TI Creator Economy: What Clubhouse’s New Hires Say About Its Future; Goldman Sachs Exec Says It’s The ‘Year of the Creator’

A hiring spree isn’t unusual for a startup that’s just raised a lot of money, as Clubhouse did when it brought in an estimated $300 million since January, but its recent recruits hold clues to where the social audio app is headed after a roller-coaster year. 

In recent weeks, the 40-person startup hired a former long-time Google engineer, a TED executive and a Facebook product director who worked on creator tipping tools. It’s also hired a quartet of engineers from Coinbase.

These all indicate Clubhouse could be trying to make its product less of an open-mic free-for-all and more of a formal programming destination. The one-year-old startup also looks to be improving its listening experience and product features. As for what it plans with engineers who understand crypto? Feel free to DM me your tips!

Here’s what we know: last month, it hired Justin Uberti to lead streaming technology, which should help the company improve the quality of audio, including lag time. He’ll also work on “the ability to use spatial distance when multiple speakers are talking,” Clubhouse said, referring to a technology that gives a surround-sound experience. Apple exec Eddy Cue recently said spatial audio could be a “game changer” for the music industry.