Ben Shumaker

Yo, have you heard of Ben Shumaker? The dude’s straight-up the real deal in the startup game. Dude’s only like 29, but he’s already built some cool shit. He’s in YC’s S23 batch, which is no joke. Started off as a competitive gamer-yeah, like Magic: The Gathering pro at 14, and crushed it in Hearthstone Battlegrounds, hitting Rank 1. That’s some serious gamer brain power, right? But what’s crazy is, he didn’t stop there.

He jumped into game design big time, spending two years leading the design at Tempo Storm, an esports org, living with Reynad-famous Twitch streamer and CEO dude. Basically, he’s been in the trenches of gaming and esports, learning how to build communities and make things engaging. It’s wild because that competitive edge, that hustle, totally shaped who he is.

But here’s where it gets even cooler. Ben took that passion and pivoted into tech and startups. He’s the founder and CEO of Repaint, a company all about making visual design tools for web dev-basically, making it way easier for people to build websites without being code wizards. And get this, he also co-founded AutoEmber, a YC-backed startup that lets you create real websites with no-code visual tools. That’s some advanced stuff, democratizing web design and empowering people to do shit they never thought possible.

The story’s also about friendship and grit. He met his cofounder Izak over a decade ago through gaming in Holland, Michigan-talk about a long-term hustle buddy. These two have been grinding through different worlds, from gaming to startups, and now they’re making waves in tech.

What’s the vibe here? Ben’s all about pushing boundaries. He’s not just a gamer or a coder-he’s a builder who’s seen what’s possible when you combine passion, hustle, and a little bit of that competitive fire. His process shows that no matter where you start-whether gaming, design, or coding-the real key is to jump in, learn fast, and never stop changing. Dude’s a perfect example of how chasing what you love, even if it’s not “traditional,” can turn into something huge.

Bottom line? Ben Shumaker is one of those founders who crushed it by never settling, always pushing into new territory, and building stuff that actually changes how people work and create online. No cap, he’s someone to watch.