# Charles Thiede

> Charles Thiede is the London-based CEO and co-founder of Zapnito, a software platform for branded expert and customer communities. A former product and technology leader at Informa and Nature Publishing Group, he developed Zapnito with Jon Beer from an expert-marketplace idea into software for established organisations, and advocates for trusted knowledge, peer learning and human expertise in the AI era.

- **Role:** CEO & Co-Founder at Zapnito
- **Organizations:** Zapnito, Informa, Nature Publishing Group, Women Who Tech
- **Nationality:** British
- **Education:** Bachelor of Arts in Design and Industry, San Francisco State University
- **Known for:** Co-founded and leads Zapnito, serving organisations including Springer Nature, Wiley and the OECD., Led Zapnito through its expert-marketplace to white-label SaaS pivot., Zapnito secured a £3.3 million Series A investment from Octopus Ventures in 2021.

## Career timeline

- **Before 2013** — Held senior product and technology roles at Informa and Nature Publishing Group.
- **2013** — Developed Zapnito as an expert-marketplace venture with Jon Beer; it was profiled publicly in September.
- **2014** — Pivoted towards white-label SaaS for trusted brands, according to his 2016 interview.
- **2017** — Zapnito partnered with Silverchair; Thiede announced he was leaving Twitter in September.
- **2021** — Zapnito announced a £3.3 million Series A investment from Octopus Ventures.
- **2023** — Discussed authenticity, humour and empathy on How They Lead.
- **2026** — Discussed trusted expertise and AI with Laurent Cochet on AI InterConnect.

## Achievements

- Co-founded and leads Zapnito, serving organisations including Springer Nature, Wiley and the OECD.
- Led Zapnito through its expert-marketplace to white-label SaaS pivot.
- Zapnito secured a £3.3 million Series A investment from Octopus Ventures in 2021.
- Helped establish Zapnito’s 2017 partnership with Silverchair.
- Has served as a mentor for Women Who Tech.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — Appeared on AI InterConnect with Laurent Cochet to discuss trusted expertise, generative AI and knowledge platforms.
- **2026-04** — Invited community practitioners to discuss Khoros and the next phase of knowledge communities on Zapnito’s knowledge hub.
- **2025-01** — Published a fireside conversation with Linnworks CMO Georgia Leybourne about customer communities.

## Links

- Website: https://zapnito.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlesthiede/

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/charles-thiede
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-14