HumanIPO

The idea of investing in people directly has been discussed for many years, including some notable attempts like Bowie Bonds and Fantex,[2] among others. The novelty of the solution proposed by HumanIPO leverages the professional time of creators instead of their future income. The concept of using time as a proxy for creator success was proposed by Kirill Goryunov in late 2019 as the ultimate solution to bring investing in people to the masses, not only sophisticated investors. Using creator time as an intrinsic value for the creator equity asset class allows the platform to avoid regulatory complications.

After the release of an article by Wired magazine, active debates emerged in the tech community about whether it represents a revolutionary way to invest in individuals or a new form of indentured servitude.[3] The website received mixed reviews on its Product Hunt page.[4] Some of the reactions were about assigning values to people and potential disparities related to the algorithm suggesting a starting share price.[5][6]

In August 2021, soccer icon Pelé announced his launch on the website, which led to another wave of debates about the concept and this model.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13]