The Futurist: What's Next for Jack Dorsey?

What's Next for Jack Dorsey?

For over a decade, programmer and entrepreneur Jack Dorsey has been recognized as the cofounder of Twitter. Now that he's officially resigned from the social media platform's board, many people are wondering: what's next for Jack Dorsey? Let's take a closer look at his background, career and upcoming projects.

Jack Dorsey's Background

Jack Dorsey's Background

Jack Dorsey was born in 1976 in St. Louis, Missouri. Growing up, Dorsey was interested in fashion and even worked as a model. However, he quickly transitioned to the technological world. By age 15, he'd created his first invention: dispatching software for taxicabs. He decided to expand his skills by enrolling at the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

After 2 years, Dorsey transferred to New York University, where he studied web development. However, he dropped out to pursue entrepreneurship in San Francisco, where he launched a company that used the internet to dispatch vehicles. Over time, Dorsey deepened his knowledge of the internet by experimenting with instant messaging. By 2006, he'd come up with Twitter, an idea that would change his life forever.

Jack Dorsey's Career

When Dorsey first envisioned Twitter, he knew it would be a big hit — however, he couldn't create it alone. He approached two fellow entrepreneurs (Evan Williams and Biz Stone) with the concept, and they worked together on a prototype.

The platform, which lets people communicate online through brief messages, quickly rose in popularity. Dorsey served as CEO until 2008, when he stepped down and became chairman of the company's board. Around this time, Dorsey was also working on Square, a digital payments company. He launched the project in 2010 and gained over 2 million users in 2 years.

Dorsey was also still heavily involved in Twitter and re-assumed the CEO position in 2015. However, it wasn't easy sailing — many users began criticizing Twitter for its lack of moderation. In 2021, Dorsey announced that, once again, he would be resigning as CEO. The company is now run by business magnate Elon Musk, although Dorsey remained on the board until May 2022.

Jack Dorsey's Future Endeavors

There's no question that Twitter greatly impacted Dorsey's life. Not only was it his claim to fame, but it also made him a billionaire — the platform is currently worth over $13 billion. Now that he's moved on, many are wondering about the tech mogul's next steps.

Dorsey has previously expressed interest in running for mayor of New York. However, considering that he's settled down in San Francisco, it seems like his political aspirations are on hold. Instead, he's been channeling his efforts into Square, which is now called Block.

The company has embraced cryptocurrency, which Dorsey is a strong believer in — he even changed his title from CEO to Blockhead (a reference to blockchains). As of November 2022, Block is valued at over $30 billion. 

In addition to Block, Dorsey is working on a new social media platform, Bluesky Social. The blockchain-based company, which is still in development, aims to provide a decentralized network that gives users more independence. And, the results seem promising — during beta testing, it received over 30,000 sign-ups in just 2 days. 

While he may have moved on from Twitter, Dorsey hasn't fully cut ties with the company. He continues to voice his opinions about the platform, which includes a recent apology for layoffs made after Musk took over. Between his cryptocurrency company, new social media ventures and ties to Twitter, one thing is clear: Dorsey isn't going anywhere just yet. 

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