darian-shirazi

Could Owen Van Natta toast a reunion with another ex-Facebooker?

Owen Thomas · 05/07/08 04:00PM

When I ran into former Facebook COO Owen Van Natta at last night's Fast Company party, he was in high spirits, claiming to enjoy life as an unemployed dad. But he's made no secret of his desire to get back into the startup game at some point — this time as CEO, not a dispensable No. 2. Which is why this photo, sent by a tipster, of Van Natta doing shots of Jägermeister with ex-Facebooker Darian Shirazi, got us thinking. Shirazi has a startup, Redux, which raised $3.5 million in funding last month. Redux is working on automated ways of finding friends online, but it's better known for its FlickIM instant-messaging client for the iPhone. It may not be the next Facebook, but one has to think Van Natta could do worse than running Redux, and Shirazi could do worse than landing Van Natta.

You know how to whistle, don't you?

Owen Thomas · 05/06/08 06:00PM

At 21, Darian Shirazi, is just old enough to order a drink at the bar of Junoon, the Palo Alto Indian restaurant where this shot was snapped. But he's already logged two years at Facebook, the sale of one company, and a round of funding from Draper Fisher Jurvetson for Redux, his current startup. That was enough to draw the interest of John Hawksley, an MIT-trained engineer who interned last summer at Google and who, in 8th grade, starred on Dick Clark's Battle of the Child Geniuses. (Hawksley doesn't turn 21 until May 22.) Our tipster spotted the two in mid-job interview, or so he claims. Can you suggest a better caption? Do so in the comments. Yesterday's winner: "How could we all be picked last?" by longtailwagsthevalley.