Agapitus Lye

Starting a successful video game company from scratch would be a dream to most, but to Agapitus “Augi” Lye it’s just another resume line. The 33-year-old entrepreneur, engineer, inventor and classical violinist builds successful startup companies from the scratch, invents ground-breaking technology, and maintains Gainesville’s largest video game studio. “If you want to start something just start it,” he says. “Everyone should try it.” Lye, raised in Jacksonville, is cofounder and CEO of Trendy Entertainment, the Gainesville development studio behind the video game Dungeon Defenders. After forming in 2009 with a company of 2 employees, Trendy Entertainment now has over 100 staffers, an extra office in New York City and San Francisco, and 3.5 million sales of its first title. Dungeon Defenders, Trendy’s first game, is known for its combination of strategy and real-time action gameplay. The player controls one of eight unique and customizable characters to defend a crystal located on one end of the map from a mounting line of enemies that spawn from across a varied array