Matthew Wilson on M&A
From Betting on Success Podcast Episode 12 - Matt Wilson (CEO, Light & Wonder) · · Betting on Success Gaming Industry Podcast
“We sold a bunch and in retrospect we were proven right and we refocused a business around content.”
On , Matthew Wilson, Chief Executive Officer, President & Director at LIGHT & WONDER INC, spoke about M&A during Betting on Success Podcast Episode 12 - Matt Wilson (CEO, Light & Wonder) on Betting on Success Gaming Industry Podcast.
About Matthew Wilson
Matthew Wilson, CEO of Light & Wonder, has been discussing the company's strategic direction and his personal leadership philosophy in several recent podcasts and interviews. In a February 2026 episode of "Betting on Success," Wilson reflected on his career journey, stating that he made intentional decisions to advance, including taking a 50% salary cut to move into a strategic role. He said that the best leaders "build a team and a culture" so that a business can thrive after they leave. Wilson also discussed the sacrifices of his career, including being unable to attend his grandmother's funeral in Australia. In a November 2025 interview at G2E, Wilson discussed the company's financial targets, saying Light & Wonder is "in the last throws of delivering on our long-range guidance" and plans to "deliver $2 billion of EBITDA, double our earnings per share by 2028." He noted the company is shifting its stock listing from the NASDAQ to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), while remaining a US-domiciled company with 70% of revenue from the US. Wilson also spoke about the company's use of artificial intelligence, stating that "we don't think AI is a buzzword" and that the company is focused on "agentic AI" to automate lower-value parts of the development process. Separately, Wilson has hosted a podcast titled "In Gold We Trust," where he discussed gold as a safe-haven asset. In a November 2025 episode, he argued that gold is "durable, scarce, portable, and psychologically reassuring" and that its reputation "isn't built on marketing, it's built on performance." He cited historical examples, including gold's price surge from $35 to over $800 an ounce in the 1970s after the US ended the gold standard. Wilson has also been observed streaming video game playthroughs on social media, including titles such as "Streets of Rage," "Sonic the Hedgehog," and "Tomb Raider," during which he made casual, offhand remarks about the games and his personal life.