# Trevor Traina

> Trevor Dow Traina is a San Francisco technology entrepreneur, investor and former U.S. ambassador to Austria. He co-founded DriverSide and served as its founding chairman and early CEO; other ventures include CompareNet, SchemaLogic and IfOnly. He is listed as founder and CEO of Kresus Labs, has worked as chief business officer at Tools for Humanity, and collects post-war and contemporary photography.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Kresus Labs
- **Organizations:** Kresus Labs, DriverSide, CompareNet, SchemaLogic, StepUp Commerce, IfOnly, Tools for Humanity, U.S. Department of State
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Undergraduate studies in politics and international relations, Princeton University, Graduate studies in international relations and politics, University of Oxford, St Catherine’s College, MBA, University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business
- **Known for:** Co-founded CompareNet, acquired by Microsoft in 1999., Co-founded DriverSide, acquired by Advance Auto Parts in 2011., Founded IfOnly, later acquired by Mastercard.

## Career timeline

- **1996** — Co-founded CompareNet while attending Berkeley Haas.
- **1999** — Microsoft announced the acquisition of CompareNet on March 4.
- **2004** — Founded SchemaLogic; served as chairman.
- **2006** — StepUp Commerce, where he was chairman, was sold to Intuit.
- **2007** — Co-founded DriverSide with Jad Dunning and Adam Jackson.
- **2008** — DriverSide launched in June; launch reporting identified Traina as CEO, and its July announcement identified him as founder and chairman and Dunning as CEO.
- **2011** — DriverSide was sold to Advance Auto Parts; SchemaLogic was sold to SmartLogic.
- **2013** — IfOnly publicly launched its experience marketplace.
- **2018–2021** — Served as U.S. ambassador to Austria; presented credentials on May 24, 2018.
- **2019** — IfOnly was acquired in Q4 by Mastercard, according to successor CEO John Boris; the acquisition became public in 2020.
- **2024** — Joined Tools for Humanity as chief business officer in January; photographs from his collection were offered at Christie’s in October.
- **2026** — Kresus listed him as founder and CEO and announced Canton collaboration and a digital-asset inheritance service.

## Achievements

- Co-founded CompareNet, acquired by Microsoft in 1999.
- Co-founded DriverSide, acquired by Advance Auto Parts in 2011.
- Founded IfOnly, later acquired by Mastercard.
- Served as U.S. ambassador to Austria from 2018 to 2021.
- Recognized among Goldman Sachs’ 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2013.
- Built a photography collection spanning post-war documentary work, color photography and contemporary art.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Kresus announced an inheritance-planning service for users of its self-custody wallet.
- **2026-05** — Kresus announced a collaboration with Canton Network for institutional blockchain deployment.
- **2026-05** — Appeared on On The Margin with Ivan Patriki to discuss company sales, diplomacy and Kresus.
- **2025-11** — Berkeley Haas published his Dean’s Speaker Series discussion on decision making and reinvention.

## Links

- Website: https://kresus.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevortraina/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/ttraina
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trevortraina/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/trevor-traina
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-22