You may not recognize David Lieb’s name, but he’s the mastermind behind Google Photos, a service now used by over a billion people. Lieb recently shared the unexpected journey of bringing this game-changing platform to life—against all odds.
The beginning. Lieb’s story began with Bump, an app that let users transfer contacts and photos by literally “bumping” their phones together or with a PC. The app attracted 150 million users and eventually caught Google’s attention, leading to its acquisition. Despite its popularity, Bump was shut down due to limited usage and the absence of a viable monetization strategy.
From Flock to Photoroll. Following Bump’s closure, Lieb began working on Flock, a photo-sharing app for close contacts. Although the project failed to gain traction, YC Combinator co-founder Paul Graham encouraged Lieb to think bigger—perhaps as a replacement for iOS and Android’s limited photo managers. Lieb took the advice to heart and created Photoroll, a precursor to Google Photos, but it existed only on his personal device.
Google’s obsession with Google+. When Google acquired Bump, Lieb envisioned Photoroll evolving into a significant project. However, Google’s internal priorities shifted after a reorganization, redirecting resources to Google+, its attempt to compete with Facebook. This left Lieb’s vision sidelined, as management showed little interest in developing a standalone photo management service.
Persistence against the odds. Undeterred, Lieb continued refining his idea. By day, he worked on other projects at Google. By night, he developed his photo management concept. Despite being twice “fired” from his teams for pursuing the idea, Lieb gained support from other engineers who believed in his vision.
Breakthrough and launch. Eventually, Lieb’s persistence caught the attention of Google’s leadership. With their approval, over 100 engineers were assigned to the project, which rapidly progressed thanks to Google’s vast resources. Remarkably, the initial development of Google Photos was completed in just nine months.
In 2015, Google Photos debuted at Google I/O, offering free, unlimited photo storage—a feature that quickly made it a hit. By 2019, the service had surpassed one billion users. Although the platform later ended its free storage option, it remains an indispensable and profitable tool for Google.
Life after Google. After his success, Lieb faced a personal challenge: a leukemia diagnosis. Thankfully, treatment was successful, and he has since dedicated himself to mentoring entrepreneurs at YC Combinator, helping them avoid the pitfalls he encountered in his journey.
Image | Rubaitul Azad (Unsplash)
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