A new networking platform called Linkd, designed to connect college students and alumni, sparked controversy at UC Berkeley when its leaderboard feature was hacked by students, turning a marketing stunt into a campus spectacle.
A Viral Idea Goes Awry
Linkd, a Y Combinator-backed startup co-founded by University of Pennsylvania freshman Eric Mao and UC San Diego student Tom Zheng, launched at Berkeley in March 2025 after debuting at UPenn in January. The site’s core function is a search engine that matches users with peers or alumni based on professional experiences, akin to a LinkedIn-style Google. But it was the site’s secondary feature—a leaderboard ranking users’ anonymized résumés based on votes for which was more “cracked” (Gen Z slang for talented)—that caused a stir.
The voting system, where users picked between two résumés to boost their “elo” score, was meant as a provocative way to go viral, Mao admitted. To amplify attention, the founders even posted anonymously on Reddit, feigning outrage at their own creation with comments like, “Are we seriously ranking people now?” The tactic worked—too well.
Berkeley’s Backlash
When Linkd hit Berkeley, the leaderboard drew mixed reactions. Some students, like junior Rohin Shanker, who briefly topped the rankings, found it amusing. “Berkeley’s the kind of place where this could catch on,” he told reporters, enjoying the ego boost. Others were less impressed, taking to Reddit to slam the feature as “dystopian” and manipulative. One student, unaware their résumé was ranked until contacted by journalists, questioned how their data ended up on the site without consent.
The criticism didn’t stop at words. A group of tech-savvy Berkeley students, known for their coding prowess, decided to take matters into their own hands. Pranshu Rao, a freshman studying computer science and electrical engineering, and his roommate Aayan Rizvi cracked Linkd’s system in days. Using automated scripts to “bot” votes, they propelled themselves to the top of the leaderboard in just 15 minutes. “It was more about the challenge than the ranking,” Rao said, noting the site’s vulnerabilities were an open invitation for hackers.
A Hacker’s Playground
Berkeley’s hacking culture, fostered by events like Cal Hacks—the world’s largest collegiate hackathon—made it no surprise that students targeted Linkd. The site’s leaderboard, with its game-like scoring, was practically begging to be gamed. Rao and others saw it as a chance to flex their skills, exposing flaws in the system while poking fun at its premise. “If it’s a ranking, it’s going to get manipulated,” Rizvi said. “That’s just how it works.”
The hacks didn’t just disrupt rankings; they fueled debates about the ethics of gamifying résumés. Students argued the system could deepen insecurities, especially for those already navigating a competitive job market. “Nobody feels better getting a few extra points on a website,” Rao added.
Linkd’s Response
Mao and Zheng, both 19, were unfazed by the hacks, viewing them as part of the startup’s chaotic rollout. “We knew it’d cause a reaction,” Mao said, emphasizing that the leaderboard was never the site’s heart. Linkd’s real goal is to streamline networking by connecting users to professionals with shared backgrounds—say, a Berkeley grad at Google mentoring a student. The founders plan to phase out the leaderboard eventually, focusing on search and connection features.
For now, Linkd remains a lightning rod. It’s live at Berkeley, Stanford, and other top campuses, with thousands of users despite the backlash. The team is working on tightening security to prevent future hacks, but they’re not sweating the controversy. “It got people talking,” Zheng said with a shrug.
A Familiar Tale
Linkd’s story echoes the early days of Facebook, when Mark Zuckerberg’s Harvard site ranked students’ looks, sparking both outrage and fascination. Linkd’s twist—ranking ambition instead of attractiveness—fits a generation obsessed with hustle culture. Yet, as one Berkeley hacker put it, “It’s less ‘Hot or Not’ and more ‘Who’s Got the Better Internship?’” Whether that’s a dystopian game or a clever networking tool depends on who you ask.
At Berkeley, where protests and hackathons are campus traditions, Linkd’s saga is just another chapter in a long history of students challenging systems—digital or otherwise.