Deon Nicholas, founder of Forethought, has announced the public launch of Espa, an AI-native executive assistant built to manage the logistics of work and personal life in one place. Espa is backed by angel investors spanning tech, entertainment, and business, including Henry Shi of Anthropic, Adam D’Angelo of Quora, Tekedra Mawakana of Waymo, Scott Wu of Cognition, Anu Bharadwaj of Atlassian, and LL COOL J, as well as institutional investors Axiom Partners, Village Global, Neo, SV Angel, Zapier, and Harlem Capital. The platform is available today at espa.ai with subscription plans starting at approximately $20 per month.
Where most AI tools stop at drafting and suggestions, Espa executes — sending emails, booking meetings, tracking follow-ups and surfacing what has been missed. The platform serves founders, small business owners, creators, executives and families who need the benefits of a full-time executive assistant without the overhead. Espa captures intent across email, text, voice, screenshots and notes, and follows through on action items so users can direct their attention toward higher-priority work. While in stealth, the platform grew to more than 500 users.
Espa was co-founded by Nicholas and CTO Volodymyr Lyubinets, who together previously built Forethought from seed to its acquisition by Zendesk, powering over one billion monthly interactions along the way. Key features include end-to-end inbox and calendar management, a privacy-first architecture that does not store email data or use it to train third-party models, and deep integrations across multiple inboxes, calendars, Slack, Google Workspace and Granola. A personalization engine learns user preferences and priorities over time, with on-the-go capture available via iMessage, WhatsApp, text, voice notes and screenshots.
Stanford’s 2026 AI Index Report estimates generative AI is already delivering $172 billion in annual value to U.S. consumers, a behavioral tipping point that signals where the next wave of AI value will be created. Espa is positioning itself at the forefront of that consumer shift, bringing enterprise-grade execution principles to individuals carrying the full weight of work and life.
KEY QUOTES:
“I built and scaled Forethought as a father, a husband, and a founder, and I saw firsthand what’s possible when AI steps up in a meaningful way. In the enterprise, I was focused on execution—systems that could own outcomes for businesses. That led me to the idea that the same principles deserve to exist for anyone carrying the full weight of work and life. The right support system does more than reduce stress—it changes what you’re capable of. That’s what we built Espa to be, for everyone.”
Deon Nicholas, Founder and CEO, Espa
“Working with artists around the world means working around the clock. Deals happen at all hours of the day, collaborations span continents, and relationships require constant nurturing. Espa is the first tool I’ve seen that seamlessly keeps up—capturing what matters, and following through. For creatives and their teams, this is the kind of ‘always-on,’ effortless support they need.”
Jeremy Erlich, Founder and CEO, Alta Music Group
“I love backing a founder like Deon, who is highly technical and can see a platform shift before it’s obvious to everyone else. Espa has the potential to redefine how everyone acts with AI.”
Ali Partovi, CEO, Neo
