Cruce Saunders

Basic Info

Full Name: Walter Cruce Saunders IV (goes by Cruce, his middle name)
Age: 16, turning 17 in May 2025
Role: Student at Alpha School (Austin), High School Level
Location: Austin, TX
Status: Works out of the "Rocket Ship" space reserved for high-achieving students
Scholarship: Receives 100% tuition coverage at Alpha School

Difficult family history: father described as "a horrible person"
Parents divorced when he was 12-13 years old
Father previously ran a business; family had significant wealth before divorce
Father committed crimes and financially abandoned the family
Currently lives with his mother in Austin
Mother has a heart condition (bicuspid aortic valve with past infection)
Mother is disabled, cannot work, previously worked as a midwife
Mother has had five heart surgeries, including three in the past six months
Estranged from father's side of family except for an uncle
Has a younger brother (11 years old)
Moved schools approximately 10 times
Experienced physical violence from teachers at previous schools
Received gun violence threats from students at a previous school
No friends from 4th grade until joining Alpha
Has the same heart defect (bicuspid aortic valve) as his mother, but less severe
Is a runner despite his heart condition

Concept: Gamified running app using haptic feedback on Apple Watch
Goal: Turn running into an engaging adventure, improve user retention (combating low 5% average for running apps)
Mechanism: Uses a virtual pet dependency model (similar to Duolingo streaks) to motivate users
Critique: Dislikes Duolingo's graphic design and marketing, aiming for a different aesthetic/approach
Insight: Believes current running apps lack true gamification (interaction during the run)
Personal Connection: Running helped him through difficult times and depression as a teenager
Mission: Wants to help others experience the mental health benefits of running (increased BDNF, resilience, energy)
Future Ideas: Potentially gamifying resistance training
Gary's Suggestion: Start a physical running club at Alpha to complement the app, allowing users to race against "ghosts" of others' best runs

Co-building a social media content distribution platform/marketplace
Focuses on the technical/systems side of the venture (while John handles networking/sales)
Venture aims to distribute branded content at scale using decentralized creators
Has experience working sales for "Early Media," which has a network of influencers who distribute content

Has been at Alpha for one year
Initially struggled with time management and understanding the system; learned painfully over time
Developed AI-powered systems for efficient learning (e.g., using bots to summarize readings, identify knowledge gaps, find sources)
Values the freedom and responsibility given to students
Feels he learns 5x faster and has 10x more opportunities compared to traditional school
States passion for the Masterpiece project is crucial for success at Alpha; students without it tend to leave
Appreciates speakers like Alex McCaw but believes students should be better prepped with specific questions related to their projects to maximize value
Mentioned receiving funding ($2k) for being a "Rocket Ship" student and potential additional funding tied to academic XP/performance
Feels guide support is helpful but specific strategies for efficient work often come from other students or personal experience

Believes Alpha is "the future" of education and that traditional education is outdated
Identifies lack of exposure/marketing on social media as Alpha's number one issue
Suggests creating hundreds of social media accounts across platforms to maximize exposure
Believes Alpha needs more guides with diverse skills (currently has only three for 50-60 students)
Sees himself supporting Alpha in the future, particularly with marketing
Wants to share his success story to help promote Alpha's model
Future Self: Envisions traveling, networking, managing teams, focusing on strategy/vision, and having kids
Aspires to be a billionaire and believes his work can improve millions of lives
Comfortable being misunderstood
Fearlessness: Claims to not be hesitant about jumping into new things or learning from mistakes ("I don't really have an issue being a beginner")

2025-04-08 (approx): Met Gary Sheng during a tour of Alpha School. Explained his Masterpiece project, shared insights on student life, motivation, and the value of the Alpha model. Participated in the "Spiky POV" session later.
2025-04-09: Participated in a meeting with Gary Sheng, Jack Oremus, Douglas Green, and John Alznauer. Discussed the UT Plan II vibe marketing initiative, AI-generated media, reality show concepts, and his venture with John.
2025-04-18 (Morning): Had an extended conversation with Gary Sheng and Eddie Dunn, sharing his personal background, family situation, and perspectives on Alpha School. Invited by Gary to attend a dinner with Zach Levi (Shazam actor) and others the following Wednesday.
2025-04-18 (Afternoon): Participated in a group discussion with Gary Sheng, Beef Jones, and Alex Mathew. Re-told parts of his personal story, discussed his running app project further, his vision for the future, and accepted the dinner invitation. Agreed to work with Gary on his personal website/narrative.

Transcript ID	Date	Summary
2025-04-15-alpha-partnerships-morning-session	2025-04-15	Morning session on Alpha partnerships and career development discussion
2025-04-15-alpha-recruitment-morning-session	2025-04-15	Morning discussion about career development and Gauntlet program planning
2025-04-11-alpha-hacks-brain-lifts-discussion	2025-04-11	Discussion about Brain Lifts for competitive analysis and Alpha Hacks planning
2025-04-09-marketing-media-meeting	2025-04-09	Meeting on Alpha marketing, media initiatives, and UT Plan II vibe marketing internship program
2025-04-18-afternoon-conversation-cruce-beef-alex	2025-04-18	Group discussion showcasing AI marketing project and planning Wednesday dinner attendance
2025-04-18-conversation-with-cruce-saunders	2025-04-18	In-depth conversation about Cruce's background and Alpha School perspectives with Eddie's encouragement