I just started work at
@Underdog where I will be building the best exchange for sports fans. While opportunities in prediction markets are incredibly wide, the decision on where I wanted to work next was easy.
The companies that will define this space long-term are the ones that know how to navigate changing regulatory structures, have a genuine obsession with building great products, backed by a record of doing so, and have a user base that already trusts them.
Underdog hits all three markers, and I'd argue no one surpasses the company in any of the three categories.
Further, Underdog is one of the only sports companies in the country that holds all three major CFTC licenses: DCM, DCO, and FCM. These licenses are a challenge to acquire and take time, capital, and regulatory credibility. Most companies in this space have one and piggyback on a partner who has another. Underdog went out and developed what it needed to operate independently and at scale, and that signals something important about where this company is headed.
Underdog has been designing innovative products their customers obsess over for a long time and across multiple categories and regulatory regimes. They don't operate with any sanctimony about what the rules should be; they find ways to make incredible products for their customers within the relevant rules and regulations.
Before they even had their own prediction market exchange, they figured out how to combine a federally regulated event contract with player picks from their fantasy product. At the time, this delivered a same-game parlay-like experience before anyone else. When I saw it, I knew I needed to talk to them, as this kind of creative problem-solving is exactly what separates good operators from great ones.
Now, after the acquisition by IG Group, Underdog has even more firepower. We'll be able to leverage their expertise and resources to expand what's been created here to more customers, and keep building more incredible products.
@JerLevine is another major reason I think Underdog has a real shot to lead this space. I've watched founders try to navigate prediction markets, and it's genuinely hard. The regulatory complexity, the product challenges, and the competition from companies with bigger balance sheets can turn it into a gauntlet. Jeremy has led Underdog through these challenges, and just does things the right way. Regulated markets and responsible gaming aren't afterthoughts here, they're baked into how this team operates.
I'm excited to bring what I have learned to Underdog and help build at the most interesting company in prediction markets right now.