Tom Hughes founded Idealab with Bill Gross and Marcia Goodstein in 1996. Prior to working at Idealab, he worked with high-tech clients including IBM and Lotus on corporate and brand identity design and management (ThinkPad, Aptiva) as well as packaging systems and software interface design. Before starting his own design firm, he was picked by Steve Jobs to be Apple's worldwide creative director for Business Products. He was responsible for creating the Macintosh product identity and supporting its introduction in 1985. Following Apple, Lotus Development Corporation hired Tom to build an in-house design team to develop and support a new corporate identity and packaging system. Previously, he was Senior Art Director at Polaroid, working with its founder, Dr. Land, on corporate projects and product introductions. His work is included in the Smithsonian collection and has been internationally recognized. Awards include AIGA, Communications Arts Magazine, Print Magazine, and IDEA. When not at Idealab, Tom flies his Beechcraft Bonanza for Angel Flight and works with his daughter's non-profit organization, Swim to Empower.