A Startup on the Brink
Before Twitter changed the world, Noah Glass was a founder watching his first dream die. His company, Odeo, was a pioneering podcasting platform built out of his apartment. Glass had partnered with Evan Williams, a tech star fresh off selling Blogger
to Google, who invested and became CEO. They hired a small team, including a quiet designer named Jack Dorsey. But in 2005, Apple announced that iTunes would feature its own built-in podcasting platform, effectively crushing Odeo overnight. Facing irrelevance, Williams told the demoralized team to break into groups and brainstorm new ideas—anything to save the company.
The Idea and The Obsession
During this desperate pivot, Jack Dorsey pitched a concept for an SMS-based service to share short status updates with a group. While many were skeptical, the idea immediately captivated Glass. He saw its potential to combat loneliness and create connection. Glass became the project's most passionate champion. According to early employees and investors, his excitement was fanatical, far surpassing that of Williams or Biz Stone at the time. He poured his energy into the project, which he saw as a lifeline while simultaneously navigating a difficult divorce. It was Glass who, while flipping through a physical dictionary, landed on the perfect name: "Twitter," defining it as "the light chirping sound made by certain birds" and "agitation or excitement."
Power, Paranoia, and Betrayal
Williams, initially unconvinced by Twitter's potential, put Glass in charge of the small team developing the prototype. As the project gained momentum, however, a power struggle emerged. Glass, fiercely protective of the idea, grew anxious that Williams wanted him out. He even took steps to legally separate Twitter from Odeo to secure its future and his role as its leader. He confided his fears in Dorsey, whom he considered a friend and collaborator. What Glass didn't know was that Dorsey was privately maneuvering against him. Dorsey went to Williams with an ultimatum: fire Glass, or he would quit.
Erased from the Story
The decision came swiftly. In July 2006, just months after the first-ever tweet was sent, Williams fired Glass. The ousting shocked many on the team who felt that Twitter wouldn't exist without Glass's relentless drive. He was left with a small amount of cash and stock, a fraction of the fortunes that would later be made. In the aftermath, the official founding story was rewritten. In interviews, Dorsey began omitting Glass's contributions, including his role in naming the platform. Evan Williams later bought back all the Odeo shares from investors, telling them the company was going nowhere while privately seeing value in the nascent Twitter project. Noah Glass, the man once described as the "spiritual leader" of the company, was effectively scrubbed from its history.
