Not Optional

Solution

The centrepiece was an open letter to European policymakers, laying out how inconsistent equity rules were costing the region its competitiveness. Beneath the letter sat the signatures of heavyweight supporters, many of whom had built their success from European roots.

To broaden support beyond the initial signatories, my team built a system to collect public pledges from founders, employees, and investors. This was a prominent venture firm’s campaign, so the authenticity of every name mattered. The system validates identity via email, and a moderation interface lets the Index Ventures team approve signatures before publication.

Design

The brand needed to strike a balance: clean and professional enough for policymakers, engaging enough to capture the attention of time-poor founders. I directed the design work, and my team built a visual system that worked across the website and social media, keeping the Not Optional identity consistent wherever it appeared.

A concise palette and bold typography make the message land, and infographics turn complex policy information into something you can grasp at a glance.

The finished identity conveys quality and urgency without tipping into alarm. The design stays out of the way and lets the argument speak.

Platform

When COVID closed event venues, the campaign’s events moved onto the website. For long stretches, Not Optional happened entirely online. The site doubled as the campaign’s press platform, and what began as a letter became the base everything else was built on.

That included the reporting work below, which was later discussed by Emmanuel Macron and other heads of state across Europe.

Ranking

As support grew, we saw an opportunity to encourage participation. From previous work with think tanks, I knew that data visualisations often help show where the work needs to be done. We added a ranking table comparing European states on their equity legislation, with the tech-leading countries included as benchmarks. My team built the page to factor in several subcategories (scope of stock option plans, tax implications, bureaucratic hurdles), with scores the Index Ventures team could update through the CMS as policy shifted.

The table created healthy competition among states and gave the campaign a tangible way to measure its own impact over time. Unsurprisingly, policymakers love being at the top of a league table. At the AI Safety Summit, the ranking was the subject of an on-stage discussion between UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Elon Musk.