Starry, the fixed-wireless broadband startup helmed by former Aereo founder Chet Kanojia, said it has hired former Google exec Kristen Morrissey Thiede to senior vice president of business development and corporate strategy.
Thiede will lead the business development and corporate strategy for Starry as it looks to build and expand its fixed wireless broadband network nationally and globally, and will also head up developing partnerships and alliances aimed at spurring growth.
Thiede most recently served as an advisor at Metamorphic Ventures, a New York City-based venture capital firm and, before that, spent 14 years at Google, leading business development and content licensing for Google Fiber and early stage efforts such as Google.org's Crisis response team to Haiti, Chile, and Pakistan, and the launch of AdSense for Content and distribution efforts globally.
"We are thrilled to welcome Kristen to Starry, where her skills and experience will have a positive impact on day one," Kanojia said in a statement. "Kristen knows firsthand the challenges in building a broadband network and her experience and success with Google Fiber is a tremendous asset as we build out Starry Internet here in the U.S. and abroad. Our millimeter wave technology offers unlimited opportunities for growth, and we're excited for Kristen to help lead our expansion efforts."
"I've always been driven to take on big challenges," Thiede said, in a statement. "The Starry team is led by world class engineers developing some of the most innovative connectivity technologies in the market today. Starry's development of an active phased array for millimeter waves is a game-changer that has the potential to solve connectivity challenges around the world. I'm excited to be a part of a passionate team of technologists willing to push big ideas and innovative technology forward."
Thiede holds a BA in political science from the University of the South. She was also identified as a Woman to Watch in 2015 by Multichannel News.
Starry is developing a fixed-wireless broadband service that will rely on millimeter wave technology, a platform that, it claims, can deliver speeds of up to 1 Gbps. The company, which has also introduced the Starry Station, a $349.99 WiFi-capable hub that features a 3.8-inch touchscreen. Starry expects to launch a beta of its Internet service in Boston this summer, and will add more cities to the mix throughout the year.
