Riding Unicorns: Venture Capital | Entrepreneurship | Technology

Ariel Harmoko is the Co Founder and CEO of Artifact AI. Ariel joined James and Hector for a conversation that moves from race tracks to reconciliation engines.Ariel grew up in Jakarta, was thrown into Go Karts at eight, and went on to race professionally all the way to Formula 3 alongside the likes of Lando Norris and George Russell. That early immersion in high performance teams, engineering and discipline shaped how he now operates as a founder.He shares how a love of maths and science took him to boarding school in the UK, then into machine learning research at Cambridge while still a teenager, working on early diagnosis in medtech and later deploying internal GPT tools at JP Morgan.Today Ariel is building Artifact AI, an “agent accountant” that sits on top of existing ledgers like Xero, QuickBooks and NetSuite. The product tackles two huge problems for accounting firms. Fragmented legacy stacks and chronic staff shortages. Ariel explains how their agents ingest data, reconcile, post to ledgers and learn from human review, and why accuracy, auditability and trust are non negotiable in this space.The conversation covers selling into one of the most conservative industries on earth, founder led FDE style implementations, why advisory is the real margin in accounting, and how vertical AI and agentic workflows could reshape professional services. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Andrew D’Souza, founder of Boardy and co-founder of Clearco, shares insights from his impressive journey in tech and finance. He discusses how Clearco revolutionized revenue-based financing before pivoting to create Boardy, an AI super connector for founders and investors. D’Souza reveals the power of voice in networking, the importance of building trust through introductions, and Boardy's innovative ventures into AI-led fundraising. He also dives into the future of AI and its potential to enhance creativity, making waves in the entrepreneurial landscape.

Erin Platts is the CEO of Octopus Ventures and former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank UK & Europe — one of the most pivotal figures in the UK tech ecosystem.In this conversation, Erin opens up in remarkable detail about her personal journey from two decades inside SVB to leading one of Europe’s most active venture firms. She shares the inside story of the SVB collapse — the all-nighters, the adrenaline, the leadership decisions made under extreme pressure, and what it was really like to shoulder responsibility for thousands of founders, operators and employees during a once-in-a-generation crisis.We then explore Erin’s new chapter at Octopus Ventures, and how she's shaping a platform that spans pre-seed to growth investing, powered by the unique capital model of the wider Octopus Group. We discuss the future of the UK ecosystem, the evolution of UK capital markets, and what needs to change to ensure the best founders choose to build and list here.In this episode we dive into: 🔥 The inside view of the SVB implosion — four days, 90 minutes of sleep, and how the team navigated full-blown crisis 🧭 Leadership principles forged through chaos: communication, context and visible leadership 🏦 Why Erin joined Octopus Ventures and how she plans to scale a multi-fund, multi-stage European VC platform 🌍 The capital continuum — and how the UK can close the growth and public-markets gap ⚡ Why founders underestimate their own agency in shaping the future of the ecosystem 🏛️ Erin’s role in the Capital Markets Industry Taskforce and what a healthier UK exit landscape could look like 🏫 Octopus’ growing footprint in education, financial services, and energy, including the rise of Octopus LegacyThis is one of the most candid conversations we’ve recorded — a masterclass in leadership, resilience and building through volatility. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Lee Veitch, Co-founder and Managing Director of SuperAwesome, shares insights on creating a safe digital space for kids, combating inappropriate online content. He discusses the evolution from TV to digital advertising, emphasizing child safety and ethical branding. Lee reflects on the company's growth, the impact of regulatory measures like COPPA and GDPR-K, and the decision to buy back the company from Epic Games. He reveals plans for Awesome Intelligence and fostering a mission-driven culture, highlighting humor as essential for team dynamics.

Dan Lifshits, Co-founder and CEO of Dwelly, an innovative AI-focused property management platform, shares insights on revolutionizing the UK rental market. He highlights the efficiency of the roll-up model, acquiring traditional agencies to scale rapidly. Lifshits discusses integrating AI for improved lettings, maintenance, and communication. He also reflects on the challenges of investor skepticism, the importance of relocating for operational synergy, and the unique criteria for agency acquisitions. Explore how AI roll-ups are set to redefine industries!

Hector is joined by Gauthier van Malderen, Founder and CEO of Perlego, the “Spotify for textbooks” and one of Europe’s leading edtech scale-ups.Gauthier shares the remarkable journey of building Perlego from a personal frustration with expensive university textbooks into a global subscription platform transforming access to educational content. He reflects on early failures, the turning points that led to success, and how COVID accelerated the company’s growth.The discussion dives deep into topics including:Solving the chicken-and-egg problem of marketplace growthThe power of B2B partnerships in edtechBuilding a resilient and mission-driven cultureHiring mistakes, founder evolution, and staying authentic as a CEOLessons from scaling internationally and the differences between European and US venture ecosystemsGauthier also shares his thoughts on leadership, founder ambition, and why being “more American” changed his mindset on growth and success.A candid and inspiring conversation about persistence, humility, and global ambition from one of Europe’s standout founders. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

This week on Riding Unicorns, we’re joined by Paul Becker, Co-Founder & CEO of re:cap, a fintech platform helping digital businesses unlock capital and understand their financial position through intelligent forecasting, real-time data insights, and flexible financing.In this wide-ranging conversation, Paul walks us through re:cap’s journey from an idea for automated due diligence software to becoming one of Europe’s fastest-growing capital platforms, recently securing over €125M in debt financing to power its next phase.We explore the intricacies of fintech business models, investor expectations, the realities of growing a company during AI hype cycles, and what it takes to build enduring value in modern financial infrastructure.In this episode, we discuss:💰 How re:cap evolved from an underwriting tool to a full capital + finops engine 📊 Why Paul obsesses over gross margin more than revenue — and how that influenced product decisions 🚨 Lessons from building through hype: “growth at all costs” vs quality of revenue 🧠 The role of AI in financial tooling — and why re:cap built its copilot carefully and quietly 🏗️ Building a remote-first, values-aligned company from day one 📍 What it’s like starting multiple companies with the same co-founders — and how friendship and complementary skills helped them scale 🔁 “Back to the future”: how re:cap is returning to its original thesis, now with product-market fit 🌍 Vision: re:cap as the capital allocation engine for the modern CFO 📉 How investor expectations flipped 180° in 18 months — and why Paul sticks to economic logic over trend-followingEveryday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Ali first joined us in January 2022, when Babylon was still one of the most ambitious healthtech companies in the world. Today, he returns with a new mission, building Quadrivia and its clinical AI assistant, “Qu”, designed to automate millions of repetitive healthcare workflows and rebalance the global shortage of clinical labour.In this episode, Ali reflects candidly on the rise and fall of Babylon, the structural challenges behind its collapse, and the lessons he’s applying to his new venture. He also explains why he believes AI finally offers the chance to create abundance in healthcare, and how Quadrivia’s technology can deliver trusted, autonomous support for doctors, nurses, and patients alike.🧠 Key topics discussed: 💡 The structural imbalance between global healthcare supply and demand and how AI can finally fix it 🏥 Babylon’s story: what went right, what went wrong, and what Ali learned from the SPAC era 🤖 Introducing Quadrivia’s “Qu”: a clinical AI that can handle patient calls, follow-ups, and real‑time triage 🔐 Building trust in AI: safety, guardrails, and how to design human‑in‑the‑loop autonomy 🎧 Live demo — a real patient conversation handled entirely by AI 📈 Why the future of healthcare lies in clinical process outsourcing powered by intelligent agents 🧩 Building small, fast, focused team, and why scale isn’t the goal (yet) 💬 Lessons on leadership, luck, and surviving the infinite game of entrepreneurshipAli also shares his candid reflections on failure, resilience, and what it really takes to build world-changing technology in one of the hardest industries imaginable.A fascinating, raw, and inspiring conversation with one of the most visionary founders in global healthtech and a glimpse into how AI could redefine the future of care. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Sam Jacobs is the Co-Founder of Go Places, the operating system for social commerce.In just 18 months, Go Places has become a trusted partner to some of the world’s biggest brands including Samsung, Mars, The Body Shop, and Trip. Backed by deep experience from Amazon and Coca-Cola, Sam and his co-founder Jack are building the infrastructure layer for TikTok Shop, combining performance, content, live shopping, affiliate management and analytics into a single high-performance engine.Go Places runs 9 in-house live shopping studios (growing to 25 next year), manages 60+ trained presenters, and has developed AI-powered tools like One Place - a real-time data platform that helps brands understand the full impact of social commerce beyond the TikTok checkout.We dive deep into:📈 The rise of TikTok Shop and why social commerce isn’t just a trend — it’s becoming a core pillar of brand distribution 🎥 Lessons from China’s live shopping boom and why it’s just getting started in the West 🛠️ Building infrastructure: from creator training to studio logistics and custom AI tooling 💡 How enterprise brands are learning to think like challenger brands in social commerce 🤖 AI’s role in content generation, performance analysis, and dynamic presenter optimisation 🚀 Scaling a startup from 6 to 35 people in 12 months — while maintaining speed and culture 🧠 The underrated skill every founder needs: how to sell 🌍 Why luxury brands are coming to TikTok Shop — and how Go Places helps them adaptPlus, Sam shares his North Star vision, the wildest stat from TikTok Shop, his dream dinner guests (including Mourinho and Ryan Reynolds), and his future unicorn pick in AI-powered finance support.This is a must-listen for anyone interested in the future of commerce, creator-led brands, or scaling complex operations at speed. Sam brings clarity, ambition, and sharp execution to one of the most exciting spaces in consumer tech right now. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Akash Bajwa, Principal at Earlybird VC, one of Europe’s longest-standing early-stage funds.Akash shares his journey into venture and how he helped launch Earlybird’s London office, now a core hub for the firm. We dive into the state of AI investing, how to distinguish enduring companies from short-term hype, and what traits define the next wave of outlier founders.With experience backing companies like Briefcase (AI for accountants) and Spatial (3D generative AI), Akash offers a deep and practical perspective on both infrastructure and application-layer AI—and how to evaluate founder-market fit in the era of LLMs.In this episode, we discuss:🧠 What “the art of early-stage” really means at Earlybird🤖 AI-native founders vs experienced SaaS veterans – who wins?💡 Infra vs apps – where to invest, and how to spot defensibility🚀 Why velocity and learning rate matter more than credentials⚠️ Red herrings in AI and why some infra startups vanish overnight🛠️ From vector DBs to prompt tooling – what survives when labs move fast🔎 Deep dive on recent Earlybird investments including Briefcase and Spatial💬 Why go-to-market insight is more valuable than tech alone🔮 How to underwrite GenAI founders in an environment that’s changing monthlyWhether you're building at the frontier of AI, trying to raise your seed round, or navigating a product roadmap in a fast-moving category, this conversation offers frameworks you’ll want to revisit. Everyday AI: Your daily guide to grown with Generative AICan't keep up with AI? We've got you. Everyday AI helps you keep up and get ahead.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify