Blockchain expert and CEO of HYVE
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” This Chinese proverb, one of Tudor Stomff’s favorite, aptly describes his vision. A formidable tech expert, Tudor started dabbling in ‘Blockchain Technology’ years before it was in the public domain.
Born a single child in Bucharest, Romania, Tudor’s interest in tech started very early. Speaking about his childhood, he says, “I started programming at an early age and this turned into a passion for building startups that have an impact. My parents taught me that it is everyone’s responsibility to contribute and improve their community.”
When he was in his 9th grade, he met his friend and future collaborator Dominic Burghelea, and within a month, they were working on a product – an online tutoring platform. In 2013, they got into the blockchain space. “Blockchain is still an emerging industry and for me, it represents an opportunity to help people understand how it can change their lives by revealing new ways for people to interact with each other economically. I enjoy being a problem solver and finding solutions to whatever problem comes my way. I think no one should have less access to opportunities simply because of where they were born, what they believe in, or other subjective details that we cannot influence individuals. It’s been a crazy journey so far, but it’s also been one of the most exciting facets of my life,” says Tudor of his passion.
In 2017, Tudor started his first company within the space, together with Dominic. The company was called Bountyhive, a full-stack blockchain agency and micro-tasking platform that grew to a portfolio of 150+ clients and 200,000 active users within two years.
In 2018, Tudor started working on his dream project – HYVE, with Dominic and Brad Yasar. Released in 2021, HYVE addresses a new global and decentralized way of interaction between robots and humans. It is both an Infrastructure for Decentralized Platforms and a Global Directory. It is an autonomous DAO serving the global workforce by solving the most common freelance problems: high fees, slow settlements, lack of privacy and data breaches.
The result is HYVE, a community-governed ecosystem that drastically brings down costs for all parties involved, offers even more flexibility, cuts out the middleman, welcomes the unbanked, provides transparency and ensures safety, all in a decentralized manner. On top of that, the ecosystem rewards token holders.
While studying how great businesses have been built, Tudor realized it was always the passion behind bringing products to life. However, passion and being good at something aren’t consistent enough to create a successful business. Knowledge, skill, and commitment are must-haves, as is a strong work ethic. Speaking about his learnings along the way, Tudor says, “My strength, I would say, is being relentless. I’ve had lots of failures. Everyone does. What is important is how you deal with that. My approach is to figure out what I could change to avoid similar circumstances in the future. Also, I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by great people that have helped enormously in lessening the weight of running a company.”
He refers to Dominic and Brad, his two co-founders and friends, and all his teammates who made HYVE possible: “It makes me extremely proud to have a team that I can count on.” When Tudor received Sir Anthony Ritossa’s prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, the entire HYVE team attended Sir Anthony Ritossa’s 15th Global Family Office Investment Summit in Monaco. The event was a huge step forward in HYVE’s development as it has opened many doors for its global outreach.
We can’t help but ask Tudor how he balances his personal and professional challenges while facilitating such a massive operation. To this, he replies, “I strive for a realistic balance, given the fact that we work in a forever changing environment, which requires constant adaptation and focus.”
How did they thrive through the pandemic, we ask him. “We adopted the decentralized ethos in all aspects of our business, so it wasn’t hard. We used this to our advantage to focus on what we do best, building out the product. HYVE can bring major changes to the way we collaborate, whether you’re a freelancer, traditional employee, recruiter, or company,” says Tudor as he leaves us with a message: “I encourage everyone to start working on what is important for them right now. COVID-19 will most likely fuel the shift to the freelance economy further.”
