David Hsu is the founder and CEO of Retool, a software development platform that simplifies the process of building and customizing commonly-used software systems for developers. Born and raised in Palo Alto, Hsu's entrepreneurial journey began with the peer-to-peer payments startup, Cashew, which faced challenges and ultimately closed its doors after a stint at Y Combinator.
Undeterred by the setback, Hsu embraced the lessons learned from Cashew's failure and embarked on a new venture—Retool. The platform, launched from his childhood bedroom, offers drag-and-drop, customizable building blocks for developers to streamline the creation of admin panels, support dashboards, customer portals, and more. Hsu's vision for Retool was rooted in addressing the inefficiencies of traditional software development, allowing engineers to focus on core business features.
David Hsu's background includes a unique blend of philosophy and computer science studies at Oxford, where he explored the intersection of emergent intelligence and technology. His early experiences building internal tools for events at Oxford and addressing payment challenges among friends in the U.K. laid the groundwork for his subsequent entrepreneurial endeavors.
Despite initial skepticism and challenges, Hsu's contrarian approach proved successful with Retool. The platform gained traction, attracting customers such as Disney, Airbnb, and Mercedes-Benz. Hsu's commitment to understanding the needs of engineers and maintaining a pragmatic approach to business has contributed to Retool's growth into a platform that powers tens of thousands of companies.
With a focus on sustainability and empathy for customers, Hsu has guided Retool through significant milestones, adapting to changing market demands. His philosophy of staying open-minded and responsive to customer feedback has led to the platform's continuous evolution, including the integration of AI features to assist engineers in building applications faster and enhancing AI-powered workflows for specific industries.
David Hsu's journey from the challenges of Cashew to the success of Retool reflects his resilience, innovative thinking, and commitment to providing practical solutions in the ever-evolving landscape of software development.