WhatsApp was originally founded in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, both former Yahoo engineers. What's particularly interesting, if not downright inspirational, is that Acton -- himself a former Apple engineer -- applied for jobs at both Twitter and Facebook way before WhatsApp became a wildly popular mobile app. Both times he was rejected.
First up was Twitter.
Got denied by Twitter HQ. That's ok. Would have been a long commute.
— Brian Acton (@brianacton) May 23, 2009
Three months later, Facebook also told Acton, "Thanks, but no thanks."
Facebook turned me down. It was a great opportunity to connect with some fantastic people. Looking forward to life's next adventure.
— Brian Acton (@brianacton) August 3, 2009
And joining Acton as a Facebook reject was Koum, who also interviewed there and wasn't offered a job.
Take heed, kids. Keep on truckin'.