How the head of Obsidian went from superfan to CEO

Decoder with Nilay Patel

2025/08/18

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In this episode, Casey Newton sits down with Steph Ango, the CEO of Obsidian, a powerful yet minimalist note-taking app that’s gaining traction as a digital 'second brain.' Unlike many traditional software executives, Steph didn’t come from a corporate background—he was once a passionate member of the Obsidian community before stepping into the CEO role. The conversation dives into how Obsidian’s Markdown-based, locally stored system sets it apart in the crowded productivity app space, and how its open, user-driven philosophy continues to shape its evolution.

Steph Ango shares his unique journey from being a community contributor to leading Obsidian as its CEO. He emphasizes the app’s local-first design, plugin-based flexibility, and strong focus on user privacy. Obsidian’s growing popularity, especially among developers and creative thinkers, is attributed to its ability to help users connect ideas and build knowledge networks. The discussion contrasts Obsidian with cloud-centric tools like Notion, highlighting its lean team and community-driven development model. Revenue comes from sync services and premium features, while AI integration remains minimal to protect user data. Looking ahead, Obsidian is exploring new features like Bases to enhance metadata organization and expand its utility for complex projects.