Gearbox Gives initiative will "organise and direct the studio's philanthropic work"
"To build upon the work we have already done to use our platform for good."
Gearbox has launched "Gearbox Gives", a new initiative designed to "organise and direct the studio's philanthropic work".
Stating that Gearbox boss "Randy Pitchford [has created the] new Gearbox program to educate, inspire, and create", Gearbox says that the work "encompasses Gearbox’s educational and philanthropic programs, and its community partnerships and initiatives".
"Gearbox has been committed to using our platform and the power of entertainment for good since our founding, and Gearbox Gives is a continuation and expansion of that work," said Randy Pitchford, founder of both Gearbox Gives and Gearbox itself (although he stepped down as president in 2021).
"As Gearbox has grown in recent years, our impact on the world around us must grow as well. By launching Gearbox Gives, we'll be able to build upon the work we have already done to use our platform for good."
Vice president of strategic operations Aaron Thibault has led the development of partnerships with local higher education institutions to provide professional resources and facilitates a mentorship program for students. Thibault also led "Gearbox's efforts to develop a video game-based science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) curriculum", in both Texas and Kenya.
Gearbox has also used its platform, games, and resources to "advance social causes", such as Borderlands Science, "a citizen science game that is helping to map the human gut microbiome" as well as supporting reforestation efforts and raising money to purchase personal protective equipment for medical workers during the Covid pandemic.
There's more information on the initiative over at GearboxGives.com.
Pitchford was sued by Gearbox's former legal counsel Wade Callender in 2018 when Callender himself was sued for allegedly failing to repay a $300K cash loan. Calendar then filed a countersuit, accusing Pitchford of breaching his fiduciary duties "by exploiting Gearbox employees and property to fund [his] private cravings", of pocketing $12m meant for the studio, and of violating various contracts with Callender. Callender's suit also made some unsavoury claims of the now infamous porn-filled USB drive. Both suits were formally dismissed in 2019 by a Dallas County court.
More recently, Gearbox recently took over both Saints Row developer Volition and Hopoo Games' co-operative rogue-like shooter, Risk of Rain.