What Happened to Justin Poehnelt?
Justin Poehnelt, a former Google engineer on the Workspace Developer Relations team, was fired in April 2026 for developing and publicly releasing the 'gws' Google Workspace CLI. The tool, which quickly gained popularity, was cited for branding issues and perceived as a disruptive force amidst Google's own internal development of a similar official CLI.
Quick Answer
Justin Poehnelt was fired by Google in April 2026, two months before publicly disclosing the event in June 2026. His dismissal stemmed from his creation and release of the 'gws' Google Workspace CLI, an open-source tool that rapidly gained traction. Google cited branding policy violations, while Poehnelt believes the underlying reason was the company's apprehension about AI agent disruption and the tool's potential to overshadow an internally developed, official Workspace CLI, which Google announced just days before his termination.
📊Key Facts
📅Complete Timeline9 events
Justin Poehnelt joins Google
Justin Poehnelt begins his tenure at Google, eventually working on the Workspace Developer Relations team. He would spend nearly seven years at the company.
Google Workspace CLI ('gws') is launched
Justin Poehnelt releases the 'gws' Google Workspace CLI, an open-source tool designed for both human developers and AI agents, dynamically built from Google's Discovery Service.
gws gains viral attention
The 'gws' CLI quickly goes viral, hitting number one on Hacker News, gaining thousands of GitHub stars, and attracting many users. Addy Osmani, then a Google Cloud AI Director, shares the tool on X, praising it as 'built for humans and agents.'
Google Legal Department raises concerns
Following the tool's viral success, Google's legal department begins to question Poehnelt about the use of Google's logo and brand colors on the Google Workspace GitHub repository where 'gws' was hosted.
Google Cloud Next 2026 announces official Workspace CLI
Google announces at Google Cloud Next 2026 that an official Workspace CLI is in development, with CEO Thomas Kurian emphasizing the 'era of the agent.' This announcement occurs just two days before Poehnelt's firing.
Justin Poehnelt is fired by Google
Justin Poehnelt is fired by Google, approximately two months before his public disclosure. He attributes the firing to branding issues and a broader fear within Workspace of disruption from AI agents, especially given the timing of Google's own CLI announcement.
Poehnelt publicly discloses firing on X
Justin Poehnelt posts on X (formerly Twitter) revealing that he was fired by Google two months prior for creating the Google Workspace CLI. The post quickly gains significant attention and discussion.
Tech community debates the firing
News outlets and online forums like Hacker News and Reddit are abuzz with discussions about Poehnelt's firing, debating Google's policies on open-source contributions, internal innovation, and the implications for AI agent development.
gws GitHub repository remains active
As of this date, the `gws` Google Workspace CLI GitHub repository is still online under the official `googleworkspace` organization, though some open issues related to authentication and functionality are noted.
🔍Deep Dive Analysis
Justin Poehnelt, a software engineer who had worked at Google for nearly seven years, found himself at the center of a significant tech industry discussion after being fired in April 2026. Poehnelt was a member of the Workspace Developer Relations team, a role that, by his own account, often involved building open-source layers and abstractions over Google APIs.
The incident revolved around a command-line interface (CLI) tool he developed for Google Workspace, named `gws`. This tool provided unified access to Google Drive, Gmail, Calendar, and other Workspace APIs, dynamically building its command surface from Google's Discovery Service. Notably, it was designed with AI agents in mind, shipping with over 40 pre-written agent skill files. Upon its launch in early March 2026, `gws` quickly went viral, topping Hacker News, accumulating thousands of GitHub stars, and attracting a large user base.
Despite the initial positive reception, including inquiries from Google leaders about lessons learned, Poehnelt soon faced scrutiny from Google's legal department regarding the use of Google's logo and brand colors on a Google Workspace GitHub repository. While some commentators argued that releasing a project with Google's branding without proper approval constituted a policy violation, regardless of its technical merit or hosting location, others questioned the severity of the consequence, especially given the project resided within an official Google Workspace GitHub organization and open-sourcing was, in some parts of Google, a common practice.
Poehnelt was fired approximately two months after the tool's launch, in April 2026. The timing of his dismissal was particularly striking: just two days prior, Google Cloud Next 2026 saw Google announce that an official Workspace CLI was in development. Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian declared, 'the era of the pilot is over. The era of the agent is here,' ironically echoing the agent-first design philosophy of Poehnelt's `gws` tool. Poehnelt himself believes his firing was rooted in a broader fear within Workspace leadership regarding disruption from AI agents and the potential impact on existing Workspace business, rather than solely the branding issue.
As of June 2026, Poehnelt publicly disclosed his firing on the X platform, generating significant discussion across tech communities. The `gws` GitHub repository remains online under the `googleworkspace` organization, though some open issues related to authentication and functionality have been noted. The incident highlights ongoing tensions within large tech companies between fostering internal innovation, managing intellectual property, and adapting to rapidly evolving technological landscapes like AI agents.
What If...?
Explore alternate histories. What if Justin Poehnelt made different choices?