We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alexander Guerrero a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alexander, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

The idea for NexTide™ came out of equal parts frustration and curiosity. My cofounder and I had spent years producing massive, one-off livestream activations for some of the biggest brands in the world – The NFL, LEGO, State Farm, Universal, Mondelez – you name it. In the beginning, it was electric: pulling together dozens of partners, building something from nothing, and watching it light up a live chat.

But after doing that at a high level for years, we started to feel the grind. Every campaign took months of work and endless coordination, and then it disappeared as fast as it came. All that passion and creativity went into something amazing, and then on to the next. Over time, that wears on you. We wanted to find a way to make that energy sustainable for everyone involved.

The real turning point came one afternoon before a live event we were running. My cofounder, Kyle, and I were in his office tossing a football back and forth to shake off the stress, and we started talking about how broken the system felt. We loved what we did, but it wasn’t scalable or rewarding enough for all the effort it took. That was the moment we committed to finding a better way. We didn’t know what it was at the time, but we were going to find a way.

My background before live was in hands-on-keyboard programmatic, working on accounts like Verizon and Sephora. Looking through that lens, it was clear that livestreaming lacked the infrastructure every other media channel had. That became the spark for NexTide™ to ‘mediafy’ livestreaming and make it scalable for brands and meaningful revenue for streamers.

Our latest product, LiveGuard™, is the first patent-pending, real-time brand safety tool for live. It reacts in the moment to protect brands and give them confidence to invest more in the space. And our goal isn’t to keep that to ourselves; we want to partner with talent agencies, media companies, and even the platforms. Because when livestreaming becomes a true media channel, everyone wins.

Alexander, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I probably got into advertising way too young. I watched Mad Men in high school and thought, ‘Wait, people get paid to come up with creative campaigns?’ That blew my mind. I started reading everything I could, like Ogilvy on Advertising, The Art of the Pitch, even The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F.* (that one was probably more for personal growth), but regardless, from that point on, I was hooked.

My first internship was at Havas, then another the following summer, and eventually I landed my first real job at VMLY&R. I quickly realized I wasn’t meant for the traditional creative side, but I loved the energy; that mix of ideas, collaboration, and controlled chaos. So I switched to media and worked my way from paid social on Foot Locker to programmatic at Publicis, working on accounts like Verizon and Sephora.

Then the pandemic hit, and I had the chance to join a gaming startup. I’m a lifelong gamer, so it felt like the universe connecting the dots. In three and a half years there, I helped bring the NFL into livestream content for the first time, built a LEGO reality show, ran a Fireball gaming tournament, and even took over Mercedes-Benz Stadium with Quavo, among 50+ other blue-chip brand campaigns.

Now, at 28, I run NexTide™, a company I founded to build the infrastructure that makes livestreaming work as a true media channel. We’ve worked with brands like State Farm, USAA, and The BET Awards, and just launched LiveGuard™, the first patent-pending, real-time brand safety tool for live.

I’m proud of the campaigns, but more than that, I’m proud I took the leap. My grandfather came here from Cuba and built a business while barely speaking English, learning the language as he went. I think about that a lot. If he could do that, what excuse would I have not to just go for it?

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to unlearn a lot of what business school teaches you, not because it was bad, but because it was built for a different path. I loved my time in college, and I’m grateful for what I learned there, but so much of it is about how to fit neatly into a system. You’re taught how to follow structure, minimize risk, and play inside the box.

That mindset doesn’t work when you’re trying to build something new. Real growth came when I stopped worrying about doing things the ‘right’ way and started trusting my instincts by taking risks, breaking patterns, and learning by doing.

I never wanted to be employee 438 at a mega corporation. I wanted to build, to create things that actually move the needle. It’s hard to have an impact when you stay in your lane. The minute I stepped out of it, everything changed.

How’d you meet your business partner?

I actually have three cofounders, and each relationship came together in its own wild way.

I first met Jerome – who a lot of people know as JeromeASF – in early 2021 when I was producing a LEGO reality show. Ironically, I used to watch him years ago when I was younger and playing Minecraft. We got to talking and realized we were both from New Jersey: neighboring towns, rival public high schools, and he was a senior when I was a freshman. It was one of those full-circle moments you can’t make up. From that point on, we were basically brothers. I was even lucky enough to be a groomsman at his wedding.

Matt came next. He was actually my boss at my previous company. Where I was the “coach,” calling plays on NFL Tuesday Night Gaming, he was the “GM,” handling the high-level stuff with ease. He’s a longtime media vet, an incredible human being, and a surprisingly good guitar player.

And then there’s Kyle. I met him on the job, too, where he was my counterpart at the studio where we ran NFL Tuesday Night Gaming out of. He’s another Jersey guy, and he’s the one who grounds us when things start to get hectic. He’s got this calming presence, somehow who knows everyone in the streamer space, and still loves to remind people he was the GOAT of Heroes of Newerth (which is convenient, since the game shut down years ago and none of us can verify it).

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nextide.io/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderjgx/