February 1st 2020 was when I wrote the first line of code that grew into Ente.
The day before was my last day at Google and in Switzerland. I was in such a rush that we shipped our belongings, badged out of office, and flew out the very same day.
The months I spent at Google suffocated me to the point where all I wanted to do was escape their opulence. I remember how I could breathe better when I checked in at the airport.
Shanthy (my partner), on the other hand, was not as relieved. She had grown really fond of the place and the people. I was fond of these bits as well, but unlike her, I also had to deal with the golden handcuffs Google was choking me with.
Escaping and building something for myself was a selfish move to ensure sanity. This was a project I had been wanting to build for a few months – one Google's lawyers pointed out was in direct competition. The trouble was, there's no game under the sun that Google is not playing, so it is difficult to write code in your spare time that does not compete.
Anyway, I felt free that night, giddy with joy. Endless opportunities lay before me, and I had no restraints. Or clear plans, for that matter.
All I knew was, I wanted to store my photos with some privacy, and that I had to build something from ground up to make it happen.
I had seen more folks on the internet suffering from the same problem. I thought that whatever I built for myself could be offered to them as well, and that I could make a living out of it.
A few weeks later, I landed at my home in Kerala. Much to the disappointment of my parents, whose quintessential middle-class dreams I had broken. "Our son is jobless, up all night fiddling on things we don't understand" was a significant downgrade to "he is in Switzerland, working for Google".
5 years later, I don't think they feel much better. But they seem to have started appreciating my commitment to what they believe is madness.
The nice thing about the world is, with time, you are surrounded by more who share your delusions. I must admit that it has taken a lot more time than I had anticipated to find a tribe, but patience and persistence are virtues.
I had consumed an unhealthy amount of content about those who ventured with capital to conjure unicorns. I was told there were frameworks, following which would guarantee similar outcomes.
The difference was there was no one venturing with capital into the vision that I had. The vision of building a company that would protect our memories for multiple life times. Typical fund cycles are far shorter than a single life time. Capital is impatient.
Undeterred, I continued. For I had started on this journey to solve my problems, not to raise capital.
Not virtue signalling here. My inability to craft a narrative that would bait investors did cause pain. Primarily to Neeraj - whose brilliance Ente runs on. He had joined the cause assuming that given my delusion I'd solve for capital along the way, but instead, we had to cut down on lifestyles Big Tech had gotten our families used to.
Ente is now growing to a point where sacrifices are starting to pay off, but we'll for the rest of our lives be indebted to his family for their trust and his persistence.
Persistence is everything.
It is funny how similar building a company is to raising a kid. The joys, the pangs, the level of patience and the unconditional love it needs. Had I not become a dad during this journey, I might not have seen things in the same light. The end result is not as cute, but it is alive and formidable in its own way.
My daughter turned 3 yesterday, and Ente 5 today. Celebrating their birthdays next to each other every year helps put timelines into perspective. It's interesting to see how they've grown and have begun to thrive on their own.
There are now 12 of us working on Ente full time. Many more contribute with their kindness in their spare time. I'm baffled by the quality of minds I'm blessed to share head space with.
I've been on vacation this week - my first break since 2020 - in which I've disconnected from work for multiple days at a stretch. It's comforting to know how well the show can go on without me. My role has evolved over the years - it is now to support rather than direct. With every year that passes, I become more redundant.
This break has also helped me understand that I want to get back to work not because I have to, but because I want to.
Ente is very exciting.
In terms of technology, we are on the frontier, playing with large scale systems, cryptography, machine learning and more. In terms of product, we are playing with pixels to spark joy. In terms of company, we're playing to beat conventions – building accessible consumer FOSS outside of the tech bubble.
Ente is a unicorn – in the original spirit of the word, and I'm grateful to have a front-row seat to watch it soar.
Here's to everyone on the inside and outside that makes Ente, Ente.
Happy birthday!