Offcuts Ep 172: Is AI actually going to change the world? with Chris Kilin CEO and co-founder at Brandback and Glara.ai
Nov 19, 2025
In this discussion, Chris Kilin, CEO and co-founder of Brandback and Glara.ai, shares his entrepreneurial journey from consulting to AI innovation in consumer commerce. He explains the advantages of AI over Web3, emphasizing real revenue generation for brands. The conversation dives into optimizing AI for efficiency and visibility, with key tactics for using AI budgets effectively. Chris also highlights the rapid adoption of AI-driven personalization and the potential future of agentic shopping, offering an optimistic yet cautious outlook on AI's impact over the next year.
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Product Born From Internal Need
- Chris built Glara.ai after Brandback needed SKU-level AI visibility for marketplaces and couldn't find a suitable tool.
- He productized internal tooling because customers saw value and wanted a deep variant-level solution.
Scaling Experience Shaped Founder Path
- Chris left BCG, then joined Razor Group as an early employee and scaled it from 5 to 500 people during rapid growth.
- That operating experience, more than consulting, prepared him to start Brandback and Glara.ai.
Revenue Follows SKU-Level Visibility
- E-commerce demands SKU and variant-level AI visibility because revenue follows specific products, not just brands.
- Glara.ai differentiates by optimizing discovery and attribution at the product-variant level.