Jayden Butts was proud of the work he did at DraftKings. Fresh out of college, he landed a well-paying job, worked with massive datasets, and helped build a system that could save the company millions of dollars.
Over time, he began to see those accomplishments differently. Looking at the harms accumulating from the expansion of online gambling, he came to see his work as “friendly fire” on his fellow Gen Z young men.
In this week’s episode, Jonathan D. Cohen speaks with Butts, whose account of his work at DraftKings was recently featured in a New York Times investigation. Their conversation explores how gambling was normalized long before he joined the industry, how DraftKings’ promotional system targets vulnerable users, and what ultimately changed his view of the business.
They discuss:
How childhood scratch tickets and betting with Counter-Strike “skins” made gambling feel like an ordinary part of growing up
What first drew Butts to DraftKings
How customer data could predict who would respond to a promotion
How a tool he initially built to reduce promotional spending became a way to target customers more likely to lose
His policy proposals to reduce harms and increase transparency
Butts is candid about both his pride in solving difficult problems and his growing discomfort with what those solutions enabled. If you’re skeptical about the need of new regulations for online gambling, this one is worth your time.
We welcome your thoughts in the comments or in a message.
