Pineapple Family launches as a platform for independent surrogacy and egg donation journeys, replacing the traditional $30,000 to $60,000+ agency model with direct relationships, transparent tools and flat fees starting at $7,500. Founded by two husbands and their gestational carrier.
SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 20, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Pineapple Family, a family-building platform supporting independent surrogacy and egg donation journeys, today announced its public launch at pineapplefamily.org. The platform allows intended parents, gestational carriers and egg donors to find one another, build direct relationships and manage their own journeys without an agency intermediary.
The company was founded by three people: Joshua Brost and Daniel Malak, two husbands and two-time intended parents, and Sam Martin, the gestational carrier who carried both of their children independently.
The Founder Story
Joshua and Daniel's path to fatherhood began with a failed agency match. They paid $45,000 to a traditional agency, which matched them with a gestational carrier whose preparation and screening proved inadequate. The match ended following embryo transfer due to medication noncompliance and the loss of two embryos. They went on to pursue surrogacy independently, working with Sam on two successful journeys that produced their two children.
"We built the platform we wish we'd had," said Daniel Malak, co-founder and CEO. "Going independent meant building real relationships, choosing our own professionals and managing the journey ourselves. We built Pineapple Family so that independent doesn't have to mean alone."
Sam Martin is a three-time gestational carrier whose first journey was for intended parents from Germany through a U.S. surrogacy agency; her second and third were independent, with Joshua and Daniel.
"The agency treated my body like a commodity they could make money off of. By the end, I didn't feel like a person. I was inventory. Independently with Joshua and Daniel, I was a partner in their family from day one," said Sam Martin, co-founder.
Why Independent
The founders argue that the traditional surrogacy and egg donation agency model has structural incentives that are not always aligned with the interests of intended parents, gestational carriers or egg donors. Independent journeys are designed to address each one:
- Information and ownership transparency. Ownership structures behind some of the industry's most visible sites and communities are not readily disclosed. Independent journeys let families find their own sources and choose who they trust.
- Standards with accountability. The industry's most prominent ethics frameworks are largely self-regulatory. Independent journeys let everyone work directly with licensed professionals accountable to actual regulatory bodies and clinical peer review.
- Direct relationships, no intermediary incentives. Agency-coordinated journeys involve a paid intermediary whose business interests sit between the parties. Independent journeys let everyone build relationships directly and select their own professional team.
The company's full perspective and sourced citations are published at pineapplefamily.org/what-we-believe, with editorial standards on every claim.
"We are not neutral observers of this industry," said Joshua Brost, co-founder and Chairman. "We believe families, gestational carriers and egg donors deserve more information, not less, and that the path to parenthood should be more accessible for every kind of family."
What the Platform Offers
Pineapple Family is a family-building platform, not an agency nor a service provider. Users select and vet their own medical, legal and psychological professionals. The platform provides the infrastructure that makes independent journeys doable: matching tools, the Journey Doula™ (a guided system covering every phase from first conversation through postpartum), an open-access provider directory, in-platform messaging and video, ID verification, and The Grove, a free community platform open to all fertility journey participants.
Flat fees are disclosed upfront: $7,500 for surrogacy, $3,500 for egg donation and $10,500 combined. Traditional agencies typically charge $30,000 to $60,000 or more for matching and coordination.
Availability
Pineapple Family is available today at pineapplefamily.org. The founders' full launch letter is available at pineapplefamily.org/education/introducing-pineapple-family.
Why the Pineapple
The pineapple has been a symbol of welcome for centuries, and over the past decade has quietly become a recognition signal in the fertility community. Pineapple Family is named in that tradition. The full story is at pineapplefamily.org/about/why-pineapple.
About Pineapple Family
Pineapple Family is a family-building platform supporting independent surrogacy and egg donation journeys for intended parents, gestational carriers and egg donors. The company was founded in 2026 by Joshua Brost and Daniel Malak, two husbands and two-time intended parents, together with Sam Martin, a three-time gestational carrier. Pineapple Family Labs, Inc. is a Delaware corporation. Learn more at pineapplefamily.org.
Medical, psychological and legal services should be conducted by appropriately licensed professionals selected and engaged directly by users. Pineapple Family does not provide medical, legal or financial advice.
Media Contact
Daniel Malak, Pineapple Family, 1 916-545-2028, [email protected], pineapplefamily.org
SOURCE Pineapple Family
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