# Michael Topolovac

> Michael Topolovac is a San Francisco product designer and entrepreneur who founded Light & Motion, co-founded Arena Solutions and served as its founding CEO from 2000 to 2008, and co-founded CRAVE with Ti Chang. His work connects underwater imaging, cloud software for manufacturers and consumer product design.

- **Role:** Co-founder at CRAVE
- **Organizations:** Light & Motion, Arena Solutions (now Arena by PTC), CRAVE
- **Education:** B.S. in Product Design, Stanford University, Torrey Pines High School
- **Known for:** 1985 John D. Isaacs Memorial Sea Grant Scholarship recipient, 1987-1988 North American Rolex Our World-Underwater Scholar, Co-founded Arena and led it for eight years

## Career timeline

- **1985** — Won the John D. Isaacs Memorial Sea Grant Scholarship for research on drag reduction in an unmanned submersible he designed and constructed.
- **1987-1988** — North American Rolex Our World-Underwater Scholar; explored underwater photography.
- **1990-2000** — Founder and CEO of Light & Motion, according to his Wellfound profile; other accounts date its beginnings to 1989.
- **2000** — Co-founded Arena Solutions, originally Bom.com, with Eric Larkin.
- **2003** — Bom.com changed its name to Arena Solutions.
- **2008** — Craig Livingston succeeded him as Arena CEO; the January announcement said Topolovac would remain on its board.
- **2009** — Began CRAVE, according to his Crunchbase profile.
- **2011** — Ti Chang joined as co-founder following CRAVE’s acquisition of her company Incoqnito.
- **2017-2018** — Photographed the CRAVE Portrait Project, pairing Folsom Street Fair portraits with portraits in everyday clothing.
- **2021** — PTC announced completion of its acquisition of Arena Solutions in January, long after his CEO tenure.

## Achievements

- 1985 John D. Isaacs Memorial Sea Grant Scholarship recipient
- 1987-1988 North American Rolex Our World-Underwater Scholar
- Co-founded Arena and led it for eight years
- Co-founded CRAVE with industrial designer Ti Chang

## Latest updates

- **2021-04** — Discussed stocking critical components ahead of the chip shortage affecting CRAVE.
- **2021-01** — PTC announced the completed acquisition of Arena Solutions, the company he co-founded.

## Links

- Website: http://www.topolovac.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/topolovac
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/topolovac
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/topolovac

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/michael-topolovac
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-25