Evernote Corporation
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Founder | Stepan Pachikov |
| Headquarters | Redwood City, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide (including offices in Austin, Texas; San Diego; Bothell, Washington; India; Switzerland; Chile; Japan) |
Key people | Francesco Patarnello (CEO) |
| Products | Evernote (productivity application) |
Number of employees | ~400 (2023) |
| Parent | Bending Spoons |
Evernote Corporation is a privately owned enterprise based in Redwood City, California that specializes in developing the productivity application Evernote. Since January 2023, Francesco Patarnello has served as CEO, following the company's acquisition by Bending Spoons. Evernote operates domestic offices in Austin, Texas, San Diego, and Bothell, Washington, as well as international branches in India, Switzerland, Chile, and Japan. As of February 2023, the workforce numbered close to 400 employees.
History
Established in 2004 by Russian–American entrepreneur Stepan Pachikov, Evernote Corporation originally offered handwriting recognition software called ritePen alongside the EverNote note-taking app for Windows desktop, tablet, and handheld devices. Under the leadership of CEO Phil Libin, the company transitioned its focus toward web and mobile platforms, releasing Evernote 3.0 in 2008 with support for multiple platforms including Apple Mac. The Evernote Web service launched an open beta in June 2008 and had grown to 11 million users by July 2011.
Evernote completed several major funding rounds: $20 million in October 2010 led by DoCoMo Capital; $50 million led by Sequoia Capital and Morgenthaler Ventures; $70 million from Meritech Capital and CBC Capital; and $85 million raised in November 2012 with leadership from AGC Equity Partners/m8 Capital and Valiant Capital Partners. An additional $20 million was secured from Nikkei, Inc. in November 2014.
In May 2013, Evernote entered the Chinese market through Yinxiang Biji Business, focusing on enterprise clients. The company experienced leadership changes including Linda Kozlowski’s short stint as COO in 2015. In July 2015, Libin resigned as CEO, succeeded by Chris O'Neill, a former Google Glass executive, while Libin continued as Executive Chairman. That year also saw Evernote reduce its workforce by 18% and close three international offices as part of a restructuring effort.
Libin left his position as executive chairman in September 2016. By February 2017, CEO O'Neill declared that Evernote had achieved positive cash flow. In August 2018, several senior executives departed: CTO Anirban Kundu, CFO Vincent Toolan, CPO Erik Wrobel, and head of HR Michelle Wagner. A subsequent layoff in September 2018 reduced staff by approximately 15% to enhance operational efficiency and concentrate on product development.
Ian Small took over as CEO from O'Neill in October 2018. In January 2023, Italian mobile application developer Bending Spoons acquired Evernote and appointed Francesco Patarnello as CEO. Shortly after the acquisition, Bending Spoons implemented layoffs affecting 129 employees and announced forthcoming price adjustments along with new feature rollouts scheduled for April 2023.
By July 2023, Evernote shifted its main operations from the United States to Europe to align with Bending Spoons’ headquarters location and terminated all remaining US-based staff.