Today, I’m sharing one of the most difficult decisions we’ve had to make since the inception of Gitcoin.
We’ve made the call to wind down Grants Lab, the primary software development unit behind Gitcoin, and are parting ways with several deeply talented and mission-aligned team members. We’ve already spoken 1:1 with everyone whose employment was affected.
Why we made this decision
Over the past year, the ecosystem around us has shifted. The landscape for funding public goods is evolving. L2 ecosystems are maturing, new coordination primitives are emerging, and many new players are entering the space. At the same time, key team members who helped define Grants Lab’s culture and direction have moved on, and we’ve been navigating how to fill those shoes while evolving our roadmap.
Perhaps most importantly, we’ve come to terms with the fact that Grants Lab, in its current form, doesn’t yet have a clear, sustainable path to profitability. While the Gitcoin ecosystem continues to thrive through Gitcoin Passport (now @HumnPassport ), the Gitcoin Grants Program, KERNEL, Public Works, and Allo Capital, the financial overhead of Grants Lab has outpaced its financial runway in the current environment.
How we made this decision.
This decision was made in consultation with the top stewards of Gitcoin and lead of Grants lab - and from the perspective of Gitcoin Governance, is for Grants Lab to not submit another budget to Gitcoin’s governance for H2 2025. Instead, Grants Lab will spend the remainder of the H1 funds to provide severance to all whose employment is affected.
How we’re supporting departing teammates
We’re doing our best to handle these transitions with the care they deserve. While there are some situations handled case by case basis, heres a baseline what we’re providing to affected employees:
- Severance: 1 month salary + [1 month of severance for each 1 year served]
- Tokens: All tokens will vest through the date of termination + severance.
- Career Support:
- We’ve created an opt-in list of impacted employees to share with other Web3 orgs and hiring DAOs.
- Members of the leadership team are offering personalized references.
Moving forward
The Gitcoin mission hasn’t changed: to fund what matters.
We’re not retreating—we’re refocusing. Gitcoin will continue, but with a leaner team aligned around a more focused Gitcoin Grants program and managing it’s portfolio of assets. And Gitcoin remains a vibrant, resilient community with many years of runway, and which is more than any one team or product.
To everyone who contributed their time, energy, and heart to Grants Lab—thank you. You’ve advanced the frontier of public goods funding. And you’ve left your fingerprints on a better future.
To Grants Lab customers who are affected by the wind down - Grants Stack will no longer be maintained as of May 31st 2025 and the deployed instance of Grants Stack that Grants Lab maintains will be wound down on May 31st 2025. We’re working to gracefully wind down Grants Stack usage and Grants Lab partnership relationships and/or to gracefully transition them to other organizations and who can support them. Dm if you have questions.
To the broader Gitcoin ecosystem - keep an eye on the gov forum for updates on the future and especially for GG24, which is still coming soon. We’ll share more with the Gitcoin community in the days ahead. My DMs are open if anyone wants to talk, and I’ll be keeping an eye on the gov forum to answer any questions.
— Kevin
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