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Ben Silbermann: the modest genius behind Pinterest | Technology | The Guardian

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W hen you go to meet a hot young tech mogul in his hot young tech office, there are certain things you expect to see: a raw industrial space filled with dressed-down young people, many of whom have beards. A neon sign. Out front: a hot young receptionist, a fridge full of free drinks and a carefully curated collection of reading matter. In this instance, the standout title on the coffee table is: Feminist Ryan Gosling: Feminist Theory From Your Favourite Sensitive Movie Dude. At Pinterest's office in downtown San Francisco, it is entirely as I expect. Down the road from Groupon, round the corner from Airbnb, it is right in the middle of what has become tech dude central. Inside, it's lunchtime, which doesn't, as it does for the rest of the working world, mean a sandwich from Pret: it means a hot meal laid on every day for all employees and the lingering smell of chicken stir fry drifting up through the triple-height exposed brick-and-steel space. So far, so tech-cliché. And yet its 31-

Ben Silbermann: the James Stewart of the social media world and highly influential chief executive of Pinterest. Photograph: Robyn Twomey/Corbis Outline Ben Silbermann: the James Stewart of the social media world and highly influential chief executive of Pinterest. Photograph: Robyn Twomey/Corbis Outline Technology This article is more than 12 years old Interview Ben Silbermann: the modest genius behind Pinterest This article is more than 12 years old Carole Cadwalladr Ben Silbermann, co-founder of the $3.8bn social media forum that draws millions of users a day, is not a typical tech 'dude'.

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