The email thread from hell.
You've been there. Someone asks to meet. You send three times that work. They're busy for all of them. They send three alternatives. You're travelling for two. By the time you actually book something, it's three weeks out and you've exchanged nine emails.
For a 30-minute coffee.
Why Cal.com Isn't Enough
Tools like Calendly and Cal.com were revolutionary. Instead of the back-and-forth, just send a link. Let people pick a time that works. Done.
Except... it's not always that simple.
Sending a scheduling link can feel transactional. Even clinical. "Here's my calendar, book yourself in like you're reserving a table at a restaurant."
For professional contexts, it works. For catching up with friends, it feels weird. For that investor who just emailed asking for 15 minutes? Definitely weird.
What I wanted was the efficiency of automated scheduling, but with the warmth of a human touch.
The Context Problem
Here's what scheduling tools miss: context matters.
When I meet someone for coffee, that's a different calendar event than a video call. Different time of day, different duration, different location.
Dinner? That's evening only, probably 90 minutes, somewhere walkable from where I'll be.
A quick sync with a colleague? 25 minutes, video, anytime during work hours.
But all these requests come through the same channel: email. And I have to manually decode what kind of meeting it is, then manually pick appropriate slots.
Hajer does this automatically.
She reads the email, understands the meeting type ("grab coffee" vs "jump on a call" vs "dinner sometime"), and suggests appropriate times and places. No manual configuration needed.
Building Hajer
The trick was teaching an AI to parse intent from natural language.
"We should catch up!" → Probably coffee, flexible on timing "Can you spare 15 mins for a quick call?" → Video, short, work hours "Let's do dinner next time you're in town" → Evening, in-person, specific location
Then mapping that intent to calendar availability:
- What times am I free?
- What times are appropriate for this meeting type?
- If it's in-person, where should we meet?
Finally, generating a response that sounds like me:
"Hey! How about Thursday at 3pm? There's a great coffee spot on Frith Street—Flat White, if you know it. Let me know if that works or I can suggest a few more options."
That email could have been written by a human. It's warm, specific, and actionable. But Hajer wrote it in seconds.
We named her Hajer, from the Arabic name meaning "one who emigrates" or "flight" (هاجر). It felt fitting—she bridges the gap between busy schedules, helping people connect across the chaos of modern calendars.
The Rules Engine
Not everyone should get the same availability.
My close friends can book weekends. They can suggest brunch on Sunday. That's fine—I want to see them.
Professional contacts get work hours only. Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm. That's what I have energy for.
VIPs—investors, key partners, important customers—get priority slots. If they want to meet, I'll move things around.
Hajer manages all of this through simple rules:
→ Friends: anytime → Work contacts: business hours → VIPs: priority booking + I get pinged immediately
The AI categorises people automatically based on email history and context, but I can always override. It learns my preferences over time.
Location Intelligence
Here's a feature I didn't know I needed until I had it: automatic location suggestions.
When someone asks for coffee, Hajer doesn't just suggest times—she suggests places. Cafes I've been to before, near where I'll be that day, with good vibes for the kind of meeting we're having.
"How about Tuesday at 10am? I'll be in Soho that day—Flat White or Workshop Coffee both work."
For video calls, she automatically includes my Zoom link. For in-person meetings, she checks my calendar to see where I'll be beforehand and suggests somewhere nearby.
Small touches, but they make scheduling feel effortless.
The Anti-Calendar Philosophy
I have a confession: I hate my calendar.
Not the tool itself—but what it represents. A calendar full of meetings is a calendar without space for deep work. Every slot filled is a choice made for you by someone else.
Hajer isn't designed to fill your calendar. She's designed to protect it.
By default, she only offers limited slots. Not every open hour, but specific windows I've designated for meetings. The rest stays blocked for focused work.
She also enforces buffer time between meetings. Back-to-back calls are exhausting. Hajer makes sure there's always 15 minutes between events, even if my calendar technically shows them as free.
The Future of Scheduling
What excites me about Hajer is where this could go.
Imagine your AI scheduling assistant talking to their AI scheduling assistant. No human involvement at all. The AIs negotiate a time, add it to both calendars, and notify the humans.
"Hey, I talked to Marcus's assistant and we found a slot next Tuesday at 2pm. I've added it to your calendar."
We're not there yet—the protocols don't exist. But the foundation is being laid.
For now, Hajer handles your side of the conversation. And for busy people drowning in scheduling emails, that's already a game-changer.
The Human Touch
Here's what I've learned: good scheduling isn't just about finding times. It's about showing respect for people's time.
When I reply quickly with thoughtful suggestions, it signals that I value the meeting. When I send a bare scheduling link, it signals efficiency at best—indifference at worst.
Hajer lets me have both. Fast responses that still feel personal. Efficient scheduling that doesn't sacrifice warmth.
Because at the end of the day, the goal isn't to optimise calendars. It's to help people connect. Hajer just handles the logistics so you can focus on the conversation itself.
And maybe, finally, we can end the email thread from hell.