Notion Podcast First Block: Interview with Jesse Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO of Decagon
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Nov 18, 2025 
Jesse Zhang, Co-founder and CEO of Decagon, shares insights on transforming customer service with AI agents. He discusses critical lessons from his previous startup experience, emphasizing the importance of intentional customer conversations. Jesse elaborates on Agent Operating Procedures for transparent and maintainable AI systems. He reveals how Decagon quickly built enterprise trust and achieved impressive customer impact metrics. Plus, he offers valuable advice for founders to trust their instincts and hire strategically for growth.
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AI As A Conversational Front End
- Decagon builds AI customer service agents that converse, take actions, and guide users through flows like human agents.
- The product acts as a conversational front end for brands, replacing traditional call or chat handoffs.
Early Exit After A Tough First Startup
- Jesse left Harvard early to start his first company, Loki, which went through YC and later pivoted to a video-capture direction.
- Loki was acquired by Niantic in 2021 after a difficult ideation journey that taught Jesse the need for better customer conversations.
AOPs Replace Brittle Automation Trees
- Agent Operating Procedures (AOPs) let teams write natural-language instructions for AI agents, making them easier to maintain and understand.
- AOPs increase transparency and let non-technical team members iterate, update, and analyze agent behavior quickly.