Jonathan Gay

Jonathan Gay is an American software programmer known for his work in computer graphics. He is best known as one of the co-founders of the animation software company FutureWave Software, which created FutureSplash Animator, later renamed Macromedia Flash and then Adobe Animate.

Gay attended the California Institute of the Arts, where he studied computer animation. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film Graphics/Computer Animation.

Gay worked as a software engineer at Apple before co-founding FutureWave Software in 1993. After FutureWave was acquired by Macromedia in 1996, he continued to work there as a Chief Technology Officer. Gay played a significant role in the development of Flash, which became a widely used software for creating interactive web content.

Jonathan Gay's notable achievement is his co-creation of FutureSplash Animator, which later became Flash, a program that revolutionized web animation and interactivity. Flash became the standard for creating animated web content, leading to the growth of multimedia-rich websites and online ads.

Since leaving Macromedia in 2000, Gay has continued to work in the tech industry. He has been involved in various entrepreneurial ventures, including co-founding a number of startups focused on mobile and web technologies.