When I first watched Riz Ahmed in the harrowing – and frankly disturbing – short The Long Goodbye, I couldn’t believe it was commissioned by a software company. After years of writing about corporations pulling back from political statements for fear of backlash, it felt unexpected to see a business stick its head above the parapet. And here was a company that pushed precisely those kinds of projects for broader recognition – and received an Oscar for its efforts.
Unlike a lot of other software companies, WeTransfer wasn’t founded by tech people; it was founded by designers and advertisers to specifically serve the creative industries.
You’re likely familiar with the WeTransfer “wallpapers,” the digital art displayed on the file download page. When the site launched, founders Rinke Visser, Bas Beerens, and Ronald Hans asked friends from the art and design world to create them. As the business grew, inbound offers multiplied, leading to the recruitment of curators to manage the spot. Over time, this became a separate initiative called This Works, which signed Prince as one of its earliest collaborators before his passing.
