A few years back, I had an issue with my computer and lost a bunch of files. It sucked! Yeah, it happens and life goes on. I saved the hard drive from that computer and I was recently able to recover some files. This is one of those files! I had the opportunity to interview Ray King and talk about his involvement with the launch of the dot Gay TLD.
Since this is sort of a blast from the past and time has moved on, I thought it would be good to preface this video with some background and info on what Ray is currently up to. Ray King is a serial tech entrepreneur and CEO of Top Level Design, with deep roots in the domain industry spanning over two decades. An MIT computer science graduate, King began his entrepreneurial journey in 1984 with Semaphore, Inc., followed by founding SnapNames (2002), AboutUs (2005), and Top Level Design (2013).
King founded Top Level Design in 2012 to apply for multiple new generic top-level domains (gTLDs), including .design, .wiki, .ink, and .gay. His work with .gay was particularly significant – after a nearly decade-long application process and legal battles, Top Level Design won the rights to operate .gay in 2019, launching it to the public in September 2020. The .gay domain broke new ground by creating a safer online space for LGBTQ+ communities, banning hateful content, and donating 20% of registration revenue to LGBTQ+ nonprofits like CenterLink and GLAAD.
Post-.gay Progression: Since the .gay launch, King has strategically evolved his business model. In 2023, Top Level Design sold its entire TLD portfolio (.design, .wiki, .ink, and .gay) to GoDaddy Registry, allowing the company to focus on its registrar business, Porkbun, which has grown into a global top-20 domain registrar. King continues to serve as CEO of both Top Level Design and Porkbun, positioning himself as a domain industry veteran who has successfully operated across all levels of the domain ecosystem – from registry operations to retail registration services.
