Daniel Butterfield
Born 1973 · Age 52
Canadian entrepreneur; co‑founder of Flickr and Slack; former CEO of Slack; built early Web 2.0 products and pivoted failed game projects into major communication/photo platforms.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Lund, British Columbia
Born Dharma Jeremy Butterfield (later changed to Stewart). Parents Norma and David Butterfield lived on a commune in Lund, BC.
Family moved to Victoria, BC
At age five his family moved from a remote commune to Victoria, British Columbia.
Legally changed his name to Stewart
Changed his name from Dharma Jeremy Butterfield to Stewart (Daniel Stewart Butterfield).
Attended St. Michaels University School (high school)
Educated at St. Michaels University School in Victoria (approximate graduation year; school cited in bios).
Earned income designing websites at university
While at University of Victoria he made money designing websites and doing web design work for clients.
B.A. in Philosophy, University of Victoria
Received a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy from the University of Victoria.
M.Phil., Clare College, Cambridge
Earned a Master of Philosophy from Clare College, Cambridge; thesis on 19th-century scientific thinkers.
Co‑founded Gradfinder.com with Jason Classon
Worked with Jason Classon to build the startup Gradfinder.com during the dot‑com era.
Gradfinder.com acquired (post‑startup)
Gradfinder.com was sold; following its acquisition Butterfield did freelance web design work.
Created the '5K competition' web design contest
Organized a contest for designers to create websites under 5 kilobytes (held while freelancing/early career).
Received Chrysler design award
Reported recipient of a Chrysler design award (cited in biographies).
Married Caterina Fake
Married Caterina Fake, who later became co‑founder at Ludicorp and Flickr.
Co‑founded Ludicorp
Co‑founded Ludicorp in Vancouver with Caterina Fake and Jason Classon to build social online games.
Built Game Neverending (prototype/initial product)
Ludicorp's original project was the social MMO Game Neverending; the game prototype attracted a cult following but struggled commercially.
Launched Flickr (photo‑sharing service)
Pivoted Ludicorp from a game to the photo‑sharing/service Flickr; public debut in February 2004.
Became judge for Webby Awards (ongoing involvement)
Served as a judge and supporter of the Webby Awards and digital arts initiatives (periodic role/recognition around mid‑2000s onward).
Flickr user growth milestone (~1.5M users)
Within about a year of launch Flickr had scaled rapidly; bios report ~1.5 million registered users and heavy posting rates by 2005.
Joined Yahoo! as General Manager of Flickr
After the acquisition Butterfield continued at Yahoo! as General Manager of Flickr (and senior director roles reported).
Businessweek 'Top 50' (Entrepreneurs) recognition
Named one of Businessweek's Top 50 leaders in the entrepreneur category.
Named to MIT Technology Review TR35
Included in the TR35 list of top innovators under age 35.
Webby Award for Special Achievement (with Caterina Fake)
Butterfield and Fake won a Webby Special Achievement recognition for Flickr.
Ludicorp / Flickr acquired by Yahoo!
Flickr/Ludicorp was acquired by Yahoo! (March 2005 cited in several sources).
Named in Time 100 and Newsweek cover appearance
Included on Time magazine's '100 most influential people' list and appeared on Newsweek's cover (2006).
Divorced Caterina Fake
End of marriage to Flickr co‑founder Caterina Fake (married 2001, divorced 2007).
Birth of child (daughter Sonnet)
He and Caterina Fake have one child, born in 2007 (commonly reported as Sonnet).
Left Yahoo! / Flickr
Butterfield resigned from Yahoo! and his role as General Manager of Flickr on July 12, 2008.
Legacy Distinguished Alumni Award, University of Victoria
Received the Legacy Distinguished Alumni Award from his alma mater, University of Victoria.
Co‑founded Tiny Speck
Founded Tiny Speck to build online games; initial seed funding reported at about $1.5 million.
Glitch funding (raised ~US$17.5M)
Glitch/Tiny Speck raised tens of millions for game development; sources cite ~$17.5M raised for Glitch development.
Launched Glitch (MMO by Tiny Speck)
Tiny Speck launched the whimsical, non‑combat massively multiplayer game Glitch on September 27, 2011.
Hire‑A‑Genius program and staff support after Glitch closure
Organized 'Hire A Genius' site, resume coaching and actively helped Tiny Speck employees find jobs following the shutdown.
Closed Glitch (game world shut down)
Due to insufficient audience and economics, Tiny Speck closed Glitch's game world on December 9, 2012.
Released Glitch art under Creative Commons
Tiny Speck made much of Glitch's art available under a Creative Commons license after the game closed.
Announced Slack (preview release)
Announced the release of Slack, an internal team‑messaging tool developed inside Tiny Speck during Glitch work (preview in August 2013).
Slack weekly growth and early viral adoption
After public release Slack grew at ~5–10% weekly; first week of August (2014) reported >120,000 daily users registered.
Slack early adoption metrics (6‑month data)
Data from Slack's first six months showed nearly 16,000 users registered without advertising (early‑2014 metric).
Secured San Francisco office and began recruitment
Butterfield established a San Francisco office for Slack and planned recruiting in the second half of 2014.
Public release of Slack
Slack publicly launched in February 2014 and immediately recorded rapid weekly growth (reported 5–10% weekly).
Public speaking: 'We Don't Sell Saddles Here' (TheNetwork)
Delivered a talk related to Slack, business, and marketing (TheNetwork listing, Feb 2014).
Multiple 2015 recognitions
Butterfield named WSJ Technology Innovator, TechCrunch Crunchie Founder of the Year, and included in Vanity Fair New Establishment, Ad Age Creative 50, Details Digital Mavericks (all 2015).
Slack: US$340M raised; user and revenue milestones
As of December 2015 Slack had raised roughly US$340M in venture capital and reported >2 million daily active users, ~570,000 paying customers.
Slack named Inc. Magazine Company of the Year
Inc. Magazine named Slack its 2015 Company of the Year.
TechCrunch Crunchie: Founder of the Year
Awarded TechCrunch's Founder of the Year 'Crunchie' for 2015.
Featured on Masters of Scale podcast: 'The Big Pivot'
Appeared in Masters of Scale (Reid Hoffman) discussing Slack's scaling and the pivot from Glitch to Slack.
Press profiles & recognition during IPO
Major profile pieces (Financial Times, LA Times, NYT) discussed Butterfield's role, product design reputation, and stake valuation (~US$1.6B reported by FT/LA Times around IPO).
Engaged to Jennifer (Jen) Rubio
Became engaged to Jennifer Rubio, co‑founder of Away Luggage (engagement announced May 2019).
Rang the NYSE opening bell
Butterfield participated in ceremonial ringing of the New York Stock Exchange opening bell for Slack's listing.
Slack initial public listing (NYSE direct listing)
Slack went public via a direct listing with opening price $38.50 and reported market capitalization (~US$21.4B opening figure reported).
Married Jennifer (Jen) Rubio
Public biographies list marriage to Jennifer (Jen) Rubio in 2020 (spouse listed in bios as 'm. 2020').
Salesforce announced acquisition of Slack
Salesforce confirmed plans to acquire Slack Technologies for US$27.7 billion (deal announced Dec 2020).
Announced departure as Slack CEO
In December 2022 Butterfield announced he would be stepping down as CEO of Slack (then part of Salesforce).
Left Slack / Salesforce early January
Butterfield left Salesforce (and his role at Slack) in early January 2023 following his December 2022 announcement.
Net worth reported (approx.) US$1.7B
Biographical resources (EBSCO/Forbes summaries) estimated Butterfield's net worth at about US$1.7 billion as of March 2024.
Report of missing teen (child) — runaway/abduction scare
On April 21, 2024 it was reported his 16‑year‑old child had run away/was missing; later found alive on April 29 and an arrest made.
Child found alive; suspect arrested
The missing child was located alive on April 29, 2024; a 26‑year‑old man was arrested for abduction.
Key Achievement Ages
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