# The layoff that redirected — Paths

> Donald King, 25, won first place in a PwC AI hackathon with more than 3,000 contestants. Hours later he was laid off. He founded a marketing startup and later told Business Insider the layoff was the best thing that had happened to him.

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# The layoff that redirected

Won a 3,000-person hackathon, was laid off hours later, then founded a company.

**hours** between first prize and the layoff call

## What they did

King had been a technology consultant at PwC since 2021, building AI agents for enterprises. He entered a firm-wide hackathon and won it.

## What they did not choose

The cut was a restructuring, not a verdict on the win. The same skill, on a different schedule, keeps him at PwC. The forced exit opened a door he had not planned to walk through. Many other laid-off workers do not found companies: John Huân Vũ applied to more than 6,000 jobs after a PayPal layoff and relied on a food pantry.

## Figures

- Donald King, 25, technology consultant at PwC since 2021 (Business Insider, June 2025).

- First place in a PwC AI hackathon with 3,000+ contestants; laid off hours later.

- Founded AMDK, a marketing startup, after the layoff.

## Limit

Winning the hackathon is earned. Being laid off hours later is not. The same event is a redirect for some people and a crisis for others. A forced transition is not a method for finding work.

## Sources

- [Business Insider — Laid off from PwC, then founded a startup](https://www.businessinsider.com/consultant-laid-off-pwc-founded-startup-2025-6)

- [Business Insider — Applied to 6,000 jobs after a PayPal layoff](https://www.businessinsider.com/applied-thousands-jobs-looking-for-work-layoff-food-pantry-visa-2026-7)

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