Gowalla Co-Founder Leaving Facebook, Has Plans for a New Project After a year and a half at Facebook, Josh Williams says he plans to stay in San Francisco and 'work on something new.'

By Alyson Shontell

This story originally appeared on Business Insider

In December 2011, the talent behind location-check-in app Gowalla was acquired by Facebook. The app itself was wound down over the next few months.

Now, a year and a half after joining Facebook, Gowalla's co-founder and former CEO Josh Williams is leaving.

Williams joined Facebook as a product manager where he worked on Pages, Location and Events. Gowalla launched before Foursquare in 2007 but only ever reached a few million downloads. Foursquare now has more than 30 million downloads and billions of check-ins, although it hasn't had a smooth ride either.

Williams, who moved from Austin, Texas to join Facebook in Palo Alto, says he'll remain in San Francisco to pursue a new project.

"No comment on my next steps at this point -- beyond that I plan to stay in SF and work on something new," Williams told Business Insider. His last day is this Friday.

Williams and his co-founder were moved to join Facebook after attending the F8 conference in 2011. "We were blown away by Facebook's new developments. A few weeks later Facebook called, and it became clear that the way for our team to have the biggest impact was to work together," Williams wrote when he announced the acquisition.

We reached out to Facebook about Williams' departure and are awaiting official comment.

Alyson is a Senior Reporter at Business Insider.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Buying / Investing in Business

Former Zillow Execs Target $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Side Hustle

Want to Start a Side Hustle Helping a Small Business? Here Are the Gigs That Pay the Most.

It's National Small Business Month — and a great time to start a side hustle.

Growing a Business

Why Your Audience Isn't Listening Anymore (And What You Can Do About It)

People are tired of being marketed to. When every message feels like a promotion, trust disappears.

Making a Change

A One-Time Payment of $20 Gets You Access to 1,000+ Courses Forever

Curated, high-impact courses across business, tech, and more.

Business News

Emma Grede Dropped Out of School at 16. Now the Skims Boss Runs a $4 Billion Empire — Here's How.

Grede says she spends a tremendous amount of time hiring the right people.