Rupert Barksfield is the COO and a co-founder of Pynk.io, the world’s first People Powered Investment platform.
What is your background?
Going way back I was a drummer in a rock and roll band. I moved into sound and lighting, started doing events, and ended up in the corporate events world. For a time, I worked with Google on their Android operating system. I then started my own digital agency, where I came across an idea for incentivized advertising. That went well and I exited the agency. So, I was trying to figure out what do next, and joined the Founder Institute met my co-founders for Pynk, and that is my journey from rock and roll to AI!
How did Pynk.io begin?
Pynk was formed a little over a year ago. Our founders all met back in February 2018, where the idea for Pynk was first formed. In October we released the alpha version of our program and in February we began trading on it. Around that time, we also closed our first round of funding. Since then our team has grown to seven full-time staff, and we are looking forward to raising our seed B financing round in September.
The original idea for Pink.io was to create an investment platform for the everyday person. Seth Ward, the founder and our CEO, had been using crowd wisdom at his previous venture. We combined that concept with the predictive capabilities of AI to reduce our margin of error. Pynk.io uses crowd wisdom and AI to make better investment decisions. Users of our platform predict how an individual asset will perform, their predictions are aggregated and analyzed by our AI, giving us a strong signal to trade on, and our gains are then distributed equally to everyone involved.
What is the mission of Pynk.io/What problem(s) does Pynk.io solve?
The mission of Pynk.io is to reduce financial inequality and help build a life free from financial concern.
What do you think is so valuable about your relationship with DAIA?
I think the partnership between Pynk.io and DAIA is so powerful because it allows us to contribute to a global initiative. We are fortunate DAIA has given us the opportunity to participate in such a supportive ecosystem. It has enabled us to collaborate with a network of like-minded companies, creating opportunities not previously available to us. DAIA is cool because its very nature is decentralized, both in its mission and its allied companies.
What is Pynk.io currently working on, and what can we expect to see from Pynk.io in the future?
Right now, Pynk.io is working on releasing the investment side of our platform, which is expected in August 2019. We also just released our new podcast and event series called Pynk Tank. Our live event in London was a great success, with over 4,500 people tuned in from around the world. We hope to continue growing and cannot wait to share what we have in store!
What is the best way to keep up with Pynk.io?
The best way to get up to date on everything Pynk.io is through our Telegram channel. But we are also active on Medium, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter @pynk_io. Drop by and say hi!
Interview conducted by Chantel Costa and Adam Spodek — DAIA Press Team
How can you get involved?
The vision of DAIA is to foster a world where AI technologies and associated data are made open with decentralized, democratic control for the benefit of all sentient beings.
The immense potential of AI means that it can either increase the inequalities of our societies or liberate us from numerous sufferings. We believe the best way forward is to come together and work practically toward creating a better future. We see a massive potential for evolution in the established centralized corporations. We believe tech giants can contribute immensely toward making the vision of DAIA a reality.
DAIA welcomes the participation of those corporations that are sincere about their aim and goal of democratizing AI. The open access networks that have come together to form DAIA are the enabling layer for such a democratization process.
To learn more about us and inquire for memberships, please contact us at team@daia.foundation.
