Why I quit my 9-to-5 to start Maat Systems

Hey y'all, it's Andrew, the one behind Maat Systems; if you haven't already, make sure to check out the About us to learn what we stand for, and how we operate differently.

Over the last 10 years I've had the pleasure of working on some of the most interesting software projects, with many talented people at some of the most 'successful' companies to-date; I put parentheses on 'successful' because my idea of it now goes well beyond just money, but I digress...

The one thing that I've learned early on in my software career was that "ethics & technology rarely intersect". Although I made it my mission to find an ethical job in tech, the opportunities were limited & most roles were freelance or unstable, which I couldn't do at the time. The one time I thought I found one... I was quickly proven wrong once the effects of the Kool-Aid had worn off.

Time & again, I saw a pattern take place before my eyes: a product with great potential ruined by meddling middle management busyness, investor board pressure or worse yet: the grandiose ego of a founder that won't take 'no' for an answer, and refuses to allow staff to do their job.

No matter the amount of money a company made, or how big it was, there was always this underlying issue of the product not actually being made in the best interest of the user but instead, for the sake of extracting as much money from them as possible, and it goes pretty deep that rabbit hole.

Companies thinking of new ways to steal your attention, misleading marketing, user experiences that promote brainrot, predatory pricing, the list goes on...

Nevermind the time when I thought I saw the light by joining a women-led tech startup, only to realise they were double-billing hundreds of users knowingly, and when I raised it as a major issue with ideas on how to resolve it, I was immediately shutdown & told to delete all documents relating to it. 😬

Sadly that wasn't even the straw that broke the camel's back... At my most recent role, I'd become increasingly aware of the unethical notoriety of some of our big customers: I'm talking big sweatshop names. One day I'd woken up and decided I'd had enough, and handed in my resignation. After a much-needed break, I'm back & ready to do things differently this time.

With Maat Systems, I see it as an amazing opportunity to finally use technology the way it was meant to be, for the greater good.

Having been on the other side for so long – building tech that's ultimately anti-community – I'm more motivated than ever to write the wrongs of big tech, in every way that I can.

I call on anyone who is fed up with the current way things are, to join me; let's do things differently, together.

Because together we are unstoppable, and at the end of the day, all we need is each other ❤️‍🔥

Thanks for sticking till the end, watch this space for more exciting announcements 🙂‍↕️