# Travis May

> Travis May is the founder and CEO of Shaper Capital and cofounder and chairman of Protege. Previously a cofounder and CEO of LiveRamp and founder and CEO of Datavant, he builds companies around fragmented data and writes about networks, company culture, hiring, and execution.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at Shaper Capital; Co-Founder and Chairman at Protege
- **Organizations:** Shaper Capital, Protege, LiveRamp, Datavant, Fractional AI, StudentBusinesses.com, Harvard College Entrepreneurship Forum
- **From:** Cary, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Cary Academy, AB; economics and mathematics, magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa, Harvard University
- **Known for:** Cofounded LiveRamp, acquired by Acxiom for $310 million in 2014., Led LiveRamp as it scaled to more than $200 million in revenue, according to Shaper's biography., Forbes 30 Under 30: Marketing & Advertising, 2016.

## Career timeline

- **2007** — Cofounded StudentBusinesses.com with Vivek Ramaswamy while at Harvard.
- **2009** — Graduated from Harvard; StudentBusinesses.com was sold to the Kauffman Foundation.
- **2011** — Cofounded LiveRamp with Auren Hoffman.
- **2014** — Acxiom acquired LiveRamp for $310 million; May moved into a senior product leadership role at Acxiom.
- **2015** — Became president and general manager of LiveRamp within Acxiom.
- **2016** — Named to Forbes 30 Under 30 and Ad Age 40 Under 40.
- **2017** — Founded Datavant.
- **2023** — Introduced Shaper Capital and its company-building model.
- **2024** — Cofounded Protege and Fractional AI.
- **2026** — Protege secured a $30 million round led by Andreessen Horowitz; Fractional AI was acquired by an enterprise services firm backed by Anthropic, Blackstone, and Hellman & Friedman.

## Achievements

- Cofounded LiveRamp, acquired by Acxiom for $310 million in 2014.
- Led LiveRamp as it scaled to more than $200 million in revenue, according to Shaper's biography.
- Forbes 30 Under 30: Marketing & Advertising, 2016.
- Ad Age 40 Under 40, 2016.
- Cofounded StudentBusinesses.com, acquired by the Kauffman Foundation in 2009.
- Founded Shaper Capital and cofounded Protege.

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Andreessen Horowitz announced an investment in Protege and identified May as cofounder and chairman.
- **2026-05** — Announced Fractional AI's acquisition by a consortium led by Anthropic, Blackstone, and Hellman & Friedman.

## Links

- Website: https://www.shapercap.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stmay/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/travis-may
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-08