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Claude Guillemot
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| Born | 30 October 1956
Carentoir,[citation needed] France
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| Died | 19 June 2026 (aged 69)
La Baule-Escoublac, France
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Cause of death
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Plane crash |
| Occupation | Businessman |
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Claude Guillemot (30 October 1956[citation needed] – 19 June 2026) was a French businessman who co-founded the video game publisher Ubisoft with his brothers Yves, Michel, Gérard, and Christian in March 1986. He was the chairman for Guillemot Corporation.
Early life
Guillemot grew up in a small village in Brittany. Guillemot's parents owned a farming business, where he and his brothers provided support in accounting, shipping, and delivery.[1] As the business declined with challenging profit margins, he and his brothers looked for ways to diversify.[2] Where the family business was selling chemicals and parts to farmers, they also began selling computers, which soon included game software. When they realized that their French supplier[clarification needed] was charging them twice the cost of what they could find in the United Kingdom, they started a mail order video games business in 1984.[1] The mail order business grew quickly.[1] In time, they were distributing games to retail stores,[2] who were eager to acquire games at a more reasonable cost.[1]
Career
Guillemot and his brothers founded Ubisoft in 1986 to create games, recognizing the opportunity in a growing industry that they were also passionate about.[2] He worked largely behind the scenes as the operational backbone of the family's broader entertainment business and helped transform the company into one of the largest video game companies in the world.[3] He was the president and CEO of Guillemot Corporation, a company specializing in equipment and accessories for PCs, mobile devices, and consoles. From 1997 to 2026, he led the company's expansion, which included R&D and logistics centers in Europe, Canada, and China. He also was president of the Club des Trente since 2009, an association which brings together 60 French CEOs, exchanges and takes a position on socio-economic debates.[4][5]
Death
On 19 June 2026, Guillemot and a flight instructor died when his Cessna 421 Golden Eagle crashed into a field shortly before 6:00 p.m. while on approach to the La Baule-Escoublac Airfield in La Baule-Escoublac, Pays de la Loire, France.[6][7] The aircraft was destroyed in the impact.[8] He was 69.[9] He was flying to La Baule-Escoublac to participate in an airshow scheduled for the next weekend.[10]
See also
- 1980 Camarate plane crash
References
- ^ a b c d Bertz, Matt. "Ubi Uncensored: The History Of Ubisoft By The People Who Wrote It". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 7 January 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ a b c "Ubisoft CEO Talks 'Assassin's Creed,' Takeover Bids And More". Time. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ "Ubisoft's co-founder Claude Guillemot dies in plane crash". Reuters. June 20, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
- ^ Colin, Emilie (29 September 2016). "Qui sont Les Guillemot ? Portrait du clan breton du jeu vidéo qui résiste à Bolloré" [Who are Les Guillemot? A portrait of the Breton video game clan resisting Bolloré] (in French).
- ^ "Ubisoft - Gouvernance". www.ubisoft.com. Retrieved 2019-03-05.
- ^ "Ubisoft Co-founder Claude Guillemot Dies in Plane Crash". Newsweek. June 20, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
- ^ "Ubisoft Co-Founder Claude Guillemot Dead After Plane Crash In France". Forbes. June 20, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
- ^ "Accident Cessna 421B Golden Eagle F-GUST, Friday 19 June 2026". Aviation Safety Network. June 19, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
- ^ "Ubisoft co-founder Claude Guillemot dies in air crash at age 69". The Straits Times. June 19, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
- ^ "Vol parti de Rennes, propriétaire… Ce que l'on sait du crash d'un avion bimoteur à La Baule, qui a fait deux morts" [Flight departed from Rennes, owner… What we know about the twin-engine plane crash in La Baule, which killed two people] (in French). Ouest-France. June 19, 2026. Retrieved June 20, 2026.
External links
- Claude Guillemot at IMDb