The Cove team, a Sequioa-backed startup working on an AI-based collaboration board, has joined Microsoft, according to an email sent to customers announcing Cove’s end of service.
Cove was founded in late 2023 by Stephen Chau, Andy Szybalski, and Mike Chu, who worked on Google Maps features like Street View. The startup raised $6 million in a seed round in 2024 from Sequoia Capital, Elad Gil, Homebrew, Adverb, Scott Belsky, and Lenny Rachitsky.
The tool was an infinite whiteboard that allowed users to use AI to create different blocks for tasks such as travel planning. The founders felt that the chat interface for AI was not editable and that Canvas offered more flexibility when navigating through prompts.
Cove also allowed users to create new cards, tables, and lists by using the built-in browser, PDFs, and images to provide more context to the AI.
The startup competed with Miro, TLDraw, and Kosmik.
In an email to customers, the company said the entire Cove team is joining Microsoft and that the product will be shut down on April 1 and all user data will be deleted. Cove said it has refunded all March subscription fees and is providing a data export process.
“When we launched Cove, we set out to reimagine how people collaborate with AI. As our model capabilities accelerate, our conviction in that mission has only grown stronger. We’re excited to continue this work at Microsoft AI, where we will have the opportunity to pursue an even larger vision,” the company said in a blog post on its site.
The company also said, “The idea behind Cove will continue within Microsoft.” In particular, Microsoft added Co-Pilot to its own collaboration product, Whiteboard, in 2023.
TechCrunch reached out to Microsoft to understand how it plans to integrate Cove’s technology into its ecosystem, but did not immediately hear back.
