Valve

Valve Corporation is a leading video game developer and digital distribution company headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. Founded in 1996 by former Microsoft employees Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington, Valve has become one of the most influential companies in the gaming industry.

Valve is best known for developing popular game franchises such as Half-Life, Portal, Counter-Strike, Team Fortress, and Dota. The company also operates Steam, the world's largest digital distribution platform for PC games. Steam serves over 132 million monthly active users across 249 countries as of January 2024. In addition to games, Valve has expanded into hardware with products like the virtual reality headset Valve Index and the handheld gaming PC Steam Deck. Valve employs a unique flat organizational structure with no traditional management hierarchy, allowing employees to work on projects of their choosing.

Valve has continued to innovate in both software and hardware. The company released Half-Life: Alyx, a virtual reality game, in 2020 to critical acclaim. In 2022, Valve launched the Steam Deck handheld gaming device. The company is also actively developing new games, with multiple projects reportedly in the works as of 2024. Valve has implemented new policies for AI-powered game development on Steam and ended certain partnerships with esports teams and tournament organizers starting in 2025 to promote a more open competitive ecosystem.