Scott Forstall
TechCrunch discovered the information in the leaked emails posted to Wikileaks. They were part of massive amount of emails and other information stolen by North Korean hackers in retaliation for the movie The Interview. The information about Snapchat came from Michael Lynton, CEO Sony Pictures, who also serves on the board of Snapchat.
Snapchat neither confirmed nor denied Scott Forstall's role in the company, telling TechCrunch, “We have a number of advisors, but we don’t comment on the specifics of their relationship with the company.”
Mr. Forstall led Apple's iOS development team from its inception, and was close to the late Steve Jobs. He reportedly clashed with other Apple execs, especially after Steve Jobs passed away in 2011. In 2012, CEO Tim Cook terminated him from the executive team in the wake of flawed rollout of Apple Maps. It was soon reported that Scott Forstall refused to sign an apology letter for that rollout, leading to his termination.
Since his departure from Apple, Mr. Forstall has kept a low profile, including no publicly visible roles at other companies. In December of 2013, Mr. Forstall was reportedly traveling, advising startups, and getting involved in unspecified philanthropic efforts. Snapchat soon became one of those startups.