I previously cofounded Firebase (YC S11) and sold it to Google, and most of our team is ex-Google / ex-Firebase.
Shortwave (https://www.shortwave.com/) is building an AI-powered email client. We're bringing the power of LLMs & a modern messaging UX to 4.5 billion email users.
Imagine an AI virtual assistant with perfect knowledge of every message, attachment, receipt, newsletter, etc you've ever sent or received, and with the ability to act on your behalf ("Draft email responses to the job candidates in my inbox asking them to schedule a time with me" "delete all recruiter spam" "snooze emails that don't seem urgent").
We're well-funded and backed by Union Square Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners. We want the best and are willing to pay for it. We like generalists with strong CS fundamentals, app development experience, and grit.
Come help us build the future. Email if interested: joinourteam@shortwave.com
We have two major advantages: 1. We can use best-in-class AI tech, from any vendor (ie. OpenAI) -- whereas Google is only going to use their internal tech 2. We can take lots of UX risk when designing the perfect UI for an AI email client. Gmail has to be much more cautious given it's such a core, old, massive product.
I like this attitude. I'd also need to see something truly compelling and exciting in the Google sphere to bother with their products and features at all anymore. The graveyard is too huge not to hesitate.