Linear is a software tool for planning and tracking product development, built for speed and a focused way of working. It was founded in 2019 by people who had worked at companies such as Airbnb, Coinbase and Uber, and it is based in San Francisco.
What it is
Linear organizes work into issues, projects with milestones and time boxed cycles. It is known for a keyboard first interface and fast updates, and it describes itself as a product development system for the AI era. Its approach is opinionated: it ships with defaults that work, in contrast with highly configurable trackers such as Jira.
History
One profile names Karri Saarinen, Tuomas Artman and Jori Lallo as the founders, with Saarinen having built a Chrome extension at Airbnb to make Jira simpler before starting the company. A startup database lists total funding of 134 million dollars and about 50 employees. Neither source gives a full funding history, so exact rounds are left out here.
Why it matters to founders
Linear is a frequently cited case of winning through taste and speed in a crowded category, against large incumbents. Its clear positioning is the reason many early teams choose it. See Positioning.
Related entries
See Karri Saarinen, Linear, Positioning and Product-led growth.
Linear is part of Tools and stack.
Sources
StartupHub profile of Linear and Everhour guide to Linear. Reviewed October 2026.
