GuCon 2025: Celebrating the Past and the Future

GuCon, BrainGu's annual employee gathering, took place last week in Detroit, MI. It's not just a conference, but an event for us to celebrate community and all things Gu. Over the years, GuCon has ranged from a small group of 15 or so employees to well over 100, but its focus is always the same: to bring people together, enhance company communications, and celebrate wins. This year, GuCon is focused on celebrating achievements, but first, let's look back on where we started.

The History of GuCon #

Being a remote-first company means a majority of work time is spent over video calls or Slack chats, so Guvians look forward to the in-person opportunity GuCon provides to share ideas, and strengthen the culture that makes BrainGu unique. It's a great balance of communicating company goals and next steps, participating in community programs, and getting to know each other in incredible cities.

The first-ever GuCon was hosted in Washington D.C. in 2015. While small, that event started a yearly tradition of community for the company.

"GuCon came from the idea to get a break from the day to day and connect as people. Spence and I have always valued community, and to accomplish big things, it requires dedicated people," noted Matt Shaver, BrainGu CTO.

"People are more than just work machines, though. It is easy to make assumptions when someone is just a name on Slack. So to connect, understand, and build respect, people have to get together. We've always believed GuCon is where the magic happens in BrainGu—when people trust each other and move to a central goal. Not as co-workers, but as a community."

GuCon 2025: Celebrating Our Achievements #

While GuCon 2024 centered on preparing for product-led growth by aligning teams and sharpening strategy, this year in Detroit, we saw that vision realized. From live demos to hackathon projects, Guvians showcased the tools, platforms, and innovations we've been building, and how they're already driving growth.

Making the shift to product-led involves hard work from everyone: engineers, designers, operators, and leaders. A spirit of collaboration that carries into our products and our larger impact in the world…the Spirit of Gu.

On Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit, a bronze statue sits with palms facing the sky, a sphere in one hand, and a family in the other. This "Spirit of Detroit" is a statue by artist, Marshall Fredericks, and has become a symbol of hope, the "spirit of man," and the city's identity.

Similar to the statue, the Spirit of Gu, of community and collaboration, has resulted in us building great things together. As Spence, BrainGu's CEO, puts it:

"The spirit of BrainGu has been and will always be the Guvians, the employees. You put smart, kind, thoughtful people in a room together, and you get a great event."

Just like the statue's figure holding both the divine and the human, our teams balanced big ideas with practical execution—dreaming and deploying in the same day. While each Hackathon breakout group brought something different to the table, the common thread was clear: when Guvians come together with focus and trust, the results are amazing.

Tradition Matters #

GuCon 2025 reminded us why this tradition matters. It's not just about the demos, the strategy sessions, or even the hackathon—it's about the people who make BrainGu what it is. When Guvians come together, we leave with more than new ideas. We leave reassured, connected, and energized to tackle the next challenge.

Detroit gave us the perfect stage to celebrate how far we've come and to prove that the Spirit of Gu is alive and well. As we look ahead, we're excited to keep building, keep innovating, and keep showing up for each other.

Here's to the next GuCon and to the community that makes BrainGu thrive.