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Hey, I’m Kushagra.

Linear isn’t just another startup—it’s changing how teams build.

They’ve been profitable from day one, spent just $35K on ads, and let the product do the talking.

Let’s discuss this in this issue.

1. Here’s Why

Been wantin’ to tell this story for a minute. Linear’s not just the most hyped startup y’all keep askin’ for—they’re changin’ the game.

They’re buildin’ the tool that helps teams build their own. And they do it way differently:

🚀 No PMs—just one head of product. Devs + design squad handle the rest.
🚀 No fixed teams. Crews pull up for a project, then dip.
🚀 No goal metrics. Just one big North Star.
🚀 No A/B tests. They trust vibes & taste.
🚀 Job trials? Paid. You test the actual work for 1-5 days.
🚀 Fully remote. Always has been.

Oh, and get this: They got more cash than they raised, been prof since day one, and spent just $35K on ads—ever. Only two peeps ever left.

Their CEO? A lowkey designer who barely does the press.

So, how do they plan?

📌 Day one: Three founders. Weekly plans. Ship fast. Fix blockers. Listen to beta users.
📌 Now: 50 peeps. One roadmap. One squad. The whole team owns the product.
📌 How? The founders set the 12-month vibe, and the rest of the team drops ideas in FigJam.

How Linear Plans Moves

Once they lock in the start, they map the next 6 months.

Say the vibe is “big biz needs”—they don’t do wild ranking systems or votes.

Nah, they just talk to users and use the product.

When you’re in it daily, what matters is clear. Then, it’s just pickin’ what to drop first.

📌 Q2 & Q3 Roadmap
🔹 Two main lanes: Planning/Roadmapping & Issue Discovery.
🔹 Two flex lanes: High-priority user asks & “keep-the-lights-on” fixes.

They ship new stuff + buff old stuff. They go deep for two quarters, sketch out the next half, and stack a fat backlog to pull from.

How We Stack Projects

They don’t just drop stuff randomly. They pick the best way to roll out—X before Y if it makes sense.

Like, if two things vibe together, they stack ‘em in that order. Or if one dev’s the GOAT for a job but can’t do both at once, they plan for that.

Right people, right tasks.

Match skills to work. If a drop needs front-end work, they tap our best FE devs.

📌 How it starts: Rough docs or lists. Just ideas.
📌 Then: The project team writes the full spec.

Lock It In & Ship

Once the spec’s done, we drop it in Linear. That’s our home base for Planning & Roadmapping—where the squad tracks the grind and gets things built.

2. How Many PMs?

Just one—Nan Yu. Hired when we hit 25 peeps. He’s Head of Product, but PM work? That’s a squad thing. They don’t stack PMs per team.

They brought Nan in to guide the whole product, not micromanage. The crew thinks about product moves together, not just PMs.

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3. Y’all Use OKRs?

Nah. They keep goals mad simple—like “Be the go-to tool for startups” or “Hit xxx companies.” No need to overcook it.

These themes set the vibe, keep the team locked in, and let ‘em cook their way.

No Metrics, Just Vibes

They don’t chase numbers for product goals—just one North Star for the whole squad. B2B tools take time to stick, so hard metrics? Nah. What matters is: Are they making life easier for users? If yes, they’re on track.

📊 Data? They peek, not chase. No A/B tests. No engagement quotas. They trust taste & opinions first. They beta test, tweak, and when it feels right, we ship.

4. How Y’all Set Up Teams?

No silos. Only mobile & infra teams are locked in—everything else moves based on needs. No “roadmaps team” or “cycles team” ‘cause that limits big-picture thinking.

Split by region (U.S. & EU). Too many time zones = chaos, so teams run by region.

Teams form & flex. A project gets a lead (could be an engineer, designer, etc.—but never a PM), plus 1 designer + 2 engineers. When they’re done? They bounce to the next thing.

Themes > org charts. We plan around users & features, not rigid team setups.

5. How Y’all Review Stuff?

Own your work. When a team calls the shots, better stuff happens.

Founders sponsor projects. Me, Jori, Tuomas, or Nan hop into meetings, but no top-down nonsense.

No stiff reviews. We keep it loose & fast. Drop early designs in Slack, get async feedback, tweak, and ship.

Feature flags = no excuses. They test new stuff in days, not months. Push it, feel it, fix it, GO.

Beta Gang: Linear Origins

They have a beta crew called Linear Origins. They get early access, drop hot takes, and help us fine-tune new drops. Some get in months early, some just days before launch.

👀 Big drop? They hop on calls, walk ‘em through, flip the switch if they’re down, and grab real-time feedback. But not everything needs beta—speed wins. They ship fast, and test what matters.

6. Who Reports Where?

🛠 Product, eng, & design = one squad. No silos. They talk product as a whole, not split teams.

👨‍💻 Eng reports up:

• Tuomas → Infra + EU eng

• Jori → U.S. eng

• Me? I handle product & design.

Been this way since day 1.

7. What’s the Main Tool?

Bruh, Linear. Obviously.

✅ Bug tracking = Triage. It’s like a DM inbox for your squad.
✅ Sales, support, even me? They all log issues there.
✅ “Goalie” rotation: Every week, one eng plays goalie—fixes bugs, help support, and routes requests like a boss.

Most tasks drop inside projects. Eng & design make their own to-dos and knock ‘em out as they go.

📝 Weekly check-ins? Done with Project Updates.
📢 Auto-posts to Slack in #product-updates, so everyone stays in the loop.

What I found amazing this week

Game changer? Elecom unveils the world’s first sodium-ion power bank.🔋

This track gave me a serious boost—check out ‘South Carolina’ by Tennis🎵

A high schooler is making $20M a year—what are we missing? 💰