My name is Shayan Khani Reyes, and I am the founder and CEO of Nexempleo, a talent marketplace built in Cuba for Cuban freelancers and the people who hire them. I started it in 2024, while I was studying medicine, because I kept seeing the same problem everywhere: Cuba has plenty of talent, but it has very few ways to prove it, find work beyond its own circle and get paid fairly for it.
This is the story of why Nexempleo exists, what we have built so far, what it takes to build it under blackouts and sanctions, and what comes next. If you read Spanish, there is also a Spanish version of this letter, and you can learn more about the team on our about page.
Why Cuban freelancers needed their own marketplace
In every sector I looked at, I saw the same thing. Cuba is disconnected from the work that moves around the rest of the world. Inflation rises faster than salaries, and earning only in Cuban pesos is no longer enough to live on.
At the same time, platforms like Fiverr and Upwork, which work in most of the world, do not accept users who live in Cuba. US sanctions also keep most international payment processors out of reach. So a designer in Havana or a developer in Santiago can be as good as anyone abroad and still have no simple way to show it, find a client or get paid.
There was no national platform doing this job. So I decided to build one.
The real problem is trust
Most work in Cuba is still found through word of mouth. It works until you run out of people you know. A good electrician is well known in his neighborhood and a stranger three towns away. A talented designer has no way to prove it to a client who has never heard of her. And when a hire goes wrong, there is nobody to complain to.
That is why I believe trust is the missing piece. When hiring is an act of faith, people hire less, clients overpay to protect themselves, and reliable professionals earn the same as those who never deliver.
What Nexempleo does
Nexempleo is where Cuban professionals publish their services and where companies and individuals post jobs or hire directly. What makes it different is what we check before anyone hires:
- Verified identity. Every user verifies an official ID document with AI before they can publish.
- A skill exam for each profession. Professionals take a technical test for their field, graded on our server. Those who pass get a guarantee seal on their public profile.
- Moderated listings. Every service and job post goes through an automated review before it goes live.
- Clear prices. Services come in Basic, Standard and Premium packages, with price, delivery time and revisions stated up front.
Creating a profile, publishing services and posting jobs is free, and Nexempleo takes no commission on the services people hire. Our tools panel, with utilities and an AI assistant, runs on a subscription.
Where Nexempleo is today
Nexempleo has been live since November 2024. Today it brings together professionals from different provinces who offer their services, companies and individuals looking for someone to hire, and people looking for work. The job listings include openings from Cuban employers and remote positions from abroad that can be done from Cuba, each labeled by how likely the company is to hire someone there.
What matters to me is not how big the directory is, but that every profile in it belongs to a real, verified person.
Building a marketplace under blackouts and sanctions
Building a tech product in Cuba means designing for constraints most founders never face:
- Connectivity. Mobile data is expensive and unstable, so our pages are light and built for phones and connections that drop.
- Blackouts. Power cuts can last hours, so we design for people who work in short windows of electricity and connection.
- Payments. For now, clients and professionals agree on payment directly, using the method that works for them. Payment inside the platform, with funds held in escrow until the client confirms delivery, is in development, and crypto payments through a partner are next.
The work has taken longer than I imagined, and there is still a lot to improve. We publish openly what already works and what is still in progress, because a platform built on trust should also be honest about itself.
What comes next
Every step points in the same direction: that Cuban freelancers can prove what they are worth and get paid for it, and that hiring in Cuba stops being an act of faith. Our next steps are in-platform payments with escrow, a portal for companies, cooperatives and small businesses to reach verified professionals directly, and more tools for people who work online.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Nexempleo?
Nexempleo was founded by Shayan Khani Reyes in 2024, while he was studying medicine. He is the company’s founder and CEO.
Can people outside Cuba hire Cuban freelancers on Nexempleo?
Anyone can browse profiles and contact professionals through the platform. Payment is agreed directly between both sides for now, and anyone hiring from abroad should check the rules that apply in their own country.
Does Nexempleo charge a commission?
No. Creating a profile, publishing services and posting jobs is free, and there is no commission on services. Only the tools panel runs on a subscription.
How can journalists or partners reach Shayan Khani Reyes?
Through LinkedIn, on Instagram at @shayanreyes, or by email at [email protected].
Final thoughts
I am Shayan Khani Reyes, and I built Nexempleo because Cuba has the talent but lacked a way to prove it, find work and get paid for it. If you are a journalist, an investor or a company that wants to work with Cuban freelancers, I would be glad to talk.
Comentarios
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