Great problems to solve, idealistic approach - Anonymous employee PassiveLogic Employee Review

4.0
20 May 2022
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I work here, and have continued to work here, because of the people. The engineers I work with are truly some of the smartest people I have ever met, and all of them make coming to work every day far easier. My manager is also the best boss I've ever had, I think that the company has really nailed it in the hiring of smart, driven people who are capable and willing to solve hard problems. The problem space we work on is also way more interesting than it appears at first glance, and I've found myself constantly learning new tools, skills, and approaches to everything. The culture really is the high point.

Cons

There's a very ingrained philosophy at the top of management that I can really only describe as "Do it right the first time." Which is not how agile/iterative software engineering works, and in general is a pretty impossible target to aim for. The vision for the company is super grand, and I think achievable, but the way in which we are asked to go about achieving it puts focus on producing the "perfect" product out of the gate rather than something that works and can be improved. This results in a sort of underlying feeling of stagnation, and some frustration when ideas that may not be perfect but will drive the company forwards are shot down in favor of finding the "right" approach first. I think this has gotten better as the company expands and more smart people are introduced to solve more hard problems, but it's certainly still prevalent.

Explore other reviews about PassiveLogic

5.0
1 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

This is one of the most unique professional experiences I’ve had. The company was built around a very ambitious vision for physical AI, autonomy, and real-world systems. I came to work here for Troy Harvey's vision and principled approach to design. It was inspiring to work with him, and the mission drove me to work hard to achieve amazing things. I hope to continue to work with him in the future. What stood out most was the ability to connect hardware, software, AI, product, and customer value into one coherent direction. That kind of systems-level genius is rare. And his type of leadership uniquely collaborative leadership hard to come by. The work was meaningful because it felt like we were building something genuinely new, and we were doing it together as a team with a set of focused goals. The best part of the culture was the exposure to big ideas and high expectations. If you wanted to grow, learn, and be challenged, there was a lot of opportunity.

Cons

The pace and expectations are intense. Communication could sometimes move quickly if you aren't paying attention because the company and the ideas were operating at a high level of complexity.

4.0
8 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

With Troy no longer in the CEO role, the company needs to prove that it can preserve what made it special. His absence will be felt, especially in the areas of vision, customer-market coherence, cross-org technical depth, and the ability to bring out the best in people. The company feels at best in search of direction and leadership without him. Troy was the kind of founder people join a company to work with. He had a rare ability to imagine what the world could become and then rally people around that future. He was a visionary systems thinker, but what made him especially effective was that he was also a team orchestrator. He could see how different people’s skills, instincts, and experiences fit together, often before they saw it themselves. That encouraged people do some of the best work of their careers. The company’s ambition came from that combination: huge technical vision, high standards, and a real belief in people. It created a culture where people were asked to stretch, but also where the work felt connected to a larger purpose.

Cons

This isn’t con per se. I’ve read some of the (curious) complaints below. These are self describing: Troy didn’t suffer fools. He was incredibly open to discuss, collaborate, and mentor. Sometimes it was a paradigm shift you had invest intellectual rigor to fully understand. But once you got it 🤯. You were always given many chances — probably too many. But if you were lazy, or didn’t put the intellectual effort, he would move on or replace you. As it should be.

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