Founder Profile
Gary Burrell
Last reviewed: October 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Who is Gary Burrell?
Gary Burrell is a founder of Garmin Ltd., which was founded in 1989 with Min H. Kao.
- Company founded
- Garmin Ltd.
- Founded
- 1989
- Co-founders
- Min H. Kao
Background
Gary Burrell was an aviation electronics engineer and executive at King Radio in Olathe, Kansas, where he hired Min Kao before the two left to start Garmin in 1989.
Founding Story
Gary Burrell co-founded Garmin in 1989 and led it as chief executive alongside Min Kao in its early years. He brought avionics industry experience and a conservative approach to money, which shaped Garmin's early focus on marine and aviation GPS and its debt-free balance sheet. He later stepped back from day-to-day management, became chairman emeritus, and died in 2019.
Gary Burrell was born in 1937 in Stilwell. Education: Wichita State University; Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.