# John Aristotle Phillips

> John Aristotle Phillips is the co-founder and CEO of Aristotle and a co-founder of PredictIt. A Princeton aerospace engineering graduate first known for a 1976 theoretical nuclear-design paper, he ran twice for Congress before founding a political technology business with his brother Dean in 1983.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Aristotle
- **Organizations:** Aristotle, PredictIt
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** University of California, Berkeley, Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Aristotle in 1983 and continues to serve as CEO., Co-created PredictIt., Co-authored Mushroom: The Story of the A-Bomb Kid (1978).

## Career timeline

- **1976** — Wrote a theoretical nuclear-weapon design paper at Princeton using public information; subsequently became known as the A-Bomb Kid.
- **1978** — Graduated from Princeton and co-authored Mushroom: The Story of the A-Bomb Kid with David Michaelis.
- **1980** — Lost a Democratic congressional campaign against Stewart McKinney in Connecticut’s Fourth District.
- **1982** — Lost a second congressional race against McKinney.
- **1983** — Founded Aristotle with brother Dean.
- **2014** — Co-created PredictIt, launched as an academic project with Victoria University of Wellington and support from Aristotle.
- **2025** — PredictIt announced resolution of CFTC litigation; Aristotle separately announced exchange and clearing organization approvals.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Aristotle in 1983 and continues to serve as CEO.
- Co-created PredictIt.
- Co-authored Mushroom: The Story of the A-Bomb Kid (1978).
- Delivered a TEDxMidAtlantic talk on political prediction markets.

## Latest updates

- **2026-08** — Appeared on Predictable with Stu Burguiere to discuss prediction markets.
- **2025-09** — Aristotle announced CFTC approvals to operate a Designated Contract Market and Derivatives Clearing Organization.
- **2025-07** — PredictIt announced resolution of its litigation with the CFTC and a revised framework for continued operation.

## Links

- Website: https://www.aristotle.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-aristotle-phillips-7a13991

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/john-aristotle-phillips
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-14