Kayvon Beykpour

In era of app fatigue, the breakout success of Periscope, a livestreaming video app launched in March, is rare. Within a week, the app captured a million registered users; in four months, it hit 10 million. Beykpour, who previously led mobile for ed-tech firm Blackboard, says Periscope is popular because it teleports viewers into the raw, unfiltered action, be it the immediate aftermath of the April earthquake in Nepal, a backstage view of a Taylor Swift concert, or musings of a bored teenager. It didn’t hurt public intrigue that Twitter acquired Periscope for a rumored $100 million before it even launched. Beykpour, who manages his team of 24 in a separate San Francisco office away from Twitter’s headquarters, says Periscope’s mission hasn’t changed since the deal: “In its most successful carnation, [Periscope] builds empathy and truth.”