Alex Rigopulos

Alexander Peter Rigopulos (born 1970s in Boxford, Massachusetts) is an American video game designer and musician, best known as the former CEO and current creative director of Harmonix Music Systems, a company he founded with Eran Egozy in 1995.

After they received their degrees, the two formed Harmonix to create music video games such as Frequency and Amplitude, but the company became highly successful with its contributions to both the Guitar Hero and Rock Band series of games, both which used specially designed controllers based on instruments like guitars and drum kits to mimic the playing of numerous rock songs.

[2] In May 2014, amid layoffs at Harmonix, Rigopulos announced that he would step down as CEO, being replaced by Steve Janiak, while he would become the chief creative officer for the company.

[3] Rigopulos personally cites Japanese game designers Masaya Matsuura, Tetsuya Mizuguchi, and Keita Takahashi as some artists that have inspired his work at Harmonix.

[4] In August 2010, Rigopulos joined the advisory board of the AbleGamers Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing the rich world of digital entertainment to people with disabilities.