About Autotroph
What is Autotroph?
Autotroph is a bootstrapped 3D-education and software company on a mission to "foster and elevate creatives within the Blender community." Founded in 2008 when Wes Burke launched cgcookie.com from his daily commuter train into Chicago, the company has spent 17+ years building three brands: CG Cookie (since 2008 — Blender training and education), Superhive (rebranded from Blender Market in April 2025 — the marketplace for Blender tools and products), and Orange Turbine (consulting and software development for businesses integrating Blender into production pipelines).
The Autotroph brand itself launched in September 2023 as the umbrella parent — taking its name from "an organism that is able to create its own food from sunlight or chemicals, like plants and algae!" The choice reflects the founders' belief that Autotroph's role is to "produce sustenance for other organisms" in the Blender ecosystem. In 2023 the company hosted the first official Blender Conference outside Amsterdam at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles (BCON LA), and is now bringing BCON to Austin in 2026.
Where will I work?
Autotroph is a fully remote company within the USA. The handbook is unequivocal: "We are a remote company, by design, such that we are each enabled and empowered to live in the place that makes us happy. Be that in the plains of Kansas or the mountains of North Carolina, the only real requirement is that we each have a steady internet connection." The company's legal incorporation address is in Geneva, Illinois (where the original brick-and-mortar studio was set up in 2010), though Wes and Jonathan are now distributed alongside the rest of the team. The team meets annually or bi-annually for in-person retreats.
What is the Autotroph team like?
The team is values-first and autonomy-first. The public handbook describes six key values: Be straightforward ("Don't use eight words when five will do"), To Have Trust, Be fair and do the right thing ("what would you do for a friend or a neighbor if they asked for help?"), Levelheadedness ("we don't act out of spite, we don't rush to judgment"), Generosity ("Being generous is surprising someone on the other end with goodwill and asking for nothing in return"), and Independence ("We don't look to the industry or our competitors for the way forward").
Working style is async and autonomous: "We don't hire people managers, we hire team members. We're not interested in any kind of micro-management." The team works "Monday through Thursday during the day" in general, though without specified office hours. Basecamp is the project-management hub; Slack handles real-time chat; GitHub holds code (including this very handbook).
The founders' people-first commitment was tested during 2022–2024, when post-COVID corrections meant Autotroph lost over half a million dollars across three years. As Jonathan wrote: "We refused large layoffs. We needed the team and we were dead-set on keeping them, even as it took a major toll on Wes and I's mental and physical health... How could we claim to be a people-first company if we let people go at the first sign of trouble?"
Work-Life Balance
The 4-day work week is permanent and explicit in the handbook: "CG Cookie works on a 4-day work week, with optional Fridays, effectively adding 52 additional paid days off for full-time employees (nearly 2 months). This means our typical work week is 32 hours (no, you're not asked to put in longer days in exchange for Friday-off). The last thing we want is for anyone to burn out. Burn out is destructive (and avoidable)." Exceptions for "large project launches and other special events that require constant attention" are communicated beforehand.
Time off pairs the 4DW with 12 days of paid time off per year plus a handful of personal days as needed.
Perks and Benefits
- 4-day work week (optional Fridays) — 32-hour standard week, nearly 2 months extra paid time off
- 12 days PTO per year + personal days
- 100% of health premium paid — Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO covers health and dental; VSP for vision with annual exam + frames/contacts allowance
- 401(k) match up to 4% with immediate vesting
- Annual Net Profit bonus — when CG Cookie passes its calendar-year goal, profit-share is paid out based on years-of-service points
- Remote-from-anywhere within the USA — "plains of Kansas or mountains of North Carolina"
- Annual or bi-annual team retreats
- Async-first, autonomous work culture — "we don't hire people managers, we hire team members"
- Bootstrapped, independent, "playing the long game" company — "our goal is to still be here thirty years from now"