PITTSBURGH-Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos will be the guest speaker at Carnegie Mellon University diploma ceremonies for its Tepper School of Business and School of Computer Science during the university's commencement weekend, May 17-18.

Bezos will speak to business school graduates receiving master's and doctor's degrees at 2 p.m., Saturday, May 17 at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall, 4141 Fifth Avenue in Oakland. He will receive an honorary doctorate in science and technology during the 11 a.m. university-wide commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 18. At 1 p.m., Sunday afternoon, he will speak to graduates of the School of Computer Science at the Carnegie Music Hall, 4400 Forbes Avenue in Oakland.

In 1994, Bezos created a business model that leveraged the Internet's unique ability to deliver huge amounts of information rapidly and efficiently, and founded Amazon.com Inc. Today, it is the leading online retailer.

Before heading west to start Amazon.com, Bezos worked at the juncture of computer science and finance, helping to build one of the most technically sophisticated quantitative hedge funds on Wall Street for D.E. Shaw & Co. He also led the development of computer systems that helped manage more than $250 billion in assets for Bankers Trust Company.

"Tepper School graduates around the world are renowned for their innovations within the intersection of business and technology, so it is a special privilege to host a leader whose vision both reflects and inspires our own school's mission," said Kenneth B. Dunn, dean of the Tepper School of Business.

"We are pleased that Jeff Bezos, an executive with a deep understanding of how computer science is transforming our world, will be sharing his insights with our graduates this year. Much of Amazon's success stems from the sophistication of its computer and networking technology and we are proud that Amazon has hired a number of our students over the years to help build that technology," said Randal E. Bryant, dean of the School of Computer Science.

Some 58 alumni of Carnegie Mellon work for Amazon, including 16 with degrees from the School of Computer Science.

Additional Information: http://www.cmu.edu/news/archive/2008/April/april21_commencement.shtml