Founder Thesis

Do you think digital payments are risky? This episode will change your perspective! IppoPay is a Chennai-based fintech serving the vast underbanked and unbanked sector in India, helping it adopt digital banking swiftly. Mohan talks about his learnings over his long and varied path as an entrepreneur and shares how he created luck for himself multiple times.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about IppoPay:-1.Interview with Mohan K, Entrepreneur, Co-Founder and CEO of IppoPay2.Long struggle behind IppoPay’s quick success3.This Niche Payment Solutions Startup Is Empowering Lakhs Of Businesses In Smaller Towns4.This fisherman’s son launched a fintech startup amidst the pandemic and clocked transactions worth rs 1 cr5.How IppoPay is disrupting the Digital Payments space with its technology for the merchants in Tamil Nadu6.Light Microfinance, IppoPay to offer digital loans to MSMEs

Masters' Union is a modern business school transforming education by opting for hands-on, real-world problem-solving. Pratham shares his incredible first principles thinking approach that has driven him on his mission to build a global top-tier B-school in India.Read the text version of the episode.Read more about Masters’ Union:-1.We Want To Empower Creators With Practical Education: Pratham Mittal, Master’s Union2.Technology’s role is to enhance work done by leaders: MU's Pratham Mittal3.First Experiential Bachelor’s Degree Programme In Business In India, Taught By Harvard, Oxford, Amazon, And Apple Faculty Members4.Can the experiential learning of Masters' Union be the Indian MBA alternative?5.Top brains commit Rs 300 crore to build Masters’ Union School of Business6.Masters’ Union Launches The World’s First Professional Education Programme For Content Creators

Uniqode (formerly Beaconstac) is revolutionizing e-commerce engagement with its unique, smart QR code platform. Sharat talks about their long journey of making pivots, finding product-market fit and building a truly global SaaS business out of India. This episode is a must-listen for learning how to scale up a SaaS business globally without burning a ton of cash.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about Beaconstac:-1.Facilitating Connections Through QR Codes2.QR codes and the future of marketing3.How Beaconstac’s founders failed for a decade before they clicked4.Beaconstac leads the way to a contactless world5.The Future Of ECommerce Engagement In An Increasingly Phygital World

Fashinza is an apparel-tech startup solving to reduce the time it takes to release a purchase order in the apparel and fashion space. Pawan is a serial entrepreneur whose first startup in health- tech was acquired. With Fashinza, he plans to revolutionise the apparel manufacturing industry by leveraging new-age technologies.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about Fashinza:-1.Fashinza: Using technology to empower SME apparel manufacturers2.Powering sustainable fashion and driving efficiencies with technology3.How this apparel manufacturing marketplace is solving the global supply chain challenge through technology and sustainability4.Fashion Embedded5. Fashion supply chain startup fashinza gets $30m from mars growth capital, liquidity group6.Fashinza opens design lab in Gurugram

Do you remember the drone scene in the movie "3 Idiots"? Well, the drone in that movie was made by a small company called ideaForge. Ankit and his friends bootstrapped ideaForge straight out of college and spent 8 long years before they were able to raise their first funding. Listen on to learn about the amazing journey of ideaForge and the evolution of the drone industry in India.Note: This conversation was recorded some time back and the metrics mentioned may have changed since then.Read the text version of the episode.Read more about ideaForge :-1.A Lot Of Civil Unlocking Is Happening As Rules Have Opened Up: IdeaForge CEO, Ankit Mehta2.Ideaforge reaffirms defence’s central role in its strategy for growth3.Revolutionizing Drones: CUMI & ideaForge Nanomaterial-powered future

Technology is coming to disrupt the way you learn music, and a company at the forefront of this revolution is Artium. Artium is an ed-tech platform for music learners, they have built a custom technology stack that allows them to train music learners worldwide.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about Artium:-1.Artium Academy aims to hit a high note in online music training2.Online Music Learning Platform Artium Academy Bags Funding From Chiratae Ventures, Others3.Music to Learner's Ears

Business news often talks about companies that become successful overnight, but if you want to learn how to build a business from scratch, you should hunt for tales that are more of a slow-cooked stew than a microwaved success burrito. Rajat talks about his two-decade journey of building up first Happily Unmarried, and then the leading men’s grooming brand Ustraa.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about Ustraa:-1.Happily Unmarried to Ustraa 2.0: Life on razor's edge2.VLCC acquires Ustraa through a strategic merger3.Technological innovation will shape men’s grooming in the years to come

Sanjay is an Indian-born American who built the index business of Morningstar. He talks about why indexes are a big business, how they have evolved over the years and what is on the horizon.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about Morningstar:-1.Morningstar Introduces Industry's First Global Unicorn Index Series

From being almost penniless to finding product-market fit to becoming a powerhouse- with his first startup TravelTriangle, Sanchit went through it all. But almost like the monk who sold his Ferrari, Sanchit realised that he was seeking something deeper and that started his journey of building up Inner Fit.Read the text version of the episode here.Read more about the startups :-1.The journey of travel triangle from a bootstrapped holiday marketplace to a well-funded platform serving travellers to 60 destinations.

"In our current capacity, we are 100 people strong working equivalent to 20,000 Warm Bodies."This staggering metric from Manish Gupta highlights the sheer efficiency and disruptive potential of AI in traditional industries like call centers. Rezo.ai isn't just automating tasks; it's achieving workforce multiplication through technology, fundamentally changing how businesses scale customer interactions.Meet the Guests: Manish Gupta & Rashi Gupta (Ph.D.) are the Co-Founders of Rezo.ai, the husband-and-wife duo revolutionizing customer experience with AI. Manish (CEO) holds an M.Tech from IIT Delhi and previously served as CTO at RateGain. Rashi, a data science expert, earned her Ph.D. from the University of Helsinki and two Master's degrees from IIT Delhi. Together, they've built Rezo.ai into a profitable venture (for 8 consecutive quarters!) handling 30 lakh calls daily and targeting a $10 Million ARR.Key Insights from the Conversation: Value-Based Pricing: Shifting from simple rate cards to demonstrating clear ROI based on the enterprise's cost savings and value gained was key to unlocking larger B2B deals. Human + AI Collaboration: AI excels at handling high-volume, short (<3 min) interactions, freeing up human agents for complex, empathetic, or emergency situations requiring a human touch. Vernacular is Crucial: Supporting multiple Indian languages (10+) is essential for the Indian market, requiring sophisticated NLP and speech engines beyond simple translation. AI Augmentation, Not Replacement: Implementing AI hasn't led to agent layoffs; instead, employees are upskilled and redeployed for higher-value tasks. Enterprise AI Needs Guardrails: While powerful, generative AI like ChatGPT needs careful implementation with boundaries in B2B settings to ensure compliance and prevent brand damage. Funding Purpose: Raise capital strategically to fuel growth (like US expansion), not just because VC money is available.Chapters: 0:00 - Intro: Meet Manish & Rashi Gupta 1:18 - What is Rezo.ai? The AI-Powered Call Center Explained 2:23 - The Human Touch: Where AI Stops & Agents Step In 5:46 - Founder Journey: IIT Days, First Startup Failure & Rezo's Genesis 10:18 - Finding PMF: Pivoting from Text Chatbots to Voice AI 16:02 - Landing Maruti: Building Trust & Vernacular Voice Capability 19:04 - Tech Deep Dive: Speech Engines, NLP & Handling Indian Languages 26:58 - Integrating Generative AI (ChatGPT) Responsibly 31:57 - Pricing B2B AI: The Power of Value-Based Selling 38:39 - Rapid Deployment: Onboarding Enterprise Clients in Days 49:48 - Scaling & Profitability: Reaching $10M ARR Target 51:43 - Funding Strategy & US Expansion Plans 55:35 - Competition & Advice for Aspiring FoundersHashtags: #RezoAI #ManishGupta #RashiGupta #AICallCenter #ConversationalAI #VoiceAI #CustomerExperience #CX #B2BStartup #SaaS #EnterpriseAI #StartupIndia #IndianStartups #IITDelhi #FounderThesis #Podcast #AIinIndia #VernacularAI #NLP #MachineLearning #Profitability #Bootstrapping #ValueBasedPricing #FutureOfWork #Automation #CustomerSupport #TechPodcast #Entrepreneurship