Gabor Cselle - Pebble, Namo Media, ReMail

Reflections on 3 trips through the idea maze

After taking a bit of a break this summer, I’m excited to share my next interview with Gabor Cselle. Gabor most recently started Pebble (formerly T2), which made a valiant attempt to offer a Twitter alternative after Elon’s takeover of the platform. He also founded Namo Media (acquired by Twitter) and Remail (acquired by Google).

This conversation flowed freely as we discussed Gabor’s experiences and the lessons he’s learned along the way. He was incredibly humble and honest, openly sharing both his good decisions and missteps—especially around Pebble, which he largely built in public, offering many interesting post-mortem lessons. We also touched on corporate incubators, his experiences at Y Combinator versus South Park Commons, and the key lessons he would pass on to other founders.

Two key lessons are worth calling out. First: build the weird stuff first. As Gabor said, “you can’t retrofit weird,” and that uniqueness is often what makes your product and company stand out, gaining traction early on. Second, he recommended the book 7 Powers: The Foundations of Business Strategy. It’s essentially a manual on how to win as a company, though only a few of the powers outlined are truly applicable to startups. Be aware of what you’re betting on and why that gives you a real advantage.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy the episode, and please subscribe and share this newsletter with others. We have a bunch of other great conversations coming up, and I can’t wait to share them with you soon!