# Rick Cantu

> Rick Cantu is the co-founder and CEO of Redapt, the technology solutions company he started with his brother David in 1996 after launching his first technology-enabled services business at 22. Born and raised in Seattle, Cantu helped move Redapt from refurbished UNIX hardware into data center infrastructure, cloud, AI, application modernization, and cybersecurity; beyond the company, he is part of the Seattle Sounders FC ownership group and has served on the Swedish Health Services Board of Trustees.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Redapt, Inc.
- **Organizations:** Redapt, Inc., Seattle Sounders FC, Swedish Health Services, Entrepreneurs' Organization
- **From:** Seattle, United States
- **Education:** Seattle Pacific University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Redapt in 1996 and helped evolve it from refurbished UNIX equipment into an end-to-end enterprise technology solutions provider., Won the 2017 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific Northwest award in the technology category with David Cantu., Joined the Seattle Sounders FC ownership group with his family in 2023.

## Career timeline

- **circa 1990s** — Started his first technology-enabled services company and systems integrator at age 22.
- **1996** — Co-founded Redapt with his brother David Cantu; the business began as a reseller of refurbished UNIX servers and workstations.
- **2017** — Rick and David Cantu received the EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific Northwest award in the technology category.
- **2019** — Began serving on the Swedish Health Services Board of Trustees.
- **2023** — Rick and Jamie Cantu joined the Seattle Sounders FC ownership group.
- **2024** — Led Redapt's acquisition of cybersecurity advisory firm Ember River.
- **2026** — Marked Redapt's 30th year as CEO and co-founder while the company expanded its security, AI, cloud and infrastructure work.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Redapt in 1996 and helped evolve it from refurbished UNIX equipment into an end-to-end enterprise technology solutions provider.
- Won the 2017 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific Northwest award in the technology category with David Cantu.
- Joined the Seattle Sounders FC ownership group with his family in 2023.
- Served on the Swedish Health Services Board of Trustees beginning in 2019.
- Led Redapt's 2024 acquisition of Ember River to add cybersecurity advisory expertise.
- Led Redapt during its recognition as Dell EMC FY21 North American Partner of the Year for Excellence in Services.

## Latest updates

- **2026-06** — Redapt and CrowdStrike were selected to strengthen Seattle Sounders FC's cyber resilience ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026; Cantu said security strategy, operations, and scale must be aligned.
- **2026-04** — Redapt's official company profile marked 30 years in business and continued to list Cantu as CEO and co-founder.
- **2024-07** — Redapt announced its acquisition of Ember River, adding experienced cybersecurity advisory leadership and services.
- **2023-08** — Rick and Jamie Cantu joined the Seattle Sounders FC ownership group.

## Links

- Website: https://redapt.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricantu

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/rick-cantu
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-27