2006-07: My first year in tech turned out to be the year that tech changed forever
A retrospective of the biggest tech headlines from the summer of ‘06 through the summer of ‘07. Incredible innovations were afoot at Facebook, Apple, Netflix, Google and throughout Silicon Valley.
On Tuesday, September 5th, 2006, I entered a discreet door on Mission Street in San Francisco, walked up a single flight of stairs, and entered Yelp’s small office. It was my first day of work. There were 15 people spread out across the second floor of 650 Mission Street at New Montgomery.
My manager, Bob, introduced me to Geoff and Jeremy, and I gave Jeremy’s dog, Darwin, a quick pat. I popped into the kitchen, poured a cup of coffee into an engineer’s tea mug, had an awkward conversation at my desk with said engineer, returned from the kitchen with a fresh cup of coffee in a new mug, and then sat down at my desk and got to work.
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Fourteen years have passed. I now live in Austin, married, with a young son and a new home in a quiet neighborhood. Each day, I hear the reports from out west. Things sound grim. There is a lot of talk about leaving. There is a lot of grieving.
Of course, San Francisco isn’t the same place it was 15 years ago, not because of COVID and not because of the fires. But because that is the way of the world. It is always changing.
As for me, all the bad news doesn’t bring about grief, instead I feel gratitude.
I am grateful to have met my wife and to have found a career that I enjoy. Looking back, I am astonished to have lived in the City during such an incredible period (‘06-‘19), when so much was happening.
My first year in tech, July 2006-07, changed me forever, and it’s not an exaggeration to say it changed tech forever. So I thought it would be fun to look back at my first year in San Francisco, through the lens of that year’s tech headlines..
It was an absolute joy to go back and read the press’ take on what was happening— as it happened— in the early days of Facebook, Twitter, Y Combinator and many more. Below you will find 25 stories linked from Tech Crunch, VentureBeat, GigaOm, Wired etc., covering the highlights of this incredible year. If you think the stories are good, be sure to read the comments.
July 2006
Twttr (as it was known at the time) launches to the public after spinning out of Evan Williams’ podcasting startup Odeo.
Odeo Releases Twttr - Tech Crunch, July 15, 2006 archived post with comments
Silicon Valley’s All Twttr - GigaOm, July 15, 2006
Tesla debuts a prototype of its first vehicle, the Tesla Roadster, at a private event in Santa Monica.
Tesla Roadster unveiling in Santa Monica - AutoBlog, July 20, 2006
Batteries Included - Wired, August 1, 2006
The Secret Tesla Motors Master Plan (just between you and me) - Tesla Blog, August 2, 2006
August 2006
Web 2.0’s seminal Business Week cover article "Valley Boys” by Sarah Lacey is published. It features “Silicon Valley’s new brat pack” including Kevin Rose (Digg), Russ and Jeremy (Yelp), Max Levchin (Slide) and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook).
Valley Boys ($) - Business Week, August 13, 2006
What Happened To Everyone Featured In This Iconic 2006 BusinessWeek Story? - Business Insider, April 2012
September 2006
Facebook opens up its product to the public (expanding beyond colleges and organizations). Earlier in the month Facebook faced an angry backlash, after sharing their user’s actions (without permission) on the News Feed.
Facebook to Allow Open Registrations - Tech Crunch, September 11, 2006 archived post with comments
Inside the Backlash Against Facebook -Time, September 6, 2006
October 2006
Reddit is acquired by Condé Nast, drawing attention to a new type of investment firm, Y Combinator.
Condé Nast/Wired Acquires Reddit - Tech Crunch, October 31, 2006
An interview with investor Paul Graham of Y Combinator - Tech Crunch, September 2, 2006
Youtube is acquired by Google for $1.5 Billion, less than two years after launch. Its current valuation is pegged north of $160 Billion.
YouTube’s Magic Number - $1.5 Billion - Tech Crunch, September 21, 2006 (pre-acquisition)
Will GoogleTube be announced this week? - Tech Crunch, October 9, 2006
Google Has Acquired Youtube - Tech Crunch, October 9, 2006
They did it! Youtube bought by Google - VentureBeat, October 9, 2006
The infamous video of Youtube’s founders announcing the acquisition.
November 2006
Yahoo begins to show public signs of weakness with the release of the Garlinghouse memo, calling for major changes. CEO Terry Semel will step down 6 months later, with founder Jerry Yang filling his shoes… and the rest is history.
Yahoo’s Brad Garlinghouse Makes His Power Move - Tech Crunch, November 18, 2006
Yahoo’s Terry Semel Steps Down As CEO - CBS, June 18, 2007
January 2007
Netflix (until then known for its DVD by mail service), launches online streaming. Netflix’s stock will grow by 200X in the next 14 years.
Netflix, I Was Just Kidding About Breaking Up With You - Tech Crunch, January 16, 2007 archived post with comments
Netflix To Stream Live Movies For Free - Forbes
NETFLIX OFFERS SUBSCRIBERS THE OPTION OF INSTANTLY WATCHING MOVIES ON THEIR PCs - Netflix Announcement, January 16, 2007
March 2007
Justin Kan straps a computer to his back and begins live streaming his day to day life with the launch of Justin. tv. It would later pivot and become Twitch, eventually selling to Amazon seven years later for $1 Billion. (side note: for me this was my “only in SF” moment, everyone was talking about in SF, no one knew about it in NY)
Kiko Guys Back As Reality TV Stars - Tech Crunch, March 19, 2007
Justin.TV To Film Itself Filming Itself - Tech Crunch, July 25, 2007
The Many Pivots of Justin.tv - Fast Company, June 15, 2012
Twitter takes off at SXSW, exploding in popularity and making the Facebook folks very nervous.
Twitter is Ruling SXSW - Wired, March 9, 2007
SXSW Showdown: Dodgeball Vs. Twitter - Tech Crunch, March 19, 2007
June 2007
Apple releases the iPhone. It has since sold over 2 billion units.
iPhone release brings out the crowds - Macworld, June 29, 2007
Steve Jobs presents the iPhone in January 2007.
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Last but not least. Here are some influential blog posts from the same time period
How to be Silicon Valley - by Paul Graham May 2006
Why to not not start a startup - by Paul Graham March 2007
The only thing that matters - by Marc Andreessen June 2007
Where to go and why (Career Planning) - by Marc Andreessen October 2007