JC
John ConnorTechnology Strategist
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Building systems that serve humanity. Technology should empower human judgment, not replace it.

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© 2025 John Thomas Connor

Work

15 years building products that solve real problems. Not growth theater.

Current Focus

Super Debate

Founder

Platform for in-person intellectual discourse. Creating spaces where people confront ideas directly.

Active in 3 cities
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Accelerate

Founder

Web3 ecosystem platform connecting builders with funding, talent, and resources through intelligent matching.

Live with 600+ projects
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Experience Timeline

ThriveProtocol

Ecosystem Specialist
2024

Managing retroactive grant allocations and building autonomous evaluation tools.

Distributed $2M+ in grants using custom evaluation frameworks
Saved the team 20+ hours weekly through process automation
Built Telegram and Slack bots to streamline ecosystem operations
Created milestone-based funding mechanisms that improved accountability

→ Made ecosystem funding transparent and aligned with actual delivery.

Grant ManagementProcess AutomationWeb3AI Tools

Sparkblox

Founder & Product Lead
2022-2023

Created NFT 2.0 infrastructure with dynamic assets that evolve based on user behavior.

Raised $1M+ in funding and built team of 18 engineers
Secured major partnerships with Chainlink and Algorand
Designed tokenomics model with sustainable revenue streams
Built proof-of-concept that attracted institutional interest

→ Demonstrated how NFTs could be more than static JPEGs.

Web3Product StrategyFundraisingTeam Building

Upland

Product & Operations Manager
2021-2022

Scaled virtual property game from 13K to 200K monthly active users.

Led product strategy for 15x user growth in 12 months
Designed SPARK token economics and launch strategy
Built onboarding flows that improved D7 retention by 40%
Managed cross-functional team of designers and engineers

→ Proved virtual economies work when aligned with player interests.

GamingToken DesignGrowthProduct Management

Mode Mobile

Product Manager
2020-2021

Transformed ad-tech product into sustainable business model.

Pivoted failing product to achieve product-market fit
Increased revenue 3x through strategic feature development
Reduced churn by 50% through user research and iteration
Built analytics dashboard that revealed critical user insights

→ Saved a struggling product by listening to actual users.

Product TurnaroundUser ResearchAnalyticsMobile

Business of AI

Lead Product Researcher
2019-2020

Built AI strategy framework for Fortune 500 companies.

Created decision framework used by 10+ enterprises
Conducted 50+ executive interviews on AI adoption
Published research reaching 100K+ industry professionals
Advised startups on practical AI implementation

→ Helped companies cut through AI hype to find real value.

AI StrategyResearchEnterpriseThought Leadership

HelpWith

Product Lead
2018-2019

Created marketplace for local services that prioritized human connection.

Launched in 3 cities with 500+ service providers
Built trust system that reduced disputes by 80%
Designed matching algorithm prioritizing quality over speed
Created community features that increased repeat usage 2x

→ Proved marketplaces work better when they foster relationships.

MarketplaceCommunityTrust SystemsLocal Commerce

Impact by Numbers

$20M+

Funding Enabled

50+

Products Shipped

200K+

Users Served

15x

Best Growth Rate

How I Work

Find the Real Problem

Most failures come from solving the wrong problem well. I start by understanding what actually needs fixing.

Test Against Reality

Ideas are cheap. I build quickly, test with real users, and let the market tell us what works.

Design for Durability

Growth hacks die. I build systems that compound value over time through aligned incentives.

Ready to Build Something Real?

I work with teams that care more about solving problems than following trends.