Sim Wong Hoo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Creative Technology, passed away peacefully on January 4, 2023, according to a letter that was sent out by the company’s board of directors yesterday, one in which it expressed gratitude for the immense contributions that the executive made during his tenure at Creative, which he founded in 1981.
Creative Technology is best known as the company behind the Sound Blaster audio cards, which rapidly rose in popularity following the release of the first model, the Sound Blaster 1.0 “Killer Card” CT1320A, in 1989, but later lost favor with gamers and other enthusiasts after the advent of alternatives that include onboard audio.
From the letter dated January 5, 2023:
Mr. Sim founded the Company in 1981 and has been the Chairman and Chief Executive Office since inception. Mr. Sim has played an instrumental role in developing the business and has provided the Company with strong leadership and vision. Under his guidance, the Company became famous for the Sound Blaster sound cards and is a worldwide leader in digital entertainment products. The Company also launched the multimedia revolution that drives digital entertainment with cutting-edge audio solutions which include premium wireless speakers, wireless headphones, powerful audiophile-grade amplifiers and digital audio converters, and next-generation home-theatre systems.
“I have known and worked with Mr. Sim for over 30 years,” said interim Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Song Siow Hui in a statement. “This is a sad and sudden development and we feel a great loss especially since Mr. Sim and I recently had extensive discussions on the future direction of the Company. During those discussions, Mr. Sim was full of fresh vision. Even on the night before, he had a long discussion with the Engineering team and was scheduled to meet with the Online Sales team the next day. The best thing to do now is to ensure the continued smooth running of the Company, and also to execute and realise the vision and strategy that Mr. Sim had for the Company.”
Creative Technology has set up an email account (rememberingsim@ctl.creative.com) for those who wish to share their condolences for Hoo, who has been described by the company as a “visionary, inventor, and entrepreneur who gave the PC a voice.”
Creative’s current Sound Blaster products include the Sound Blaster GC7, a game streaming USB DAC and amp with programmable buttons and Super X-Fi, a headpones technology that Creative says captures the listening experience of a high-end multi-speaker system in a professional studio.