# tldraw: history

> the company, sourced and dated — the drawing-app experiments, the sponsorware launch, the viral fortnight, and the license-key era.

## the drawing-app experiments (2020–2021)

a painter turned design engineer ships taste-driven canvas libraries — perfect-arrows, perfect-freehand, globs.design — then starts 'a tiny little drawing app' as sponsorware and opens it to everyone in november 2021.

- 2020 — the perfect-* libraries: steve ruiz's pre-tldraw run: state-designer, a statecharts library with its own visual ide, whose arrow-routing work spawns perfect-arrows (~2.8k stars, launched via july 2020 tweet threads); perfect-freehand, the pressure-sensitive ink library later adopted by excalidraw — 'christopher had me implement in excalidraw' — plus perfect-cursors, gotcha, and a telestrator experiment. (confirmed; sources: [statecharts state management + visual ide](https://github.com/steveruizok/state-designer), [profile: founder & ceo, london](https://github.com/steveruizok), [accidental ai canvas](https://www.latent.space/p/tldraw), [worlds fair talk](https://ai.engineer/talks/1C2TdPkj6aQ-tldraw-computer), [3 years and $5m building the perfect canvas](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/steve-ruiz-is-the-canvas-the-future-for-ai/id1686414242?i=1000739130415))
- 2021-03-12 — globs.design: the globs.design repo is created — a globs-based vector editor. ruiz: 'tldraw mostly grew out of another project of mine (globs.design).' (confirmed; sources: [globs-based vector editor](https://github.com/steveruizok/globs), [name origin (tl](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33818822))
- 2021-05-09 — the repo is created: the tldraw/tldraw repo is created — 'a tiny little drawing app.' the site is sponsorware: gated to github sponsors, reportedly ~211 sponsors at ~$1,700/mo when it opens. (confirmed; sources: [monorepo metadata, ~50k stars, contributor list, license=other, trusted-by list](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw), [launch hn thread](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29261733))
- 2021-07 — full-time, adobe declined: ruiz quits play to work on tldraw full-time, funded by contracting savings. adobe had offered him a job after his spring-2021 open-source work drew inbound from 'any infinite canvas related creative product' — he asked to defer six months, then turned adobe down entirely. 'he turned down adobe on a friday.' (reported; sources: [accidental ai canvas](https://www.latent.space/p/tldraw), [adobe turndown on a friday](https://www.uxtools.co/episodes/he-turned-down-adobe-then-he-shelved-his-own-product), [backstory: art school → broke at 30 → design → code](https://museapp.com/podcast/59-infinite-canvases/))
- 2021-10-13 — the sponsorware post: the first hacker news post documents the sponsorware state: tldraw.com accessible only to github sponsors. 3 points. (confirmed; sources: [first hn post of tldraw as sponsorware (3 pts)](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28854949), [sponsor page](https://github.com/sponsors/steveruizok))
- 2021-11-18 — the public launch: opened to everyone mid-november; hits the hn front page — 471 points, 111 comments. mit licensed; multiplayer on a pre-release liveblocks build; a vs code extension already shipped; the monorepo carries @tldraw/core, @tldraw/tldraw, @tldraw/vec, @tldraw/intersect, and an electron app. the name is a play on tl;dr — 'tl;dr aw.' (confirmed; sources: [launch hn thread](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29261733), [released ~two weeks ago](https://www.bram.us/2021/11/29/tldraw-a-tiny-little-drawing-app/), [nov 2021 monorepo snapshot: packages/tldraw, core, apps/www, vscode, electron](https://archive.org/details/github.com-tldraw-tldraw_-_2021-11-21_12-42-41), [name origin (tl](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33818822))

## the company forms (2022–2023)

the project becomes a company: founded february 2022, first hires, a $2.7m lux-led seed announced with the beta, and the v2 rewrite that replaces the original app.

- 2022-02 — tldraw incorporated: the company is founded — 'founder — feb 2022' per linkedin; the company page says 'founded by steve ruiz in 2022.' later texts name both tldraw gb ltd and tldraw, inc. (confirmed; sources: [founder feb 2022–](https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-ruiz-61a150239), [full current team roster + roles](https://tldraw.dev/company), [apr 4 2023 switchover plan](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/tldraws-upcoming-re-launch), [license text, tldraw, inc](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/blob/4d1e3d97431da79e4e0f164daa07799bd704a30e/LICENSE.md))
- 2022-06 — the first senior engineer: david sheldrick joins as the first senior engineer — ex-artsy and pulley, author of patch-package; he will co-create signia and lead much of the sync/store engine work. (reported; sources: [sheldrick at tldraw jun 2022–](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ds300), [tldraw.dev](https://tldraw.dev/blog/announcing-tldraws-seed-round))
- 2022-09 — the early bench: the early bench forms: jamie blair joins as frontend dev in september; lu wilson (todepond, ex-ink & switch, sandspiel) joins in november. work on the v2 rewrite is already underway. (reported; sources: [blair frontend dev sep 2022–jun 2023](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-blair-97039b111), [lu: previously tldraw, now prototyping at wikipedia](https://www.todepond.com/), [departure post](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/todepond_im-leaving-tldraw-to-enter-the-world-of-activity-7407853597281058817-P7r0))
- 2022-11-30 — the $2.7m seed: the 'new tldraw' public beta opens at beta.tldraw.com — and a $2.7m seed is announced, led by lux capital with amplify partners and angels including guillermo rauch, tom preston-werner, soleio, adam wiggins (muse), cristóbal valenzuela, johannes schickling, david khourshid, brian lovin. the named team: sheldrick, blair, wilson, dytrych, shaikh, bezenšek, pai. (confirmed; sources: [tldraw.dev](https://tldraw.dev/blog/announcing-tldraws-seed-round), [substack mirror of seed post](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/tiny-little-seed-round), [origins quote, $2](https://techcrunch.com/2022/12/16/tldraw-offers-a-collaborative-whiteboard-without-any-login/))
- 2022-12-16 — the techcrunch profile: techcrunch profiles the company: five full-time employees, no revenue beyond github sponsors, multiplayer rooms with no login — framed against figjam inside the pending adobe–figma deal, miro, and apple's week-old freeform. (confirmed; sources: [origins quote, $2](https://techcrunch.com/2022/12/16/tldraw-offers-a-collaborative-whiteboard-without-any-login/))
- 2023-03-02 — signia: signia — the v2 rewrite's reactive state library — is released standalone under mit, co-authored by ruiz and sheldrick. (confirmed; sources: [signia reactive state library, mit, ruiz+sheldrick](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/introducing-signia))
- 2023-04-04 — the v2 relaunch: the rewrite leaves beta and replaces the app at tldraw.com, per the march 20 re-launch notice. v1 is preserved at old.tldraw.com 'until the end of time,' later moved to the tldraw/tldraw-v1 repo under mit. (confirmed; sources: [apr 4 2023 switchover plan](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/tldraws-upcoming-re-launch), [original 2021-2022 version, released under mit](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw-v1), [v2 exits beta apr 4 2023](https://tldraw.dev/blog/tldraws-upcoming-relaunch))
- 2023-08 — taha hassan joins: taha hassan joins as software developer — make real, the 'carry on' canvas autocomplete, accessibility work — through ~november 2024. (reported; sources: [hassan aug 2023–nov 2024](https://www.linkedin.com/in/taha--hassan))

## the viral fortnight (2023)

five weeks that define the company: gpt-4v launches, make real goes viral, a $2m insider extension closes, draw fast follows — then the license changes.

- 2023-11-06 — gpt-4v arrives: openai devday announces gpt-4v — the vision-capable model that makes a sketch-to-code demo legible. (confirmed; sources: [full make real chronology](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/make-real-the-story-so-far))
- 2023-11-08 — draw-a-ui: figma engineer sawyer hood ships draw-a-ui — a tldraw <tldraw/> component wired to gpt-4v that turns a sketch into working html. the show hn thread is modest (43 points); the real distribution is x, and the repo passes 10k stars in two weeks. (confirmed; sources: [sawyer hoods show hn — 43 pts, 5 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38191463), [original draw-a-ui repo, ~13](https://github.com/SawyerHood/draw-a-ui), [full make real chronology](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/make-real-the-story-so-far))
- 2023-11-15 — make real: tldraw forks hood's repo 'the next morning' and ships makereal.tldraw.com (plus drawmyui.com) wednesday night — bringing your own openai key after the rate limits hit. the generated site goes back on the canvas in an iframe, possible because tldraw's canvas is dom, not a canvas element. 'our tldraw + gpt-4v experiment broke the internet a little.' (confirmed; sources: [full make real chronology](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/make-real-the-story-so-far), [willison on draw-a-ui/make real mechanics](https://simonwillison.net/2023/Nov/16/tldrawdraw-a-ui/), [fork of draw-a-ui](https://github.com/tldraw/make-real), [benj edwards, ars technica — flagship make real coverage](https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/11/ai-powered-drawing-app-stuns-developers-by-turning-sketches-into-functional-games/))
- 2023-11-17 — the starter template: the make-real-starter template ships on friday — the viral demo packaged as an sdk starting point. (confirmed; sources: [full make real chronology](https://tldraw.substack.com/p/make-real-the-story-so-far))
- 2023-11-22 — the $2m extension: a $2m insider extension is announced — amplify, lux, and preston-werner ventures — closed 'a week before going viral.' the post lists a london office and a team of ruiz, sheldrick, wilson, bezenšek, dytrych, hassan. (confirmed; sources: [$2m insider extension (amplify, lux, preston-werner ventures)](https://tldraw.dev/blog/tldraw-raised-another-2m), [funding table corroborating nov 22 2023 $2m round date](https://startupintros.com/orgs/tldraw), [$2m + make real recap](https://tldraw.dev/blog/whats-new-in-tldraw-december-2023))
- 2023-11-27 — draw fast: draw fast — a real-time sketch-to-image demo on fal.ai, ~120ms inference — hits #2 product of the day on product hunt with 418 upvotes. the demo is taken down january 14, 2024. (confirmed; sources: [github](https://github.com/tldraw/draw-fast), [product hunt: #2 of the day, 418 upvotes](https://webmail.hunted.space/product/draw-fast), [80 level on draw fast](https://80.lv/articles/a-new-service-that-turns-the-how-to-draw-an-owl-meme-into-reality), [shutdown notice date](https://drawfast.tldraw.com/))
- 2023-12-20 — the license change: the license changes: pr #2167 (december 19) swaps the sdk to a bespoke 'tldraw license' adapted from the scratch license, enabling dual-licensing revenue; sdk v2.0.0-beta.1 ships with it december 20. v1 stays mit 'forever'; prior 2.x pre-releases stay apache-2.0. ruiz's line — 'open source is a spectrum' — becomes the flashpoint. (confirmed; sources: [license-change pr](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/pull/2167), [bespoke license w/ sdk 2](https://tldraw.dev/blog/license-update-for-the-tldraw-sdk), [first 2](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/releases/tag/v2.0.0-beta.1))

## the sdk business (2024–2025)

the sdk becomes the business: v2 stable, the watermark compromise, sync, tldraw computer with google deepmind, and a $10m series a on ~$1m of license revenue.

- 2024-02-29 — sdk 2.0 stable: tldraw sdk v2.0.0 stable — 'initial public release… ready for production.' (confirmed; sources: [sdk 2](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/releases/tag/v2.0.0))
- 2024 — a head of engineering: mime čuvalo joins as head of engineering — ex-youtube, dropbox, google; the firessh author. (reported; sources: [čuvalo head of engineering 2024–present](https://www.nightlight.rocks/mime/about/resume))
- 2024 — carry on and teach: the agent experiments continue off-product: 'carry on' canvas autocomplete (lu wilson on claude haiku, taha hassan on a local llama3 8b) and 'teach' — a summer project where an agent manipulates the canvas, built by ruiz, wilson, and engineer-in-residence orion reed. (reported; sources: [hassan aug 2023–nov 2024](https://www.linkedin.com/in/taha--hassan), [agents on the canvas](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpVs1U7pMA0), [reed: engineer-in-residence at tldraw, block science](https://blog.vaporware.network/podcasts/episode-5-orion-reed/))
- 2024-08-05 — tldraw sync: tldraw sync is announced — a self-hosted sync product, the sdk's first add-on module, included with the tldraw license; a cloudflare template; a demo server that wipes data after 24h. the company claims 400k+ users and 200k shared projects on tldraw.com (self-reported). (confirmed; sources: [tldraw sync launch](https://tldraw.dev/blog/announcing-tldraw-sync), [sync architecture: rooms, tlsocketroom, cloudflare template, demo server](https://tldraw.dev/docs/sync))
- 2024-09-13 — the watermark compromise: sdk v3.0.0 ships the watermark model: commercial use permitted with a 'made with tldraw' watermark; a business license removes it — 'meant to make the sdk more accessible to small teams and independent developers with commercial products.' a softening of the december 2023 line, not a reversal. (confirmed; sources: [github](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/releases/tag/v3.0.0), [watermark/licensing mechanisms pr](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/pull/4021))
- 2024-12-18 — tldraw computer: tldraw computer opens after a december 13 waitlist — natural-language node-and-wire workflows on the canvas, built in partnership with google / google deepmind for the gemini 2.0 launch window. it stays closed source; issue #5122 says starter kits are the answer instead. (confirmed; sources: [launch post text: connected components, natural-language instructions, branch/loop](https://couchsky.app/u/tldraw.com/p/3ldlnkynejg24), [google/gemini partnership showcase](https://ai.google.dev/showcase/tldraw), [natural language computer mechanics](https://the-decoder.com/tldraw-unveils-experimental-natural-language-computer-powered-by-gemini-2-0/), [team: computer stays closed-source](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/issues/5122), [waitlist phase](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/alixmini_introducing-tldraw-computer-our-teams-activity-7273399940985344000-Mkes))
- 2025-04-09 — the $10m series a: a $10m series a, led by lux capital and definition. the post reports ~$1m of first-year license revenue (clickup, padlet, craft, jam; autodesk per linkedin), ~67k x followers, ~8k discord, and a team of 'nearly twenty people.' total raised ≈ $14.7m. (confirmed; sources: [$10m series a (lux + definition)](https://tldraw.dev/blog/announcing-tldraw-series-a), [linkedin announcement naming autodesk](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tldraw_we-raised-a-10m-series-a-led-by-lux-capital-activity-7315794166272131073-Bz1T), [total funding $14](https://indexed.vc/companies/tldraw))

## the license-key era (2025–)

production needs a license key: sdk 4.0 gates the sdk, fairies run for one december, external prs get auto-closed over ai slop — and the demos keep shipping.

- 2025-09-18 — sdk 4.0 gates production: sdk 4.0: an npm create tldraw cli, five mit-licensed starter kits, wcag 2.2 aa accessibility work with sarah fossheim — and license-key enforcement. development stays free; production requires a key, with a 100-day trial license. 'fate and capital both demand that tldraw be a sustainable project.' (confirmed; sources: [cli, 5 starter kits, license-key enforcement, wcag 2](https://tldraw.dev/blog/tldraw-sdk-4-0), [tldraw.dev](https://tldraw.dev/releases/v4.0.0), [100-day trial license](https://alternativeto.net/news/2025/9/tldraw-sdk-4-0-adds-five-new-starter-kits-cli-tool-and-enforces-licensing-changes/), [license-key mechanics: trial/commercial/hobby, client-side validation](https://tldraw.dev/sdk-features/license-key), [current model: dev-only free](https://tldraw.dev/community/license))
- 2025-11-19 — sdk 4.2: sdk 4.2 ships — the cadence continues under the new licensing model. (confirmed; sources: [full dated post index nov 2022–sep 2026](https://tldraw.dev/blog))
- 2025-12-01 — fairies: fairies — visible multi-agent ai collaborators — land on tldraw.com as a deliberately time-boxed experiment: $25 one-time, december 2025 only, code public in the repo. lu wilson's launch video calls it 'the weirdest and most ambitious project'; a december 19 writeup covers the 'fairy management system' orchestration. (confirmed; sources: [launch post: $25 one-time, december-only timed experiment](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tldraw_for-this-holiday-season-weve-added-little-activity-7401359632738226177-sjYm), [lu wilson: weirdest and most ambitious project](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/todepond_we-just-added-fairies-to-tldraw-dot-com-activity-7401313135183421440-Lcqb), [multi-agent coordination lessons](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tldraw_getting-multiple-ai-agents-to-work-together-activity-7407879368577794048-lY-u), [github](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/pull/6909), [fairies landing page](https://fairies.tldraw.com/))
- 2025-12 — lu wilson leaves: lu wilson leaves tldraw after three years — from january 2026, prototyping contributor tools for wikimedia and wikipedia. (confirmed; sources: [departure post](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/todepond_im-leaving-tldraw-to-enter-the-world-of-activity-7407853597281058817-P7r0), [lu: previously tldraw, now prototyping at wikipedia](https://www.todepond.com/))
- 2026-01-15 — the ai-slop firewall: tldraw pauses external contributions — issue #7695 announces auto-closing of external prs after a surge of ai-generated submissions. ruiz's follow-up, 'stay away from my trash!', concedes the irony that tldraw's own /issue claude code command authored some of the bad directions; he notes excalidraw's pr volume more than doubled q4-2025 vs q3. (confirmed; sources: [contributions policy — auto-closing external prs over ai slop](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw/issues/7695), [ruizs follow-up](https://tldraw.dev/blog/stay-away-from-my-trash), [192 pts, 107 comments](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46641042))
- 2026-02-25 — the tests-to-closed-source joke: the 'move tests to closed source' issue gets reported at face value — then revealed as a joke. ruiz: 'moving our tests into another repo would complicate and slow down our development… tldraw itself may eventually be a vibe coded alternative to tldraw.' a discourse event about ai cloning, not a policy change. (confirmed; sources: [willison link post](https://simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/25/closed-tests/), [analysis: sqlite precedent, tests-as-moat discourse, the action hasnt followed](https://medium.com/@janssen.sjuul/the-specification-layer-what-survives-when-code-becomes-disposable-46ac64515ceb))
- 2026-03-03 — the mcp app post: ruiz posts 'tldraw mcp app: letting your agents draw' — the canvas as an mcp surface. (confirmed; sources: [full dated post index nov 2022–sep 2026](https://tldraw.dev/blog))
- 2026-05-07 — sdk 5.0: sdk 5.0 — a feature-heavy release around customization, performance, and extension. 'we shipped our backlog.' (confirmed; sources: [sdk 5](https://tldraw.dev/blog/tldraw-sdk-5-0))
- 2026-07-16 — tldraw offline: tldraw offline launches — a free, file-based desktop app (.tldraw files, no accounts or server, scripting and agent access) for macos, windows, and linux. the company reports 16k+ downloads in the first week (self-reported); multiplayer follows august 13. (confirmed; sources: [offline desktop launch](https://tldraw.dev/blog/tldraw-offline), [desktop app repo](https://github.com/tldraw/tldraw-offline), [16k+ downloads claim](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tldraw_tldraw-offline-v112-activity-7487543604731842560-AoLR), [full dated post index nov 2022–sep 2026](https://tldraw.dev/blog))
- 2026-09-10 — tldraw flash: tldraw flash — a hand-drawn lo-fi animation tool: record-drag motion, a timeline, export. built largely by interns audrey leo and leo knudsen with max drake and daniel lefcourt. (confirmed; sources: [flash launch](https://tldraw.dev/blog/introducing-tldraw-flash), [waitlist post](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tldraw_were-launching-tldraw-flash-a-new-way-to-activity-7500914475101970432-DPf7), [margiotta joined ~jul 2026](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalila-margiotta_not-even-2-months-into-tldraw-and-we-just-activity-7500922266411614208-oKiG))

AI-drafted at Ben Guo's direct request and credited to Hraness; every claim links to its cataloged source.

Canonical page: https://hraness.com/tldraw/history


Published by @ben in profile revision 1.
Original document: https://hraness.com/tldraw/history
Original credited author: Hraness
AI-drafted at Ben Guo's direct request and credited to Hraness; every claim links to its cataloged source.

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````