Microsoft hires the team of Sequoia-backed AI collaboration platform, Cove

Microsoft has made a strategic talent acquisition by hiring the entire team behind Cove, a promising AI collaboration startup backed by Sequoia Capital. Founded in late 2023 by former Google Maps engineers Stephen Chau, Andy Szybalski, and Mike Chu, Cove had developed an infinite whiteboard platform where users could leverage AI to generate various content blocks—like cards, tables, and lists—for tasks such as trip planning. The startup, which raised $6 million in a 2024 seed round from notable investors including Sequoia, Elad Gil, and Lenny Rachitsky, distinguished itself by moving beyond chat-based AI interfaces to a more flexible, editable canvas. This approach allowed users to incorporate web browsers, PDFs, and images for richer context, competing with tools like Miro and TLDraw.

Cove is now shutting down its service as of April 1, with all user data scheduled for deletion and subscriptions refunded. In a blog post, the founders stated their mission to reimagine AI collaboration will continue at Microsoft AI, pursuing an 'even bigger vision.' While Microsoft has not detailed specific integration plans, the acquisition signals a clear intent to bolster its own AI-powered collaboration suite. Microsoft added Copilot to its Whiteboard application in 2023, and Cove's technology and team expertise in contextual, canvas-based AI interaction could significantly enhance these existing products, potentially creating a more powerful and intuitive environment for enterprise and creative workflows.