Max Levchin, one of the founders of pay-pal, is leaving Google one year after the internet giant bought his social media company, Slide.com, for $200 million.
Google also plans to stop using almost all of Slide’s applications including photovine, a picture-sharing service the company launched just last week. AllThingsD first broke the news of Levchin’s departure from Google and the elimination of the Slide-created apps.
A Google spokeswoman released a statement via e-mail saying “Max has decided to leave Slide and Google to pursue other opportunities, and we wish him the best. Most of the team from Slide will remain at Google to work on other opportunities.”
A post on the Slide.com website revealed that several other applications will be “retired” as well. Those apps include Slideshow, SuperPoke! Pets, Video Inbox and Pool Party.
“We created products with the goal of providing a fun way for people to connect, communicate and share,” the company said. “While we are incredibly grateful to our users and for all of the wonderful feedback over the years, many of these products are no longer as active or haven’t caught on as we originally hoped.”
The one Slide service that Google plans to continue running is Prizes.org, which connects people who are seeking help with a problem to those who can offer a solution for cash.
Levchin’s departure has left many people shocked and confused, given Google’s recent push into social networking with Google+. But Levchin didn’t play any sort of public role in launching the new social network, and it’s unclear if he played a significant role in the creation of it. What’s more, when Photovine was launched, it would have logically been integrated into Google+. But that never happened. Only time will reveal what Max will do next.
