Alphonzo “Phonz” Terrell and DeVaris Brown met during orientation the first day they started working at Twitter. They didn’t know that they would launch their own social media platform just a few years later. “There were only two blacks out there and we said hey, let’s be friends,” says Terrell, who until now has served as the platform’s global head of Social and Editorial. Terrell is one of the thousands of employees laid off last month by Elon Musk’s takeover. was also a product manager working on machine learning in 2020. But he left Twitter in 2020 to start a Series A startup, Meroxa. Meroxa creates solutions that make it easy for companies to build data pipelines.
Now, the duo have started waiting list registrations for Spill, which they describe as “a real-time conversation platform that brings culture to the fore.” The platform is expected to enter service in about six to eight weeks.
The founders felt it was important for Spill to build creative monetization features from the start. Spill will use blockchain technology to chart posts that go viral and reward the creators behind them.
Spill will also have a live news feed where users can send “spill” instead of tweets. Inspired by the phrase “spill the tea”, the company’s logo also features a teacup-like motif. Spill is also creating a feature called “tea parties” where users can host both online and IRL events, then get in-app bonuses for things like boosting their posts.
Spill currently works with a small team of less than 10 people. There are three advisors, including Dantley Davis, Twitter’s former head of design.
Users who want to use Spill can reserve their usernames when the platform opens. You can find the waiting list here.
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