Factory CEO Accuses Board Adviser of Spying for Rival Cognition

Matan Grinberg, CEO of AI coding startup Factory, publicly accused Chris Degnan, a partner at RPT Partners and Factory board adviser, of sharing confidential information with Cognition, Factory's main competitor. Grinberg stated he fired Degnan after learning Degnan had been in talks with Cognition while attending board meetings, raising concerns about data leakage. Degnan refuted the claims, stating he resigned rather than being fired and denying that he shared any confidential information. The dispute drew responses from Khosla Ventures founder Vinod Khosla, who criticized Grinberg, and partner Keith Rabois, who argued it is unethical to interview at a competitor while holding board-level access. Cognition CEO Scott Wu also weighed in, emphasizing trust and denying that Degnan shared confidential info.