Chris McCoy, an entrepreneur and leader often described as a "Purple American Democrat," has made significant contributions to the intersection of technology and public policy through his work on Data4America and as the CEO of STORE Research, Inc. Growing up in Kelso, Washington on food stamps and free lunch, Chris witnessed firsthand the timber industry's decline and its impact on community resilience, shaping his understanding of economic transition challenges that would later inform his approach to technology and governance.
His journey took an unexpected turn when a neck injury ended his promising baseball career (91-92 mph fastball) at the University of Washington. Converting his understanding of athletic biomechanics into entrepreneurial ventures, Chris began teaching "feet to fingertips" kinetic energy to young pitchers, launching his first business while still in college. This led to co-founding I Love Baseball in 2005, a foundation that helps children in the Dominican Republic pursue both their baseball dreams and education simultaneously.
Inspired by NaShuntae Pleasant-Miles, an influential 1999 Washington DECA State President who passed away from a brain tumor in 2003, Chris followed her leadership example by serving as Washington DECA State President and later National DECA President. He later co-founded NaShuntae's Gift with her father Nate Miles (who became a key investor and mentor in Chris's early entrepreneurial ventures), creating a scholarship that honors NaShuntae's legacy by supporting students demonstrating perseverance and excellence.
In 2023, answering his great uncle Kirby McCoy's challenge to "do something great for the kids of Kelso," Chris implemented Hilander Democracy for his hometown—a real-world experiment in BFT Democracy that powers the Hilander Hall of Fame, celebrating over a century of Kelso's rich history. This innovative governance framework uses multi-layered thresholds to ensure transparent, verifiable decisions while maintaining community connection through in-person gatherings.
Throughout his career, Chris has demonstrated a unique ability to bridge diverse domains - from athletics to technology to governance systems. He founded Data4America, a nonpartisan platform dedicated to advancing understanding of American innovation and public policy through data-driven content. His 'purple' approach stems not from political calculation but from authentic lived experience spanning economic struggle and success, rural and urban environments, traditional and innovative sectors. Drawing on two decades of identifying technological inflection points ahead of mainstream adoption, Chris brings a unique forecasting perspective to policy analysis that helps advance understanding of critical issues from monetary policy to economic growth, housing, crypto, and AI. His work with STORE protocol—democratically governing decentralized computing infrastructure—provides unique credibility for addressing how technology governance will shape society's future.
This ability to bridge worlds that rarely communicate—from resource-dependent communities to Silicon Valley innovation—informs Data4America's mission to make complex policy discussions accessible across traditional divides. As a leader positioned to democratically govern technology rather than be governed by it, he builds systems that distribute opportunity through mathematical governance frameworks.
As the CEO of STORE Research, Inc., Chris leads the development of the STORE protocol, a decentralized cloud computing protocol that democratizes access to computing resources. With his resilient background, transitioning from a mineral mining family in Oklahoma (where his grandfather played catch with Mickey Mantle's father in the mines) to being raised by a teen mom to a tech entrepreneur in California in just three generations, Chris is positioned to shape discourse around American innovation, democratic systems, and public policy in the years to come.
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