About Gary Sheng (@garysheng’s pinned tweet thread)

Hopefully this document answers a whole bunch of questions you have about me.

If I were to boil down who i am into one sentence, it’s that I am a US-based technologist, creator, and civic entrepreneur dedicated to building tools, systems, and movements that accelerate human and planetary flourishing (and ultimately help build toward a Golden Age for humanity).

I explore multiple times a week how we “level up America” on my Substack.

I advise + contribute (to varying degrees) to many projects, such as @GitcoinDAO (my biggest commitment).

Other commitments include…

There is never a dull moment.

In terms of passions, nothing excites me more than helping budding superheroes realize their superpowers and connecting previously siloed people, ideas, + practices. Our differences are our greatest gifts.

When we work together, almost anything is possible.

A few of the top questions I am currently exploring are:

One of my proudest accomplishments is co-founding and building Civics Unplugged, a 501(c)(3) that empowers Gen Z to become the civic innovators their communities need.

Since 2019, CU has been providing training, mentorship, opportunities, and community for regen-minded changemakers from all around the world (80+ countries represented as of 2023).

In Jan '22, under Civics Unplugged, I spearheaded the launch of Dream DAO, which provides alumni of CU's core civic innovation program with the foundational training + opportunities they need to be + build the future of web3 x social impact. The potential of our DreamerZ community is out of this world.

The DAO is supported by Celo, Coinbase, Gitcoin, NEAR, Ethereum Foundation and many other leaders in web3. It's truly amazing to see the web3 community come together to support its future leaders.

Before co-founding @CivicsUnplugged, I went to @IMSA_, then @DukeU, then worked at @Google as a software engineering lead on cloud ☁️.

Working at Google changed my life, but I left because I couldn't stand to watch our democracy fall apart, and I felt I had to do everything I could to help reverse its downward spiral 🗽.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am obsessed with the "regen” meme, which I believe is the most powerful and unifying meme of the decade (and possibly beyond) 🌱.

The other meme I'm incredibly bullish on is "foundational tech," which is central to my new YouTube channel about how tech can level America: https://twitter.com/garysheng/status/1566925039995428864.

Re: foundational tech, I started a Substack focused entirely on leveling up the US to America 2.0. Read the launch post "The Foundational Tech Manifesto" here.

A quick note about my Twitter profile: if you scroll through it quickly, you'll notice it's full of hopeful art, quotes, and observations.

I want my posts to be a source of light in a world of doom and gloom.

Optimism is self-fulfilling when tied to collective action 🌞

Through bulls, bears and everything in between, I'm excited to build alongside you.

I speak regularly at conferences (like SXSW, ETHDenver, Consensus) and on podcasts/documentaries about DAOs, hyperlocalism, foundational tech, America's future, and all things regen 🎙.

I was a resident at the first ever Zuzalu, which was a pop-up city in Montenegro by Vitalik Buterin that took place between March and May 2023.

I was featured in a PBS “Roadtrip Nation” documentary on Changemakers (published in March 2023).

I am featured in a few documentaries coming out in the coming months and years like the Ethereum Film.

I am being ongoingly interviewed on Airchat, in a room called “Who is Gary Sheng?”

Let me know if you'd like to invite me to a conference/podcast/Twitter Space/etc (if I have to travel, I need the costs completely comped).

And in general, if you'd like to coordinate/collaborate/communicate with me, I'm mainly looking for collaborators related to Foundational Tech for America's Future.

Much love,

Gary