# Vizio: William Wang

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2025-04-14
- Length: 57m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang

## Summary

William Wang, founder of Vizio, recounts his journey from building Mag Innovision to surviving a catastrophic plane crash and launching Vizio. He explains how he disrupted the TV market by cutting out middlemen and partnering with Costco to sell flat-screen TVs at low prices. Wang details Vizio's evolution into a smart TV platform with recurring revenue from ads and its eventual acquisition by Walmart for $2.3 billion.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=0) Introduction: William Wang and Vizio
- [4:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=244) Early Life and Mag Innovision
- [17:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=1050) Mag Innovision Failure and Debt
- [28:05](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=1685) The Plane Crash
- [37:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=2224) Founding Vizio with Gateway
- [45:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=2737) Vizio's Rise via Costco
- [53:01](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang#t=3181) Smart TVs and Walmart Acquisition

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch, companies scaling up, large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Vizio (company)
- Mag Innovision (company)
- Gateway (company)
- Costco (company)
- Walmart (company)
- Tatong (company)
- IBM (company)
- Sony (company)
- Samsung (company)
- Panasonic (company)
- Hulu (company)
- YouTube (company)
- Netflix (company)
- Yahoo (company)
- Singapore Airlines (company)
- Boeing 747 (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Competing with Tech Giants: Approaches and Challenges with Morgan Teachworth of Cisco](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2023-03-02-competing-with-tech-giants-approaches-and-challenges-with-morgan-teachworth-of-c) (Over the Air)
- [Leveraging Customer Relationships to Build Authentic IoT Products with Dave Crosby, Co-founder, and CMO at WyzeLabs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2022-11-10-leveraging-customer-relationships-to-build-authentic-iot-products-with-dave-cros) (Over the Air)
- [Scaling an IoT Business | Vutility's Stephen Prince | Internet of Things Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2023-10-17-scaling-an-iot-business-vutilitys-stephen-prince-internet-of-things-podcast) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [Selling Your Company and Creating the ‘Netflix of Manufacturing’ with Darrin Mitchell](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2022-01-11-selling-your-company-and-creating-the-netflix-of-manufacturing-with-darrin-mitch) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [An Interview with Scott Miller (2nd)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2019-07-22-an-interview-with-scott-miller-2nd) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-14-vizio-william-wang. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.