The Inspiring Story Behind Zapier's Success with CEO Wade | EP 58

Join JJ in "This week in No Code + AI" as he interviews Zapier's CEO, Wade Foster. Discover the story behind co-founding Zapier and how it grew into a massive automation and AI company.

🎓 Learn how to build AI Agents with JJ: https://nocodealliance.org/course-details/intro-to-ai-agents

📰 News of the Week

The episode kicks off with spicy news covering OpenAI's roadmap updates, including the upcoming GPT-4.5 and GPT-5 models, and Elon Musk's recent offer to buy OpenAI. Plus, learn about the latest in no-code tools from Bolt, Repl.it, and Lovable. Don’t miss the deeper dive into Zapier's evolution, their unique approach to staying bootstrapped, and their recent expansion into AI Agents. Tune in for an insightful discussion on building a remote team culture and the future of AI-driven automation.

Learn more about Zapier: https://zapier.com/

✅ Available on all platforms: Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.

⏱️ Time Stamps

00:39 OpenAI's Latest Announcements

01:41 Elon Musk's Offer to Buy OpenAI

02:20 Sponsor Spotlight: NoCode Components

03:03 New Features from Bolt, Repl.it, and Lovable

04:16 Upcoming AI Agents Course

05:17 Interview with Wade, CEO of Zapier

06:20 The Early Days of Zapier

08:42 Building the First Prototype

09:53 From Beta to Public Product

14:07 Raising Seed Funding and Moving to California

15:55 Early Hiring Philosophy

19:01 Startup Struggles and Early Challenges

20:18 Timing and Market Fit

22:00 Building a Remote Team Culture

24:15 Personal Growth as a CEO

27:03 Staying Bootstrapped: The Decision

28:28 Product Expansion and AI Agents

34:27 Future of AI and Automation

38:36 Enterprise Focus and Final Thoughts

41:16 Conclusion and Next Week's Preview