Founders

Welcome to @barmstrong, co-founder and CEO of Coinbase! 

He’s kindly agreed to do an AMA. Reply with your questions. :)

You're over a decade into Coinbase—what keeps you motivated?

In the beginning I had a chip on my shoulder and just wanted to do something other people thought was important - desire to be recognized.

At some point it shifted, and my primary motivation is:
1. I'm a true believer in economic freedom, free markets, capitalism, sound money, etc - and crypto is best shot we have

2. I think tech is a force for good in the world
3. I love building things and learning new things. Being the CEO of a crypto company offers lots of opportunities to do both.

If I was on a deserted island, I would still build things and try to learn things. I can't help it (almost pathological).

Side note: i had to quit those games cold turkey in my 20's to not let them take up too much of my time.

Building companies scratches the same itch as video games like StarCraft II and Civilization. I find it even more fund to do those in real life (which is basically tech entrepreneurship) with the added bonus of it improves the world.

What do you think caused the motivation shift?
Do you think it would have shifted if Coinbase had failed?