According to CNBC, blockchain companies are leveraging their financial resources to recruit senior executives from Internet giants such as Facebook, YouTube, and Amazon to help construct the crypto-centric internet environment dubbed “web3.”
Ambitious computer professionals are swooning over the enormous salaries and enticing stock packages given by crypto startups such as Polygon, Circle, and Coinbase.
According to social network Blind, Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, has advertised software engineering positions paying up to $900,000 a year.
“As more crypto and web3 companies arise, we anticipate that the market for IT talent at all levels will become even more competitive,” said James Hallahan, director of Hays’ technology division in the United Kingdom and Ireland (via CNBC).
According to the publication, blockchain businesses will raise more than $25 billion in venture capital by 2021, providing them with ample funds to attract top personnel.
Talent follows (web3) innovation.
Apart from chequebooks, crypto firms rely on targets being unable to resist the draw of web3.
The phrase is largely nebulous, but it mainly refers to the emerging blockchain-powered technology stack that is intended to eventually democratize our online experience away from traditional technology businesses.
“Naturally, people will want to work on what they view as the most exciting and innovative developments in the technology space, and currently, that is crypto and web3,” said payroll software firm Deel’s chief Alex Bouaziz.
“Many are seeing it as the future of the tech industry, in the same way that Facebook and Amazon were attractive in the past.”
This appears to be the case. Established technology behemoths are actually losing top talent to their blockchain competitors.
Sherice Torres, the chief marketing officer of Novi (Facebook’s crypto and payments company), was hired last month by payments platform Circle. A move that was very certainly prompted in part by Diem’s untimely passing.
Circle is now pursuing a public offering via a SPAC transaction that will purportedly value the company at $9 billion.
Additionally, Pravjit Tiwana, Amazon’s general manager of edge services, joined Winklevoss-backed cryptocurrency exchange Gemini as its new chief technology officer in January.
It is bittersweet news to share that I am leaving @YouTube.
I have loved every minute of my time here, but it is time for my next endeavor.
I am elated to announce that I will be joining @0xPolygon ($MATIC) as their CEO of Polygon Studios.
Thank you for the memories! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/VhQxpqDbFO
— Ryan Wyatt – fwiz.eth 💜 (@Fwiz) January 25, 2022
Not to mention Ryan Wyatt, YouTube’s senior managing director and global head of gaming, who joined Ethereum scaling solution Polygon to lead a new studio.
Wyatt informed CNBC about the new web3 opportunity:
“When I started at YouTube Gaming almost eight years ago, I was the first person there. We didn’t have a team. People were really starting to show interest in gaming video.”
“I look at this opportunity very much the same way.”
Disclaimer: These are the writer’s opinions and should not be considered investment advice. Readers should do their own research.