A Chicago-based startup is allowing users to spend money against Donald Trump’s campaign every time the billionaire sends a tweet.
iKeedo, a new platform whose tagline reads "redirect your opponent's force; for good," lets users support opposing causes whenever a specific event occurs.
For example, when Trump sends a tweet, iKeedo users can automatically donate to the progressive, non-profit political action committee MoveOn.org, which supports the campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
"The platform's a new kind of fundraising tool," iKeedo's Chris O'Brien told NBC Chicago's Ward Room. "We believe there ought to be a mechanism to affect positive change, an automated way to counter negative events, not just once, but every time they happen."
Another iKeedo campaign gives users the option to spend against the National Rifle Association. In that campaign, every time the NRA sends a tweet, donations are made to Moms Demand Action, a campaign that supports gun control.
"In today's world, it is often easy to identify the things we oppose- the hate speech of Donald Trump, another mass shooting, the spread of the Zika virus," O'Brien said. "Our reactions to these events are visceral. We express our anger and frustration to friends online and off. We rant, we post, we tweet. Yet, we seldom have an outlet for positive action."
The company's name is a play on the Japanese martial art aikido, which takes an opponent's force and uses it against them.
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The platform launched in March with three campaign options, allowing users to make continued donations to causes. Users can donate as little as 10 cents per tweet and donation limits can be set by users for anywhere between $1 and $10,000.
Another campaign offers an option to donate money whenever a tree is cut down in Evanston. The donations for the campaign will be pooled and used to fund the planting of new trees in the northern suburb.
iKeedo has pulled in $2,100 from 66 separate donors since its March launch. The majority of that money, $1,300, has come from the platform’s anti-NRA campaign. The Trump campaign has garnered $801 so far.
The company ultimately takes 5 percent of all donations. Those donations are not yet tax deductible.
The company was started by O’Brien, who previously worked for Chicago-based advertising agency Leo Burnett.
O'Brien told Ward Room that he is tentatively planning campaigns to combat the Zika virus and crime in Evanston and Chicago.
