MailRank Co-Founders Shutter Company to Join Facebook

Facebook has hired Bryan O’Sullivan and Bethanye McKinney Blount, co-founders of MailRank, the year-old start-up that is trying to solve the problem of email overload.

In a statement confirming the hires, Facebook wrote: “Both have stellar track records as engineers and entrepreneurs, and we’re looking forward to welcoming them to Facebook in December.”

Facebook will not acquire technology or other assets from MailRank.

Before starting MailRank, Blount had served as VP of software engineering at EMI Music, and as an engineering director at Linden Lab, the maker of the virtual world Second Life. O’Sullivan was also previously at Linden Lab, where he was engineering director.

The announcement was also posted this afternoon on MailRank’s blog, where it said it will be discontinuing the private beta of MailRank for Outlook “to focus on our new jobs.”

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