Woman software engineer's blunt reply on job offer leaves CEO pondering even after 2 years

The power of social media conversations can leave lasting impressions on individuals, and for Roshan Patel, the CEO of Walnut, one particular encounter has remained etched in his memory for nearly two years.

It was during an interview for his startup, shortly after securing pre-seed funding in 2021, that Patel engaged in a conversation with a software engineer whose brutally honest response caught his attention. Intrigued by her potential, Patel decided to explore whether she would consider joining the Walnut team, hoping to harness her skills and drive to fuel the company's growth.

According to the screenshot shared by Mr. Patel on Twitter recently, he approached the software engineer with an invitation to chat, expressing his startup's mission of enhancing healthcare accessibility through affordability.


"I run a startup increasing access to healthcare by making it more affordable. We just raised a pre-seed round and are looking to hire talented engineers. Any interest in chatting?" Patel asked her.

However, the interview came to an abrupt end due to the software engineer's candid and direct response.

"Hi Roshan, I just checked on Crunchbase and my current salary is more than your entire pre-seed round," said the woman declining the job offer.

"Still thinking about this exchange almost 2 years later," he wrote while sharing the screenshot of the conversation.

The tweet has garnered significant attention, accumulating over three million views and more than 24,000 likes. Twitter users found amusement in the software engineer's response.

One user expressed amazement at the prioritization of monetary gains over meaningful work, suggesting that artificial intelligence could bridge the gap. Another user remarked on the engineer's direct response, proposing a more diplomatic alternative.

However, some users came to the defence of the engineer, stating "Gotta say, it's a weird decision to shame someone who's confident and established because she didn't respond to your generic message."

Headquartered in New York, Walnut had secured $3.6 million in funding in April 2021, as reported by Crunchbase.