Lei Xu

Co-founder of Workstream, where we build hiring, HR, and payroll software to help the 80 million hourly workers and local business owners in the US. Former YC founder (Emote, S16) and Xoogler (2012–2015). Proud Cal Bear.

I think about how software reshapes work, what small teams can do that large ones can't, and how AI is about to change everything again. Occasionally I write things down. More about me.

Highlights

I Spent the Weekend Actually Using AI Agents The productivity gain is so large it's hard to explain without sounding like you're exaggerating. · Feb 2026
The Small Team Advantage Why the best products are still built by small teams, and why that matters more now than ever. · Aug 2025
Hiring Is Broken for the People Who Need It Most Why the 80 million hourly workers in America deserve better tools, and what building for them taught me. · Mar 2025
Why You Might Build Your Start-up in China over Silicon Valley 🇨🇳🇺🇸 Differences between the tech ecosystem in China vs. the US, from the perspective of a founder that lived in the Bay Area for the last 10 years. · Aug 2017

Highlights

All Writings