Fireflies AI Startup Founders Posed as AI System

Fireflies.ai used people instead of AI for note-taking.

The startup Fireflies.ai used two real people instead of the promised AI bot for note-taking. They joined calls, listened, took notes by hand, and sent them within 10 minutes, as co-founder Sam Udotong revealed on LinkedIn.

The firm is now valued at $1 billion, he emphasized.

The startup’s technical director recounted the story of six failed attempts and “months of surviving on pizza.”

The company’s initial idea was to create a “crypto food delivery service.” The AI for note-taking became the “last hope.”

“We told our clients there was an ‘AI that would join the meeting.’ In reality, it was just me and my co-founder, who joined, sat there silently, and took notes by hand,” Udotong explained.

After more than 100 conferences, the co-founders of Fireflies “saved enough money to rent a tiny living room in San Francisco for $750 a month.” In 2017, they decided to stop and automate the processes.

Some users expressed skepticism about this action.

“Attending someone’s meeting without an invitation is a breach of privacy. Clients wanted a bot, not an outsider. This undermines trust and could have legal consequences. Another issue is that people will now distrust and question the safety and privacy of their meetings,” noted one commentator.

In April 2025, a similar situation occurred. Albert Saniger, founder and former CEO of the AI shopping automation app Nate, who promised a “universal” checkout experience, was accused of deceiving investors.

He spoke of supposed AI innovations and secretly hired staff to create the illusion of technological automation.

Back in 2022, Nate was suspected of using workers from the Philippines for manual transaction processing.