Graphite Will get Purchased By Cursor: Three Reflections from Six Years of Work [PMF didn’t happen right away; working IRL mattered; three founders, three distinct roles]

A few of you need to skip this submit. It falls into the ‘VC reminiscing about time with a startup after a profitable consequence was introduced,’ particularly software program high quality startup Graphite being acquired by code era startup Cursor. Don’t get me fallacious – it’s positively higher written and fewer aggrandizing than essentially the most custom variations (you’re not going to listen to how ‘we’ constructed this firm collectively), however nonetheless, it’s on this class of essays. I simply don’t need anybody to be shocked – like when there’s a cute guinea pig on IG and also you overlook for a minute that they’re actually simply rats with a blowout.

With that warning achieved, sure, we led the seed spherical for Graphite in early 2020. I met Tomas first through a mutual, after which all 5 of us (me, Satya and the three Graphite cofounders) all did some fast conversations in varied mixtures. Satya’s suggestions to me was memorable – one thing alongside the traces of ‘please get them a termsheet earlier than different folks understand how good they’re.’ And we did. It was a beautiful nearly six years collectively and I do know the relationships are going to outlast the transaction. I discovered a ton from them about constructing within the developer ecosystem and from my fellow Board members, Peter Levine at a16z and Christine Esserman at Accel. Whereas there have been a lot of microlessons, three explicit recollections are most personally indelible and I’d say if any certainly one of these hadn’t occurred the corporate wouldn’t have change into what it did.

Took the Punches and Iterated to Sturdy PMF

Graphite began out as Screenplay. And whereas ‘code high quality’ was at all times a real north mission assertion for them – the explanation the corporate was based – it took some reps to search out one of the best product manifestation of this aim. These weren’t pivots, however they did require first rules considering, some instinct, and the boldness to depart one thing good behind within the seek for nice. Particularly, earlier than what we all know immediately as Graphite was launched they’d a cellular QA and launch administration device deployed with prospects. Given the frothy funding market on the time and the standard of this staff they completely may have ‘pressured’ this model of the corporate to a Collection A. That’s, an satisfactory set of efficiency curves, a much bigger story, and pedigreed cofounders can be sufficient for a subsequent funding spherical, after which with that capital they might hopefully determine it out from there. However Greg, Merrill and Tomas knew this wasn’t the way in which one of the best model of Graphite was going to be constructed. So that they shut down that effort and repurposed among the code – and quite a lot of the scars – into a brand new route.

As talked about earlier, going into the seed funding we had ZERO questions in regards to the cofounders intelligence, ceiling, or relationship with each other. We did spend time – with them immediately and through backchannels – to see if they might take a punch. If their first concept didn’t work would they be so shell-shocked as to run again to a BigCompany with their tails between their legs? Would the specter of failure be motivating or ship them into denial? Would they’ve sufficient of a framework or guts to take a look at one thing as say ‘this may be okay, however we will do higher?’ They did.

We nonetheless stress that seed isn’t a funding spherical, however a section. And that the majority importantly it’s a time for experimentation and studying, not simply brute-forcing an up and to the best curve. And even worse, mindlessly doing what you set in a pitch deck simply because that’s what you thought a yr in the past. The mix of larger rounds and new/nervous VCs usually asks founders to speedrun this course of, however one of the best firms function on the intersection of urgency and endurance. Graphite threaded this needle.

Began Throughout COVID and Again to IRL Shortly

Our conversations with Graphite began proper earlier than COVID 2020 lockdowns. It was a really bizarre time. I had a minimum of met Tomas IRL however in any other case issues grew to become Zoom relationships fairly rapidly. As three shut pals the cofounders have been in a position to spend time collectively in NYC and commenced to assemble a small staff nearly however not remotely, however nonetheless there was eagerness to get again to IRL ASAP. They usually did as quickly because it was advisable.

Throughout this era I received to fulfill – principally over Zoom, or in individual outdoor – in regards to the first ~20 hires they made. Usually as a part of the ‘shut’ course of as soon as a proposal had been made however typically earlier. It felt actually great to be included on this method – the Graphite staff appreciated the assistance (it was at their request) however extra importantly it let me get a really feel for the corporate because it began to develop. So many different startups at the moment have been kind of black bins. Who knew the place folks have been with their faux zoom backgrounds? Have been folks actually dedicated to the trigger or simply working a number of hours a day whereas buying and selling NFTs and ICOs? This wasn’t the case with Graphite. Getting again IRL was about knitting a tradition early and constructing the belief to do the aforementioned iteration. Put collectively everybody’s concepts and opinions collectively.

Have been there some candidates who determined to not interview at Graphite as a result of they most well-liked a distant way of life? Positive. However there have been equal numbers who really have been leaving their jobs as a result of their present employer was staying URL first. Keep in mind, this was a younger tech-focused startup in NYC – working from dwelling together with your two roommates and a small residence isn’t glamorous. Having the social and bodily separation to stroll, bike or take the subway a number of stops to an workplace was really a characteristic, not a bug, for a lot of. Graphite stayed true to who they needed to be and ripped off the ‘what ought to we do’ bandaid early. It paid off – I don’t imagine they might have been almost as profitable if they’d stayed distant.

Three Founders Went the Distance Collectively

Level clean: By Yr Six it’s uncommon to see three technical cofounders all stay important to the corporate. In my expertise certainly one of two conditions are likely to happen – they understand the CEO isn’t scaling and attempt to make that change or the 2 non-CEO cofounders overlap an excessive amount of in engineering/don’t scale as leaders. There are variations of this that are well mannered and productive and variations of this that are poisonous and disruptive. But it surely occurs quite a bit. Clearly it didn’t right here. However why?

Merrill needed to be an awesome CEO not only a nice cofounder. From early on he had the self-awareness that this is able to take work. And that the position would typically put him in disagreement together with his cofounders on strategic selections. He concurrently embraced the accountability whereas additionally prioritizing the trouble to make sure the three of them have been at all times speaking effectively, trusting one another, and placing Graphite forward of any certainly one of their emotions or ego.

Greg and Tomas have been two sides of the identical coin. They each cared deeply about Graphite being a spot the place engineers may make a distinction. To oversimplify, Greg considered this from a collective and structural perspective (what does the Engineering Org appear to be, what’s acceptable documentation and processes for our scale and tradition, when do we want Engineering Administration) and Tomas biased in the direction of the person (how may anyone engineering rent make a distinction, how may he look a possible staff member within the eyes and sincerely say Graphite can be someplace that they might have an awesome concept, construct it, and ship it with out 5 ranges of approvals and a chilling impact of low danger tolerance), That is in fact an abstraction – however they scaled superbly. Tomas may work on experiments, Development tasks, lead Product inside the technical and cross-functional org, whereas Greg had a pure position as CTO.

In fact I lived on the cap desk, not the org chart, so my observations listed here are incomplete and replicate an outsider’s perspective, however I’ve such large respect and admiration, not only for what they constructed, however how they constructed it. And that’s what we attempt for at Homebrew. The intersection of joyful work with nice groups and monetary outcomes which make the work potential ongoing.

Onward!!!