Ev Williams On Twitter, Google and Email

Ev Williams is a guy that surely deserves to be heard. He’s the CEO of a company that makes no money, and yet is worth approximately $5 billion. He co-created a product that no one understood or knew they needed until they began using it.

Speaking at a Girls in Tech event at Kicklabs, Williams spoke out on why he thought Twitter had touched a nerve with the community, making comparisons to Google and email.

“Google is very good at ‘I need to solve a problem, I need to buy something, I need an answer. Twitter is more ‘I’m interested in many things, I don’t know what I need to know.’”

He cited the fact that Twitter is recipient-driven is what makes it so compelling. Email is sender-driven, in that the sender is motivated to send as much as possible because it’s free. Because Twitter presents information in an interest-based way, the recipient always wins.

While the model is right, Williams was quick to note that the system needs to be better at filtering, so that users see more stuff they care about while the spam factor remains low.

It’s always fascinating listening to CEOs speak out on their products and the market, and Williams, while not necessarily enigmatic, is certainly passionate and has a unique understanding of the world of tech.