'Ice Bucket Challenge' sweeps video game industry too; Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates highlights

(PHOTO: ALS Association Website)ALS Ice Bucket Challenge takes the U.S. by storm.

The technology and video gaming bigwigs are responding to the Ice Bucket Challenge to help spread awareness of ALS and gather as many donations as possible.

Sony Computer Entertainment America President and CEO Shawn Layden is the latest to get a bucket of ice water dumped on his head.

He challenged Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, GameStop President Tony Bartel and PlayStation Europe lead Jim Ryan.

The tradition of the game dictates that nominated folks have 24 hours to complete the challenge.

Other big names in the video gaming industry that took the challenge are Xbox executive Phil Spencer and Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson.

One of the most talked about ALS ice bucket challenge is that of Bill Gates, and his smart integration of engineering into the "dumping of ice" as a response to Mark Zuckerberg's nomination.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Twitter CEO Dick Costolo.

Aside from enduring a bucket of ice, the honchos have donation money for the cause.

ALS Association was able to raise over $64 million in 2013 according to spokesperson Carrie Munk.

The past few weeks, they have seen around 1100% increase in year-over-year donations, thanks to the ice bucket challenge.

"As of Wednesday, August 20, The ALS Association has received $31.5 million in donations compared to $1.9 million during the same time period last year (July 29 to August 20). These donations have come from existing donors and 637,527 new donors to The Association," according to the official press release of the ALS organization on August 20.

"I know that many people are wondering what The ALS Association is going to do with these donations," Barbara Newhouse, the association's CEO and president said over the weekend. "My answer is this: invest prudently in helping people with ALS and their families and caregivers in the battle against the disease, while resolutely pursuing all avenues to extend, improve and ultimately save lives."

ALS or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a progressive neurodegenerative illness that damages the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.

Many experts would say that ALS is like Parkinson's disease on super steroids with usual prognosis of three to five years.

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