In the expensive world of art, galleries often act as gatekeepers. Galleries in major cities frequently show work from the same group of artists, largely due to their selective curation process. This system limits opportunities for emerging artists and means great works of art go undiscovered.
NALA was founded by Benjamin Gluck (Class of ’22) to disrupt the gallery model. Launched as part of a class project at MIT, the company’s digital platform allows artists to list their work and uses machine learning and data science to provide personalized recommendations to art lovers.
By making more art available to buyers, the company breaks down the barriers of exclusivity that traditional galleries have erected, effectively connecting creators and collectors.
“There’s a lot of talent out there that hasn’t had a chance to be seen outside of the local artist market,” Gluck says. “We’re opening up the art world to all artists and creating a true meritocracy.”
NALA does not take commission from artists, but instead charges buyers a commission of 11.5 percent of the artist’s listed price. Currently, more than 20,000 art lovers use the NALA platform, and the company has more than 8,500 artists registered with the company.
“My goal is to make NALA the leading place for art to be discovered, bought and sold online,” Gluck says. “The gallery model has been around for a long time and is a trendsetter in the art world, but most buyers don’t realize how limited the industry is.”
From founder to student, and back to founder again
Growing up in Canada, Gluck participated in science fairs and robotics competitions throughout high school and studied hard to get into MIT. At age 16, he invented an electric unicycle that appeared on the hit TV show “Shark Tank” and was later named one of the top inventions of the year by Popular Science magazine
Gluck was accepted to MIT in 2009, but soon after enrolled, he dropped out of his undergraduate program to start his own business using the exposure and funding he got from “Shark Tank.” After a tumultuous decade in which he raised more than $12 million and sold thousands of products around the world, Gluck decided to return to MIT to finish his degree, changing his major from mechanical engineering to a minor that combines computer science, economics, and data science.
“I spent 10 years of my life building a business and realized it was going to take another 10 to get the company to where I wanted it to be. That’s not what I wanted to do,” Gluck said. “I missed learning, I missed the academic side of life. I begged to come back to MIT, and it was the best decision I ever made.”
Amid the ups and downs of running a company, Gluck started painting to relieve stress. Art has always been a part of Gluck’s life, and he even participated in an art study abroad program in Italy during high school. Determined to sell his work, he partnered with several well-known art galleries in London, Miami and St. Moritz. Eventually, he began connecting gallery owners he knew with artists he met on his travels in emerging markets such as Cuba, Egypt and Brazil.
“The results were astonishing because artists were used to selling their work to tourists for $50 and suddenly they were exhibiting their work in a high-end gallery in London and making £5,000,” Gluck said. “Same artists, same talent, different buyers.”
At the time, Gluck was a junior at MIT, wondering what to do after graduation: He wanted to start a business, but every industry he looked into was dominated by tech giants. Every industry except the art world.
“The art industry is antiquated,” Gluck says. “Galleries have a monopoly on a small number of artists and absolute control over prices. Value is communicated to buyers, but you can see inefficiencies almost everywhere in the industry.”
At MIT, Gluck studied recommendation engines used to populate social media feeds and personalize show and music recommendations, and he envisioned something similar for the visual arts.
“I wondered why, even though I’ve had accounts for years, when I go to major art platforms I only see a terrible mix of artwork,” Gluck said. “Every week I get an email with the subject line ‘New Art for your Collection,’ but the platform knows nothing about my taste or budget.”
Gluck built a system to predict what kind of art would be successful in galleries for a class project at MIT, but by his senior year there he realized that working directly with artists was a more promising approach.
“Online platforms typically charge a 30% commission and galleries can add a 50% commission, so artists get a small percentage of each online sale, but buyers have to pay luxury import tax on the full amount,” Gluck explains. “That means there’s a lot of wiggle room in the middle, and that’s where our business model of selling direct to artists comes in.”
Now, NALA (Networked Artistic Learning Algorithm) is supporting artists by asking them to upload their artwork and answer a questionnaire about their style. They can immediately start uploading their work and choose their listing price.
The company started by using AI to match artworks with the most likely buyers. Gluck points out that not all artwork sells: “If you’re painting on rocks, there might not be a big market.” Artists sometimes price their artworks higher than buyers are willing to pay, but the algorithm works to get the artwork in front of the most likely buyers based on style preferences and budgets. NALA also handles sales and shipping, paying artists 100 percent of the list price for each sale.
“Not taking commissions makes us very professional artists,” Gluck said, “and it also makes us open to all artists, which is unique in this field. NALA was founded by artists, for artists.”
Last year, NALA also began allowing buyers to take photos of artwork they liked and then view similar works in a database.
“In museums, people would take pictures of masterpieces that were way out of their reach, and now they can find living artists making work in the same style that they can actually hang in their homes,” Gluck says. “It makes art more accessible.”
Champion Artist
Ten years ago, Ben Gulak was visiting Egypt when he discovered a striking mural on the street. Gulak found local artist Ahmed Nofal on Instagram and bought several of his pieces. He then took Nofal to Dubai to participate in World Art Dubai. The artist’s work was so well-received that he went on to create murals for the Royal British Museum in London and Red Bull. More recently, Nofal and Gulak collaborated during Art Basel 2024, creating a mural for the Graffiti Museum in Miami.
Gulak has personally worked with many artists on his platform. He has traveled to Cuba for over a decade to buy art and deliver art supplies to friends. He also worked with artists seeking immigrant visas.
“Many claim to want to support the art world, but in reality they often fall back on outdated business models,” said Gluck. “Art is not just my passion, it’s a way of life for me. I’ve been involved in all aspects of the art world: as an artist selling work in galleries, as a collector with an office full of art, and as a collaborator working with incredible talent like Raheem Salahdeen Johnson. When artists visit, we create together, share ideas, and brainstorm. These experiences, combined with my background as an artist and computer scientist, give me a unique perspective. I’m trying to change everything by using technology to give artists unparalleled access to a global marketplace.”
