"Tech Finance" with Sasha Orloff: B2B Fintech | AI | Finance Tech E55: First Round and YC-Backed Startup 'Eliminating Business Bullshit' | Josh Wymer, CEO of CentralHQ
Sep 5, 2025
Josh Wymer, Co-founder and CEO of Central HQ, shares insights on revolutionizing business operations with AI. He discusses raising $8.6 million from First Round Capital and Y Combinator to streamline back-office tasks through Slack-based automation. The conversation reveals how AI can alleviate the burdens of payroll and compliance for startups, highlighting the importance of trust and transparency in automation. Wymer also emphasizes the need for emotional branding and differentiation in the competitive finance sector, ensuring businesses stay agile and efficient.
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Founder Nearly Felled By Payroll Tax Notices
- Josh recounts a founder whose payroll vendor missed tax changes and the founder unexpectedly got a criminal record threat.
- The issue arose from missed state notices after the founder moved addresses and payroll software lacked the context to correct taxes.
AI Lets Products Solve Hard Edge Cases
- Wymer argues many back-office problems persist because SaaS punts complex reasoning back to users instead of solving edge cases.
- He believes AI advances let companies solve those reasoning tasks end-to-end and complete workflows for founders.
Pick An Underserved Customer And Own It
- Focus on an underserved ICP rather than trying to be everything for everyone.
- Central targets founders and SMBs and builds a tailored product rather than chasing mid-market incumbents.