In this episode of Breakthrough Labs, General Atlantic Managing Director and Head of Consumer Internet and Technology Tanzeen Syed speaks with Erik Allebest, Co-Founder and CEO of Chess.com, one of the world's largest platforms for playing, learning and watching chess, with over 100 million members. They discuss Erik's mission-driven pursuit to build Chess.com, driven by his love of chess and passion for bringing the game to others; his earlier chess-related businesses and experience in e-commerce, starting when he was in college; his decision to take an unconventional path following his time at Stanford Graduate School of Business; the importance of community and authenticity in his core values and approach to building Chess.com; how personalization of the product and storytelling helped engage first time chess players, as well as those already familiar with the game; his commitment to focusing on Chess.com's product and creating value for users to build its community organically; Erik's perspective on what it means to be a mission-driven company and how this has contributed to Chess.com's development; challenges the company overcame and Erik's approach to navigating these alongside Co-Founder Jay Severson; pivotal moments that contributed to increased interest in chess globally and, in turn, Chess.com's success, including the 2018 World Chess Championship, the rise in online gaming catalyzed by COVID-19 lockdowns and Netflix's The Queen's Gambit; and, Erik's outlook on the future of chess.
Key Takeaways – "In this episode"
