Our Inspiration
We all have great ideas, but sharing them effectively can be a struggle. At Osmo, an AI gaming company Jerome and I founded almost a decade ago, we delighted millions of kids by making learning fun. Yet, as leaders, we often found ourselves drowning in documents, 100-slide decks, and long research papers. Occasionally, we’d come across a rare visual that truly captured the essence of an idea, sparking those “aha” moments of clarity. We realized that visuals are powerful communication tools, yet they are rarely used.
We started wondering why so few people use visuals when they’re such powerful tools for communication. Our theory is that, from an early age, we’re trained to rely on writing. Text editors make it easy for everyone to collaborate and share their thoughts. However, creating visuals is time-consuming and requires skills many of us don’t have. As a result, most people stick to writing, even though visuals can provide a clearer, more impactful perspective of an idea. This is especially true in professional settings where effective communication is very important.
Journey to the Public Beta
Just as the iPhone made it easy for anyone to take high-quality images, Napkin AI’s mission is to make visual communication easy and accessible to everyone. We understand it’s a really hard problem, and we have just started, but we are excited about the progress we’ve made so far. We believe we can achieve our mission by focusing on two core principles: deeply understanding text content and generating a wide range of relevant and high-quality visuals.
This led us to our first version: an AI sketching tool to make simple diagrams with your mouse. However, we quickly discovered that even with the best AI helping in the background, users don’t want to sketch live with a mouse.
In our second version, we introduced a database of visual frameworks like Venn diagrams and pie charts. Users could focus on finding a visual to use that matched their ideas, instead of sketching. But we discovered that many people don’t know which visuals to use or how to use them effectively, even if they have access to them.
Finally, the introduction of Large Language Models (LLMs) provided the perfect complement to our efforts. We focused on transforming text into visuals automatically, meeting users where they are most comfortable - writing text. This marked the birth of the Napkin AI you see today.
Looking Ahead
Our journey began with the desire to leverage AI to make communication clearer and more effective. At Osmo, we developed AI for interactive learning experiences. We realized a similar approach could help everyone create effective visuals for sharing their ideas.
We are immensely grateful to our investors, Accel and CRV, whose support will help elevate Napkin to new heights. Accel has been with Jerome and me since our days at Osmo, and CRV has been hugely supportive of bringing magic to the productivity space. Together, we aim to empower anyone to explain their ideas visually.
Summary
Napkin AI helps transform your business communication by turning text into engaging, clear visuals. This makes your ideas easier to understand and more impactful. With the support of Accel and CRV, we’re excited to bring this tool to professionals everywhere.
Join us
If you’re someone who wants to communicate effectively, join our beta at www.napkin.ai. We would love to hear your thoughts on our current version at [email protected]. Also, connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter to stay updated with our latest developments.
Written by Pramod Sharma
Co-founder and CEO of Napkin AI