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Stay Gold, America
Coding Horror Blog â Jan 7, 2025
Stay Gold, America
We are at an unprecedented point in American history.
Jeff Atwood
A New Giving Pledge? Tech Mogul Promises Accelerated Donations
The Chronicle of Philanthropy â Jan 16, 2025
(electric boat rented from Bae Boats here in Alameda, CA)
Tech Boss Jeff Atwood To Give Away Half of Fortune for 'The American Dream'
Newsweek â Jan 17, 2025
"The American dream isn't about just getting rich. It's about everyone succeeding," he said during an interview with The Associated Press this week. Atwood argues that growing wealth inequality is eroding faith in the American dreamâthe idea that hard work and a bit of luck can lead to success and prosperity.
Tech Founder Pledges to Give Away Half His Wealth to Make the American Dream More Possible
U.S. News & World Report â Jan 17, 2025
Unfair. Astonishing. Un-American. That is how tech entrepreneur Jeff Atwood sees the staggering wealth inequality in the U.S. today. In response, he and his family have pledged to give away half their wealth within five years, starting with $1 million gifts to eight nonprofits this month.
A $1.8B startup sale made him wealthyânow he plans to donate half his net worth: âThe American Dream isnât just about getting richâ
CNBC â Jan 18, 2025
Plenty of wealthy people plan to donate most of their fortunes to philanthropic causes. Jeff Atwood says heâll actually do it within the next five years. Atwood, the co-founder of computer programing platform Stack Overflow â which was acquired by global investment group Prosus for $1.8 billion in 2021 â plans to give away more than half his wealth within the next five years.
I'm giving away half my wealth to make the American Dream possible â ask me anything
Reddit â Feb 1, 2025
Tech Multimillionaire, UVA Grad, Pledges To Give Away Half His Wealth
UVA Today â Feb 12, 2025
The 1992 graduate, an only child, arrived at UVA in 1988. Both his parents came from âdirt poor rural backgrounds in North Carolina and West Virginia,â he said. The family paid his UVA tuition with a combination of savings, a Pell Grant and the money Atwood earned working as a cashier at Safeway and in the summer for a painting business.
From Code To Cash: Stack Overflow Co-Founder Jeff Atwood's Unorthodox Path To Philanthropy
Forbes â Apr 25, 2025
From Code To Cash: Stack Overflow Co-Founder Jeff Atwoodâs Unorthodox Path To Philanthropy
The more I looked at it, the more I thought the money should be actually out there working to make the world better in some form.
Aisha Nyandoro, Ph.D.
Jeff Atwoodâs philanthropic strategy focuses on giving away half his wealthâaround $50 millionâwithin five years through large, no-strings-attached donations. Motivated by rising inequality, he supports guaranteed income pilots in rural areas tied to his family roots and favors fast, trust-based giving over traditional slow philanthropy, aiming to make an immediate impact and inspire others to do the same.
Let's Talk About The American Dream
Coding Horror Blog - Mar 6, 2025
Letâs Talk About The American Dream
A few months ago I wrote about what it means to stay gold â to hold on to the best parts of ourselves, our communities, and the American Dream itself. But staying gold isnât passive. It takes work. It takes action. It takes hard conversations that ask us to confront
Jeff Atwood
The Road Not Taken is Guaranteed Minimum Income
Coding Horror Blog - Mar 20, 2025
The Road Not Taken is Guaranteed Minimum Income
The dream is incomplete until we share it with our fellow Americans.
Jeff Atwood
TIME100 Philanthropy 2025
Time Magazine - May 20, 2025
TIME100 Philanthropy: Jeff Atwood
Find out why Jeff Atwood is on the TIME100 Most Influential People in Philanthropy 2025 list.
Atwoodâs drive to give back stems from his own background, growing up poor and financing his college education through a combination of Pell grants, scholarships, and a minimum-wage job as a cashier. His next giving goal: to work with churches, community organizations and veterans groups to make direct cash payments to residents of poor counties in West Virginia, North Carolina, and Arizona. Studies have shown, he says, that this is one of the most effective ways to lift people out of poverty.
âItâs not a handout,â he says. âItâs an investment in our fellow Americans.â
Denver Frederick Interview and Podcast
The Business of Giving â Jun 24, 2025
The American Dream Is Broken. This $50 Million Bet Could Help Rebuild It. - Denver Frederick
There are few issues more urgentâor more misunderstoodâthan poverty in America. And even fewer solutions as bold as simply giving people cash. Jeff Atwood, the tech entrepreneur behind Stack Overflow, and his partner Betsy Burton, a trained scientist with a deep commitment to equity, are working to change that. Together, theyâve launched a $50 million guaranteed minimum income initiative across some of the poorest rural counties in the countryâplaces that mirror their own family roots. In this episode, Jeff and Betsy share a story that is as personal as it is political. From the hills of West Virginia to their home in Alameda, California, they speak candidly about wealth, dignity, hope, and the American Dream. Weâll explore how their own childhoods and their children have shaped their philanthropy, how storytelling is challenging tired myths about the poor, and why 2025 is the moment to rewrite the social contract in America. This is not your typical conversation about povertyâand itâs not your typical couple trying to solve it. Here is Jeff Atwood and Betsy Burton on The Business of Giving
Denver Frederick
Denver: Betsy, with your remarkable background in biology, you guys are now raising three kids there, and youâre really the heartbeat of this mission, I think. How have your children sparked your passion for guaranteed minimum income, GMI pilots in rural counties across the country?
Betsy: Raising kids obviously has many challenges, and one is: How do you raise your kids to⌠obviously weâre very comfortable and have been since they were born, and they would have questions like.. "Are we rich?"
Thinking about how to answer those questions... âWell, we have everything we need!â Thatâs how Iâve always phrased it to them. That, I think, extends out into our GMI stuff. We have everything we need; how do we make sure everybody has what they need? Because thatâs the basic thing â Do you have a comfortable place to live? Do you have enough to eat? Do you have healthcare? If you have the basics, youâre in a good place in life, and everybody should have that opportunity.