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Michael Seibel

02/17/22

@ Y Combinator

When Gmail was first developed, Paul Buchheit created a makeshift email interface using Google Groups, which allowed him to read his emails and led to the development of essential email features.

Video

Things That Don't Scale, The Software Edition – Dalton Caldwell and Michael Seibel

@ Y Combinator

Things That Don't Scale, The Software Edition – Dalton Caldwell and Michael Seibel

02/17/22

Related Takeaways

Michael Seibel

02/17/22

@ Y Combinator

Paul Buchheit, the inventor of Gmail, built it as a side project at Google, focusing on doing things that don't scale, which ultimately led to a product used by 1.5 billion people.

Paul Buchheit

10/25/18

@ Y Combinator

The key to Gmail's development was to focus on making users happy, which involved iterating on features based on their requests.

Paul Buchheit

10/25/18

@ Y Combinator

The first version of Gmail I wrote in a day; it wasn't very good, but it was a start, and I iterated based on user feedback.

Michael Seibel

02/17/22

@ Y Combinator

The initial Gmail invite system was not a clever growth hack; it was a necessity due to limited server space, forcing them to limit access until they could scale.

Y Combinator Cast

05/23/25

@ Y Combinator

The Gmail system prompt serves as a basic email writer, producing emails that no individual would authentically write, which limits its effectiveness.

Y Combinator Cast

05/23/25

@ Y Combinator

After using Gmail for 20 years, I believe a good product could create a draft prompt based on my email history.

Y Combinator Cast

05/23/25

@ Y Combinator

The Gmail team approached AI integration by asking how to slot AI into existing applications, rather than rethinking the application design to fully utilize AI's potential.

Sundar Pichai

06/05/25

@ Lex Fridman

Integrating AI into applications like Gmail can revolutionize productivity, making email management more efficient and personalized.

Pete Koomen

05/23/25

@ Y Combinator

The integration of AI in Gmail, specifically the draft writing agent, demonstrates how powerful AI can be, yet it often frustrates users due to its hidden complexities.