Notion's CEO wants you to demand better from your tools

Decoder with Nilay Patel

Vox Media Podcast Network

Technology, Business

4.3 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 11 August 2025

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This is Casey Newton, founder and editor of Platformer and cohost of the Hard Fork podcast. This is the second episode of my productivity-focused Decoder series I’m doing while Nilay is out on parental leave. Today, I’m talking with Notion cofounder and CEO Ivan Zhao. I’ve followed Notion for quite some time now — I’m a big fan, and I use Notion as part of my workflow with Platformer. So I was very excited to get Ivan on the show to discuss his philosophy on productivity, how he’s grown his company over the last decade, and where he sees the space going in the future. Read the full interview transcript on The Verge. Links: Introducing Notion AI for Work | Notion Notion Mail is a minimalist but powerful take on email | Verge Notion’s new Q&A feature lets you ask an AI about your notes | Verge Notion takes on AI notetakers with its own transcription feature | TechCrunch The impossible dream of good workplace software | Decoder When AI has better taste than you | Julie Zhuo / The Looking Glass Credits: Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright. The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for this show comes from Indeed.
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0:30.6	Just go to Indeed.com slash decoder right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast.
0:38.1	Indeed.com slash decoder. Terms and conditions apply.
0:41.7	Hiring, Indeed is all you need.
0:47.0	Support for the show comes from Mercury, the banking product that feels extraordinary to use.
0:53.0	With Mercury, you can wrap your mind around the financial
0:55.5	health of your company in one streamlined place. You can upload bills to pay them, create invoices,
1:01.9	track what you are owed, and send money quickly and easily, all from the same platform.
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1:12.8	Mercury, banking that does more.
1:16.5	Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank.
1:21.2	Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column A, and Evolve Bank and Trust, members FDIC.
1:25.9	Support for this show comes from Robin Hood.
1:28.7	Wouldn't it be great to manage your portfolio on one platform?
1:32.5	With Robin Hood, not only can you trade individual stocks and ETFs, you can also seamlessly buy and sell crypto at low costs.
	...

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