Karri Saarinen

Karri Saarinen’s site is a personal writing space from the co-founder and CEO of Linear. It hosts short essays on software craft, product building, and design philosophy, with a minimal layout that puts the text first. There is no product marketing or documentation here; the focus is on the author’s own observations about how good software gets made.

The central thread across the posts is that products carry the perspective of the people behind them. Saarinen contrasts the industry’s factory-style view of software, where requirements go in and features come out, with the idea that two teams can serve the same customers with the same technology and still produce very different results. He points to founder background and company DNA as forces that shape those outcomes.

A recurring theme is Linear’s stated preference for intuition over process or data. Saarinen clarifies that this does not mean deciding on personal whim; intuition, in his framing, develops through experience, customer conversations, mistakes, and learning what to pay attention to. Readers interested in how a well-regarded software company thinks about craft will find the argument here.

The site suits founders, product managers, and designers who enjoy reflective essays rather than how-to guides. Posts are short and can be read in one sitting, and an RSS feed is available for following new writing. It is best approached as a source of perspective and discussion rather than a reference manual, since the pieces