And so with the Zenly chapter ending a new one begins.
I’m looking forward to working with
@an21m
and a few other friends while we try to fix a lot of what we see is broken with our new project,
@amoamoamo
.
Couldn’t be more proud of the
@zenly
team 👏❤️
Working with and learning from the 🐐
@an21m
for the last 5+ years has been the highlight of my career - can’t wait to see what’s next
TikTok is eating the world and only making things worse as companies focus their efforts on getting their screen time back instead of focusing on why people use their products in the first place.
Meanwhile, doom scrolling TikTok and its equivalents isn’t making anyone feel good.
Apps like BeReal, Locket, and even Zenly are testaments to people seeking products based on real relationships where they no longer need to compete with brands and celebrities.
Today’s social products have become overly complex and commoditized super apps that no longer serve the best interests of those who use them, but rather the advertisers that feed their top line.
But there is some good news.
While this is all happening, there seems to be a renaissance in social getting back to what social networks initially set out to accomplish.
Connecting friends first and foremost before the mission statements became connecting the world.
While I’m sad that Zenly will be joining everyone’s graveyard folder, there’s also no better time to be starting from scratch.
TLDR too many things are broken and people just want to get back to being themselves with their friends.
Internally, all of these orgs are becoming bloated.
Employee interest no longer serves company interest as individuals fight over pixels and their own metrics in order to get their next promotion, almost always to the detriment of the business.
The Last Dance brought back memories of driving to Philly with my dad to watch MJs last game ever. He dropped a solid 6 points. Dad still claims that my name is Michael James so my initials would be MJ just like Mike.
Lil' personal life update:
🇫🇷 I'm moving to Paris – for one year – starting in September! 🇫🇷
I'll be working from
@an21m
's
@amoamoamo
office (one of my fav crews), and living in the 6th.
Anyone want to hang? Who should I meet while I'm there?!
Probably nothing, but Poolside AI is the 2nd notable startup to be announcing moving its HQ from the US to Paris in a week? (other one being The Browser Company)
🇺🇸🛫🇫🇷
Zenly is also now getting about 1/3 the monthly downloads as Snapchat, mostly in Asian markets (Japan, Vietnam, etc) where Snap doesn't have a large presence
A treat from
@hamburger
with a lot of opinions I share though makes me wonder at what point we started using social media and social networks interchangeably and at what point they diverged entirely
2020 has been a year unlike any other for all of us, but it didn’t stop us from recruiting: 27 new hires, 23 onboarded remotely, 88% international folks 🤗
Who said the French ecosystem isn’t attractive?! 🚀
Check out the
@zenlyapp
job offer page
Some personal news:
I'm really excited to share that I'm joining the world class team at
@zenlyapp
to head design. There's a deeply ambitious roadmap 🗺️ ahead and I'm fired up to get to work in 2020 in Paris 🇫🇷.
Happy holidays to you & yours!
Our real-life networks are buried in messaging applications. They’re the important groups in our lives that are stuck in WhatsApp, groupme, telegram and discord. They deserve better. These form factors are outdated and it’s time for a mega upgrade.
Israel has now vaccinated more than a million people.
More than 10% of the country’s population.
Other countries take holidays and keep the vaccines waiting in the freezers while their populations are stuck in lockdowns and their people die by the thousands.
🤩 New on Zenly 🤩
Know when your friends are making frequent journeys (like heading to work, school, or just heading home), see their starting point, and get notified when they arrive!
🆕 Introducing a new way to get to your people and places, with
@citymapper
now available in Zenly!
Next time you want to zip it to the party or just want to find the quickest way home, get directions and transit options without having to leave Zenly. Ⓜ️🚇🚌
Dad: best last day of Comdex/CES ever in 20 years
Me: why?
Dad: cause I skipped it! Tired of hearing bla bla about autonomous everything that doesn’t work and connected mobility when 150k people wait in line 30 min for a bus everywhere
😂😂
It’s wild to me that this single team designed the photos, settings, maps, and camera apps
Now you have 5 designers working on a single feature in a calendar app
Software should not be that complicated
Today marks five years since the horrific ISIS terrorist attacks in Paris — an assault not just on the people of France but against our common humanity.
As president, I will work to protect Americans and our allies, countering terrorism and extremist violence in all forms.
Zenly live map of your friends & family by
@HerveStudio
(France) has been nominated for Site of the Month April, head this way to vote for them and you could win a free year in our Desgin Directory
#WebGL
#Animation
#Illustration
We condemn racism. We must embrace profound change. It starts with advocating for creating more opportunity, and for living the American values of freedom, equality and justice for all.
Our CEO Evan's memo to our team:
How long have you been staying home? What about your friends? Introducing the Stay at Home Challenge 🏡
Stay home and stay safe! We’re proud of all of you for doing your part in helping to
#stopthespread
❤️😘
This email from
@Uber
feels very dystopian - especially from a no reply that doesn’t allow me to dispute the (false) claim.
Being able to essentially denounce people on a whim just doesn’t sit right, even if everyone should be wearing masks in taxis.
Can’t think of anyone who has exposed themselves to such a wide spectrum of opinion as
@SachaBaronCohen
has...and he’s been doing it for decades. More superior potassium in this piece 👇
It still feels bizarre to speak out in my own voice, but I wrote this for
@TIME
because Trump’s lies and conspiracies, spread by Facebook, threaten to kill more people—and democracy as we know it!
Thinking about early February, when I was mocked by a gate agent in Paris for wearing a mask while boarding a flight to Tokyo, only to land in Tokyo with fever checks and masks everywhere.
Week 3 on lockdown in France vs business *nearly* as usual in Japan.
I'm trying to learn to become a better designer, I figured one way to do that is by analyzing products with great design – so here's my first teardown!
Starting out with
@zenlyapp
, what makes using this so enjoyable?
A thread 👇🏾
I'm excited to share that I started a new company called Late Checkout
@latecheckoutplz
We do 3 things:
1. Studio: We build and own internet communities
2. Agency: We design products with select companies
3. Fund: We acquire internet companies with profitable communities