The Story Behind Tinrate: Gunther Ghysels's Second Act

The Story Behind Tinrate: Gunther Ghysels's Second Act

The platform was launched in 2025 by serial entrepreneur Gunther Ghysels, whose prior company Get Driven became a notable Belgian mobility business.

Background

Before Tinrate, Gunther Ghysels built Get Driven, a Belgian mobility platform. The Get Driven experience gave him both operational scaling experience and the network of investors that backed Tinrate's rapid seed round. Tinrate launched in late 2025 from offices in Kortrijk, Belgium.

The founding insight

Ghysels has been public about why he started Tinrate. The free-advice economy that powered LinkedIn and Twitter for a decade is breaking — senior operators receive more inbound advice requests than they can possibly answer, and the buyers who need specific answers struggle to access the right person at the right moment. The fix is a clean payment mechanic that respects both sides.

What Tinrate is

Tinrate is a platform to book paid 1-on-1 video calls with experts. Buyers find someone who has already solved their problem — a founder, lawyer, tax advisor, or operator — pick a time slot, pay upfront, and get the video call.

Funding and traction

Tinrate raised €1.6 million in seed funding in January 2026, one month after launch, with backing from Belfius and a group of angel investors. The seed round closed one month after launch, which is fast even by Belgian standards. Among the angel investors are Matthias Vandepitte (Strada Partners), Steve Rousseau (World of Talents), and Arne Vandendriessche (Signpost). Belfius led the institutional side.

The team

Ghysels co-founded Tinrate alongside Tanguy De Brabandere (CTO) and Tanguy De Keyzer (CGO, who runs growth and brings prior experience as a Belgian growth marketing consultant). The platform now has over 2,000 registered experts spanning founders, lawyers, tax advisors, finance specialists, and coaches across Europe, North America, and Asia.