Before co-founding Instructure in 2008, Brian knew he wanted to build a better learning management system. His first step was a “product validation tour” of 17 colleges and universities to find out what faculty and students really wanted in an LMS. Made possible by a Geo Metro with no air conditioning, this legendary tour laid the groundwork for an open, elegant, and easy-to-use solution: Canvas. As Chief Learning Officer, Brian keeps the development of Canvas in line with his founding vision. He makes sure the company is building the best learning platform for the present—and for the future. While earning his B.S. and M.S. degrees in computer science at Brigham Young University, Brian did extensive research in technology usability, which has shaped his approach to building Canvas. Before dedicating his creative genius to opening education with technology, young Brian built and sold floppy disk versions of RPG video games by mail.