AI create new product, partnership, and market opportunities.

 

07.

Fraud, Risk & Trust Architecture

Designing fraud reduction strategies, trust frameworks, and customer protection systems that support long-term growth and platform integrity.

08.

Privacy, Policy & Consumer Advocacy

How evolving privacy regulations, identity requirements, and consumer protection standards impact product, growth, and business strategy, and how organizations can lead rather than react.

About Me

My Career Didn't Begin in Tech.

It started on the business side of professional sports and media, working across the inaugural XFL season, the NFL, and NFL Europe before transitioning into technology during the foundational years of programmatic advertising – digital video, mobile, and TV.

Over the past 20 years, I’ve helped build, scale, and commercialize marketplace, media, identity, and technology businesses through leadership roles at Adap.tv (AOL), Collective (Zeta Global), Turn (Singtel), Civic, and, as founder of Stitch Video, acquired in 2023.

Today, I advise founders, executives, boards, and investors on commercialization, growth strategy, strategic partnerships, marketplace development, international expansion, and emerging technologies.

I also serve as Board Chair of The Defend Foundation, publish The Digital Safety Brief, and am the author of Privacy Pandemic, which received the Foreword Reviews Science & Technology Award.

"I operate at the intersection of global commercialization, infrastructure, and systemic risk."

-Christopher A. Smith

Testimonials

What People Are Saying about Privacy Pandemic

"A must-read for anyone looking to better arm themselves against the dangers of an ever-evolving cyberworld."

Tom Kemp, Executive Director, California Privacy Protection Agency

"A game-changing book in the field of digital security — bolstered by his personal experience with digital identity theft."

Bill Raduchel, Former CTO, AOL, Author of The New Technology State

"Chris's story is one of the most intense examples of the actions these threat actors take. Delving into his recounting forces us to realize that the 'this can't happen to me' mentality is a myth."

Eva Velasquez, President & CEO, Identity Theft Resource Center

"A paranoia-inducing exploration of cybercrime and identity theft from someone who has experienced its brutal realities up close."

Foreword Reviews, 2023 Science & Technology Award Winner