DNS and email are two of the oldest and most sensitive layers of the internet, and almost every product depends on both. One wrong record can take a site offline or stop password resets and receipts from reaching anyone.
That's why we're excited to share that Felipe Vilela is joining Resend as a Technical Account Executive. Felipe spent the last two years at DNSimple, where he led enterprise sales and helped infrastructure teams move their DNS workloads to a new provider without putting critical systems at risk. Before that, he was an early sales hire at Minit, where he helped build the sales team through its acquisition by Microsoft. At Resend, he'll help enterprises move their email safely.
Here's more about him in his own words.
More about Felipe
How did you get into software?
One of my earliest memories is watching my brother run a cable across the house to the phone line so he could get online (and hear the iconic sound of dial-up internet). I was fascinated by that big box and its huge screen, where you could chat with strangers, play games, and do all sorts of cool things.
I knew early on, though, that I wasn’t going to be a developer, so I studied business instead. That led me into sales, where I found my calling: helping customers and users. After a while selling marketing services and conferences, I wanted to move into an industry that could scale, one that didn’t depend on physical location or in-person delivery.
I was lucky to land at a startup in the process-improvement SaaS space. That company was later acquired by Microsoft, where I moved into a technical sales role.
What does your desktop/home screen look like?
Photo taken in the beautiful Lofoten Islands - Norway.
Why are you at Resend?
Email (just like DNS) is one of the oldest parts of the internet. When I was selling DNS infrastructure to developers at my previous company, Resend kept coming up in casual conversations, always with enthusiasm (which is rare for infrastructure), so I had to check it out for myself.
I still remember my first visit to the website: a dark Rubik’s cube floating on the page, and to my surprise, you can interact with it. That small detail told me more about Resend than any “About” page could. The quality of the product, the design, the care put into the docs, and the willingness to go beyond the basics made me super keen to join the team and help shape what email looks like next.
Where do you find #inspiration?
All things nature, but especially the ocean. I grew up in the Brazilian countryside, far inland, and have always felt a strange pull toward the sea. Maybe it is true that we value most what is hardest to reach. I learned to surf fairly late, and found my real passion in kitesurfing even later.
I will say that: nothing humbles you quite like being held underwater by a wave you were sure you had lol.
If you weren't programming, what would you be doing?
Probably running a tiny beach bar, restaurant, or B&B on a windy stretch of the Brazilian northeast coast.
Favorite tool?
For productivity, hands down Claude. It never gets tired of my follow-up questions. For fun, LightCut, which I use to edit drone footage.
Favorite hotkey?
The O.G. cmd + c / cmd + v
Favorite place to visit?
Cumbuco, Ceará - Brazil
Advice for ambitious software engineers?
Spend time with customers. Join a few sales calls, listen to how people describe their problems, and notice what makes them excited about your product. The best engineers I have worked with knew exactly why customers buy, and it showed in everything they built.
And when something humbles you, treat it like a wave: paddle back out and go again.
