From Insolvency to Upsolve

Upsolve makes a free tool that automates the process of filing for Chapter 7 personal bankruptcy. The organization is an atypical tech startup that's also an atypical non-profit. Co-founder and CTO Mark Hansen comes on the show to talk about how Upsolve alternately embraces and subverts the norms of the tech and non-profit worlds, and why the "right" corporate structure won't necessarily prevent an organization from causing harm.Show NotesUpsolve website | Twitter - 00:40Mark Hansen on Twitter - 00:48"HHS failed to heed many warnings that HealthCare.gov was in trouble" (Washington Post, February 2016) - 1:52Rohan Pavuluri on Twitter - 2:28Jonathan Petts on Twitter - 2:29A 2014 study by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that many payday loans trap borrowers in revolving debt - 3:45Upsolve's explanation of a bankruptcy discharge - 5:37Upsolve's explanation of the "meeting of creditors" - 8:17The Legal Services Corporation's Technology Initiative Grant Program - 10:17Philadelphia Legal Assistance - 10:22Certified B Corporation - 10:32Sidewalk Labs - 12:00"YC-backed Upsolve is automating bankruptcy for everyone" (TechCrunch, January 2019) - 13:28Yvon Chouinard's 2019 interview in Fast Company - 20:28