I watched a startup walk away from $100M.

And it changed everything for me.

I was working as a mergers & acquisitions lawyer at the time. I helped Fortune 100 companies close multi-million and multi-billion deals.

This particular startup had proprietary AI technology that could be used either to better humanity or to create something like the new Skynet.

It was that powerful.

And that scary.

The founders were clear. Anyone who ended up acquiring them would have to sign a “no military use” clause. Non-negotiable.

A bidding war started. One company offered $100M more than anyone else. The catch: they wouldn’t sign the no military use clause.

I was there in the room with the founders and investors when the offer came in.

The air was so silent and tense you could push your finger through it.

“No way,” the founders broke the silence after a minute.

Everyone turned to the investors. They could take legal action if they felt they were being shortchanged. They had the final word.

“We’ve got your backs,” they said.

The founders heaved a sigh of relief.

$100M evaporated for the sake of doing the right thing.

The air was as light as sunshine.

It changed me profoundly because I was so used to seeing money mess with people’s thinking. If you think a couple thousand dollars can make someone act differently—imagine what millions or billions could do.

I decided I was fed up of making the rich richer.

I had a deep desire to make an impact.

To do my share in the world.

So I left, took a 70% pay cut, and joined a Bitcoin startup.

It wasn’t an easy decision. I had student loans to pay off. My wife was just finishing her studies.

But it felt right.

After a year I left the startup and took zero salary to co-found my own company, Qwil.

100 investors rejected before we got funding in 2015.

We offer freelancers interest-free advances. For some people, that’s the difference between having your home foreclosed because you couldn’t pay the mortgage on time. Or just being able to sleep at night knowing someone has your back.

Those founders and investors taught me you could put people’s wellbeing first while doing business.

They showed me that money matters, but not without a higher aim.

We just finished raising over $100M.

I was picky about our investors.

Because when push comes to shove—

You want someone who’ll share your vision.

Someone who gets your mission.

Someone who’ll say, “I got your back” in a heartbeat—

Even if that means leaving $100M on the table.