Two YouTube executives announced their departures from the Google-owned company with plans to pursue Web 3 ventures on Tuesday, based on tweets from their personal accounts.
The departures come on the same day as CEO Susan Wojcicki issued an open letter saying YouTube is looking into non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a way to help creators monetize their content.
The first exec to announce their departure was YouTube’s head of gaming, Ryan Wyatt, who will be joining Polygon as the CEO of Polygon Studios. A Polygon spokesperson did not return a request for comment by press time.
It is bittersweet news to share that I am leaving @YouTube.
I have loved every minute of my time here, but it is time for my next endeavor.
I am elated to announce that I will be joining @0xPolygon ($MATIC) as their CEO of Polygon Studios.
Thank you for the memories! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/VhQxpqDbFO
— Ryan Wyatt (fwiz.eth) (@Fwiz) January 25, 2022
Wyatt cited being “fascinated by blockchain app development” as reason for the departure, adding that he is “beyond thrilled to enter the web3 space,” according to the tweet.
Wyatt began his tenure with YouTube’s gaming division in 2014. His role at Polygon will be “bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3,” leading Polygon Studios in the areas of gaming, sports, news and entertainment.
Read more: Polygon’s New Gaming Studio Launches With Cricket NFT Platform
Wyatt is departing YouTube alongside the company’s senior director of creator partnerships Jamie Byrne, who announced in a Tuesday tweet he will be joining non-fungible token (NFT) platform Bright Moments in a leadership role.
I am also incredibly excited to announce that I’ll be joining the core leadership team at @brtmoments to oversee operations, partnerships and support the development of our content and IP businesses. I’ll share more here next week!
Like, Comment, Subscribe!
— jamiebyrne.eth (@jamiebyrne) January 25, 2022
The pair of resignations underscore the influx of Web 2 talent rushing into the Web 3 space, with gaming and NFT companies seeing particularly notable growth.
YouTube’s global head of product partnerships Heather Rivera has also departed the company, a representative told CoinDesk, though her next move has yet to be announced publicly.
