My Next Chapter...

Six years ago, Adam Jackson and I embarked on an ambitious journey with Braintrust , driven by the belief that networks and marketplaces should be owned by the people who make their livings on them. Despite skepticism and doubts about our vision, we've achieved remarkable milestones:

• Raised $124 from top backers including Blockchange Ventures , Multicoin Capital , @trueventures, Tiger Global, Acme, and many more to pioneer a new kind of user-owned marketplace.
• We partnered with over 200 leading brands, including giants like GoldmanSachs, Porsche, Nestle, Google, and Nike to name a few to reimagine how they worked with talent across the globe.
• We grew to over 500,000 talented members across 157 countries, distributing over $200M (and counting) in earnings. We continue to enable talent to do work they love, on their own terms and keep the value they create.
• We scaled to a $100M annual run rate, cash flow positive, with a very strong balance sheet – all with less than 40 employees.

Today, I'm announcing a shift away from day-to-day operations into a board member and advisory role supporting the network.

Reflecting on my entrepreneurial journey across multiple companies I realize my passion lies in the early stages of creation. Braintrust is now moving into scale mode and has the right team + community to carry it forward. Taking Braintrust from 0 to 1 and proving an incredible product market fit has been one of the most fulfilling projects of my entire career but now it's time for me to return to that early-stage phase that I enjoy most.

In the coming months, I'm taking time off to recharge and explore what I feel called to do in my next chapter.

Professionally, I'll continue to invest in early-stage crypto and marketplace ventures through @Upshiftcapital. The promise of the ownership economy remains one of the most exciting opportunities I’ve ever seen, and I’m passionate about exploring other categories where the user-owned model could disrupt the status quo.?Please reach out if you're working on a project in this space.

I want to thank the Braintrust core team – each and every single contributor- your dedication and hard work has been the backbone of our success. Spending time with the sales team and our clients the last few months is a large part of what gives me the confidence I need to step away, knowing the project is in excellent hands and clearly has continued incredible growth in its future .?

And of course, we wouldn't be where we are today without the clients, talent community, and project backers for believing in our vision and making it a reality.

Watching Braintrust evolve and provide unparalleled growth opportunities for global talent to thrive will continue to be one of my greatest sources of pride and joy.

Keep raising the bar and #owningit

Gabe