# Kickstarter

Kickstarter is an other based in New York, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** other
- **Headquarters:** New York, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** New York, NY, United States
- **Founded:** 2009
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** kickstarter.com

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Kickstarter is a New York City-based company founded in 2009. It facilitates funding for creative projects, including the first universal smart key lock with a digital key in Europe. The platform has facilitated over $120 million in total funding.

## Sectors

- Media & Entertainment
- Luxury
- Enterprise Software

## People

- Perry Chen — Co-founder
- Yancey Strickler — Co-founder
- Charles Adler — Co-founder

## Questions

### How does Kickstarter generate revenue?

Kickstarter takes a 5% fee from every successfully funded project on its platform. In 2023, it reported facilitating over $7.5 billion in pledges since its founding (per the firm's official communications, 2023). The company also generates income from interest on funds held during campaigns.

### What types of projects does Kickstarter fund?

Kickstarter categorizes projects into 15 main categories: Art, Comics, Crafts, Dance, Design, Fashion, Film & Video, Food, Games, Journalism, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology, and Theater. The platform explicitly excludes charity fundraising, medical costs, and financial services.

### Does Kickstarter make equity investments in the companies it helps fund?

No. Kickstarter operates on a rewards-based model, not equity crowdfunding. Backers receive non-financial rewards like products or experiences. The company does not take equity stakes in projects or creators.

### What is Kickstarter's public-benefit corporation status?

In 2015, Kickstarter became a public-benefit corporation (PBC), a legal structure that requires the company to consider the impact of its decisions on society, not just shareholders. It also adopted a charter committing to donate 5% of annual profits to arts and anti-racist organizations.

### Who controls Kickstarter's strategic direction?

Kickstarter is led by a board of directors and a CEO. Co-founders Perry Chen and Yancey Strickler served as initial leaders; Chen stepped down as Chairman in 2019. The current CEO is Everette Taylor, appointed in 2022 (per the firm's announcement, September 2022).

### How does Kickstarter handle governance and transparency?

Kickstarter publishes annual benefit corporation reports detailing social and financial performance. It also discloses platform-wide statistics on project success rates and geographic distribution. The company is not publicly traded and does not break out detailed financials beyond what is legally required.

## Related profiles

- [Danmar Capital](https://altss.com/profile/danmar-capital)
- [Occipital](https://altss.com/profile/occipital)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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