Go-Karts, a Grill Fire and a Big Thank You

Startups run on momentum. There’s always another feature to ship, another partner to meet, another tweak to the product. It’s easy to forget how far you’ve come.

At Nini, we try not to let that happen.

The people building Nini are the reason any of it works. So this quarter, we closed our laptops and said thank you. Twice. Once at a go-kart track, and once at a BBQ in Toronto’s east end to close out summer.

Team Racing SquadK1 Speed

Go-Karting as Team Building: Turns Out Our COO Is a Pro

After a long day at the office, James, our COO, surprised some of the engineering, product and marketing team with after-hours racing at K1 Speed. We're a competitive bunch. The trash talk started right away. James won. Then he won again. And again. We suspect he picked go-karting because he knew he'd win. The rest of us tried. It didn't matter. James now has bragging rights, and he hasn't let anyone forget it.

We're going back. Someone has to beat him.

Siri, play "True Bestie" by Drake.The Squad

BBQ Team After-Hours

A Summer BBQ in Toronto's East End (Small Fire Included)

To close out the summer, we rented a space in Kew Gardens, in Toronto's east end. The core team came, along with the friends, advisors and supporters who've helped us get here.

No agenda. Just food, a cold bevy and good people on one of the last days of summer.

PaulMaking his famous tomato salad

A few highlights:

• Aaron learned to shuffle cards.
• Riley was put in charge of eating after the rest of us gave up.
• The whole team ended the night with ice cream on the boardwalk.

Also, one of us set the BBQ on fire. We won't say who. We'll only say his name rhymes with "flames".

The side of the grill melted a little. But the grill survived, the food was good, and Adam's fancy skewers were a hit.

Learning to Shuffle CardsAaron

The Team Has Voted: James Needs a Tattoo

David took one of our wholesome photos of James and used AI to give him tattoos. The team has voted. James should start getting ink. Thank you to all that voted via Instagram poll. To vote, follow us on Instagram @ninifintech.

Verdict Is OutJames Must Get Tattoos

Bring On Q4 (James, Watch Your Back)

To everyone who raced, grilled, cheered and stayed late for ice cream: thank you. Your work makes Nini possible, and we're grateful for every bit of it.

As for the rematch: James, we're coming for you.

Cheers