Code Story: Insights from Startup Tech Leaders S11 E27: Raj Dosanjh, Paid
Dec 2, 2025
Raj Dosanjh, co-founder and CTO of Paid, shares insights from his journey in tech, including his past as a Palantir engineer. He details the origin of Paid, a revenue engine for AI agents, emphasizing quick MVP development and the importance of early adopters. Raj discusses hiring preferences that prioritize hands-on talent and the critical role of observability in scalability. He also reflects on co-founder dynamics, his vision for turning student projects into businesses, and advises founders to focus on proving demand through revenue.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Turn Telemetry Into Revenue
- Paid uses telemetry/observability (OpenTelemetry, Datadog-style data) to infer agent behavior and monetize outcomes.
- Raj repurposed existing observability tools plus LLMs to map raw traces into billable business metrics.
Airbnb Two-Week Prototype
- Raj took an Airbnb for two weeks with co-founders and built an interactive Figma-like prototype to demo.
- That lightweight prototype validated interest before heavy engineering investment.
Get Design Partners To Pay
- Force progress by getting early customers to pay so they commit and give rapid feedback.
- Use events and demos as forcing functions to accelerate product iteration.
