John Tu
Overview
- Source of Wealth
- Computer hardware
- Industry
- Technology
- Residence
- Rolling Hills, California
- Organization
- President at Kingston Technology Corporation
- Education
- Technische Universität Darmstadt (Bachelor of Arts/Science)
- Marital Status
- Married
- Children
- 2
Biography
Kingston Technology CEO John Tu runs the firm, which makes storage and memory products, from a cubicle on sales floor.
With longtime partner David Sun, Tu launched a computer memory business out of a garage and sold it to now defunct PC maker AST a few years later.
After losing a fortune in the stock market in 1987, the pair started Kingston to manufacture surface-mount memory chips.
Tu, a Chinese native who grew up in Taiwan, got an engineering degree in Germany and then immigrated to the U.S. in 1971.
Tu's first jobs in the U.S. included running a one-man gift shop with imported Chinese collectibles and selling commercial real estate.
About
Tu met his business partner David Sun, who is 10 years his junior, at a basketball league.
The company's name comes from one of John Tu's favorite bands, the Kingston Trio.