German entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner is the driving force behind the Freestyle Chess events, the series of tournaments that could shake up the chess world. Along with his friend and business partner, GM Magnus Carlsen, he hopes to revolutionize the game and make the players superstars.
The Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T Challenge, won by Carlsen, was a welcome and successful addition to the chess calendar in 2024. As Chess.com announced in December, 2025 is set to be the year of Chess960, with the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour kicking off in February.
In this interview, the German investor behind the tour shared his journey into chess, why he decided to organize chess tournaments, his meeting with Carlsen, and his strategy of elevating top players into superstars.
Since Chess.com interviewed Buettner in December, he has been involved in a highly public dispute with FIDE threatening to take legal steps over Freestyle Chess’ plans to crown a “world champion.” This interview didn’t touch on that controversy, which will be covered in separate articles.
The Man Behind The Vision
The 60-year-old, who was born in Hamburg, is the co-founder of what became AOL Germany and played a pivotal role in developing Germany’s first digital mobile network in the 1990s. After moving to the USA in 1997, he developed a venture capital firm specializing in internet companies.Â
In 2003, he was awarded €160 million in damages after a lawsuit related to a failure to pay him and his business partner parts of the proceeds of the sale of its share in AOL Europe. Two years later, in 2005, Buettner spent €7 million of his court money to purchase a 75-hectare estate, including a village and several historic buildings by the Baltic Sea, an hour’s drive from Hamburg.Â
After nine years of renovation, and in part thanks to €7.5 million raised by crowdfunding, the private five-star luxury resort Weissenhaus could finally open in 2014. German media has estimated Buettner’s fortune to be around €100 million.
“I made enough money to not care any more,” he says. Since then, he has been involved in what he refers to as a “nice-to-have-project,” developing exclusive residences near the resort. “It was an escalation in insanity. I sold eight of those units for €10 million a piece. And they are 80 square meter apartments, so imagine the price.”
I made enough money to not care any more.
—Jan Henric Buettner
As is the case with millions of others, it was the COVID-19 pandemic that sparked Buettner’s interest in chess. He was so hooked that he began taking online lessons from GM Niclas Huschenbeth, one of Germany’s top grandmasters. “I booked his whole course. ‘Reach 1400,’, ‘Reach 1700,’ ‘Reach 2000.’ I was like ‘Give me the whole package!’. I spent many, many mornings on the beach with Niclas’ videos.”
When the grandmaster was invited to Weissenhaus last year, he suggested to Buettner that he should organize a chess tournament. He was immediately inspired by the idea and started following Huschenbeth’s tournaments.
The Formula 1 Approach In Chess?
However, watching a chess tournament didn’t really appeal to him. “I fell asleep. It was so boring! What can be more boring than watching two people play chess? I felt like ‘This is sad!’. If you are really interested in chess, yes, but why would you spend your time and watch and waste 20 minutes until someone makes a move?,” Buettner thought.
I fell asleep. It was so boring! What can be more boring than watching two people play chess?
—Jan Henric Buettner
He shared how he was inspired by Formula 1 and how drivers are celebrated as stars. “My wife and I were attending a lot of Formula 1 races and I started noticing the huge difference between how Formula 1 drivers were treated and how chess players were treated during their competitions. Formula 1 drivers were celebrated as superstars, with everything revolving around them.”
“This made me think: I can organize a better chess tournament than the ones currently out there. In my mind, I already envisioned what a great chess tournament could look like. One of my gifts is being able to see things not just as they are, but how it could be perfect in the future,” Buettner said.
“When I developed Weissenhaus, I had a vision for what it could become, even though it took many years to bring it to life. The same applies here. I thought, ‘Let’s create a truly great chess tournament.'”
He explained how he wants to include elements from Formula 1, ATP tennis, and even beach volleyball—and combine them to make something unique in chess.
“If I wanted to do the greatest tournament ever, I needed the greatest chess player of all-time. So I need Magnus.”
If I wanted to do the greatest tournament ever, I needed the greatest chess player of all-time. So I need Magnus.
—Jan Henric Buettner
Since their first meeting, the two business partners have developed a friendship and spent considerable time together. At the time of the interview, they were together in Dubai. Buettner also attended Carlsen’s wedding in Oslo in January.Â
Meeting Magnus Carlsen In Qatar
Buettner had watched Magnus, the 2016 documentary by Benjamin Ree. “I found it very fascinating. Then I saw an interview with Magnus when he was already world champion where he said that ‘I am just starting to understand chess,’ which I thought was amazing!”
From there and on, things moved fast. It was already late October, and Buettner decided to fly to Doha, where Carlsen was playing Qatar Masters. The world number-one was mostly busy playing, but he got to spend considerable time with Henrik Carlsen. After the tournament was over, he got to meet Magnus.
“Magnus told me that if he could choose what tournament to play in if it was all up to him, he would want Fischer-Random at the highest level with normal thinking time. I was thinking, ‘What is he talking about? I have no idea!’ But whatever, if he comes to Weissenhaus, I don’t care!’
Magnus told me that if he could choose what tournament to play in, he would want Fischer-Random at the highest level with normal thinking time.
—Jan Henric Buettner
Buettner looked up the concept and was immediately fascinated, but felt it needed a new name. “If we want to reach a market besides the chess experts, we needed a more catchy name. Chess960 sounds like a medicine from the pharmacy!”
Despite having only around three months to prepare “the best tournament ever,” they managed to get it ready in time. But while he considers the event a success, it wasn’t cheap. Initially having a budget of €500,000, the final bill ended up at €2 million. For Buettner, it doesn’t matter.
“I don’t know any compromise. If I want to do something, it has to be perfect. It really doesn’t matter what it costs. If it’s not perfect, I don’t do it.”
I don’t know any compromise. If I want to do something, it has to be perfect. It really doesn’t matter what it costs. If it’s not perfect, I don’t do it.
—Jan Henric Buettner
A Sustainable Tour?
Together, Buettner and Carlsen raised $12 million from venture capital firm Left Lane Capital to fund the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, an almost unprecedented amount in the chess world. Of this, $4 million is dedicated to prize money.Â
Buettner and Left Lane Capital now own one-third each of Freestyle Chess, while the last third is owned by several investors, including Carlsen. The wealthy millionaire says he is committed to remaining in the project for 1.5 years, where he will hand over the company to Thomas Harsch, COO of Freestyle Chess.Â
The goal is to make the tour sustainable, with 50 percent of the event costs recovered in 2025 and 100 percent in 2026. “We have three teams working with western sponsors and great names already. And with some we have agreements and final talks. There is significant money,” he said, without revealing any more details.
Speaking to Chess.com, Buettner seems clearly passionate about his project, revealing they have some “crazy ideas,” such as having the players play in a glass container with lots of spectators around. He wants at least one venue per season to take place in front of up to 4,000 to 5,000 people. This season, that could happen in Las Vegas.
Asked why he is in the project, Buettner joked and said, “I hope I get out of it! I want it to be implemented in a perfect way. I am giving everything, so when all my visions in my head are implemented, then I can have a more executive role.”
I hope I get out of it!
—Jan Henric Buettner on Freestyle Chess
The 2025 Freestyle Chess Grand Slam begins February 7 in Weissenhaus, with the first of five tournaments held across four different continents.
Full schedule:
- February 7-14: Weissenhaus, Germany
- April 8-15: Paris, France
- July 17-24: New York, USA (expected to move to Las Vegas)
- September 17-24: Delhi, India
- December 5-12: Cape Town, South Africa