Mason Smith is a government and community relations expert. Mason has led marketplaces that define emerging industries, including Airbnb (YC W09), GM Cruise (YC W14), and Hipcamp (backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Benchmark Capital, Bond Capital). 

In 2014, Mason led a team to legalize Airbnb in their hometown of San Francisco. From 2018, he paved the way to launch electric autonomous vehicles in the industry's pre-commercial era. Most recently, Mason founded and led the government relations department at Hipcamp.

Mason has extensive knowledge in federal, state, and local policy and has codified legislation in some of the world’s most highly regulated markets. He has founded and led government relations teams, provided a crucial perspective during fundraising, and navigated multiple international expansions — all while helping drive exponential growth. 

Mason can provide consulting help with the following:

• Ensuring your ability to launch and scale without impacting your timeline or reputation: define your company’s internal policies, identify critical external stakeholders, and prepare leadership for primetime and closed-door speaking engagements
• Articulating your company’s position on public policy: analyze regulations impacting your business, strengthen external messaging, and facilitate meetings with key public officials 
• Shaping the policy landscape to ensure your competitive advantage: draft model regulations and legislation, create campaign plans, build an advocacy coalition, and mobilize grassroots advocates

Links: Everything Marketplaces profile, LinkedIn

“Mason is a wave-creator. He was instrumental in helping us write the playbook for an essential part of our business at a critical time. We’re impressed and thrilled to have him in our orbit.”

-Tyler Maloney, CEO of TeachMe.To