5 Key Advice on Starting an AI Business | Syncly Joseph Lee

Summary

Joseph, co-founder and CEO of Syncly, shares his journey in AI and entrepreneurship. Syncly, an AI platform for analyzing customer feedback, emerged after selling his previous company, SUALab, for $200 million. Joseph emphasizes that customers prioritize solutions over technology. He discusses the importance of understanding customer needs, building trust, and delivering value. Reflecting on AI's evolution and his experiences, Joseph highlights the need for a strong co-founder relationship and a customer-centric approach. His insights underscore the transformative potential of AI when aligned with genuine customer problems.

Takeaways

• 💡 Customers prioritize the value derived from a solution over the technology used, such as AI.
• 💼 Joseph, the co-founder and CEO of Syncly, emphasizes that the company's success was due to focusing on customer needs rather than the underlying technology.
• 📈 Syncly, an AI platform for understanding customer feedback, was sold for $200 million, showcasing the market's recognition of its value.
• 🚀 Joseph's previous company, SULab, also sold for $200 million, highlighting his track record in creating and selling successful AI-driven companies.
• 🔍 AI's ability to understand patterns is particularly useful in industries like manufacturing, where it can analyze defects more efficiently than humans.
• 📞 Joseph's strategy for finding the right market involved cold-calling 500 prospects in the fashion industry to find their pain points.
• 🤝 Building trust with customers is crucial for understanding their real problems, which can be achieved through community engagement and providing value upfront.
• 💡 The importance of social proof is underlined by leveraging services, schools, and personal networks to establish a company's reputation.
• 🔑 Joseph suggests that startups should focus on solving a specific 'hair on fire' problem rather than trying to outbid established products.
• 🛠 The approach of selling the founder's vision and commitment to solving customer problems, rather than an unfinished product, is highlighted.
• 🤖 The co-founder's compatibility and shared mindset, especially regarding prioritizing customer needs over technology, are key to a successful partnership.
• 🌐 Syncly aims to create a global product, moving beyond the Asian market focus of Joseph's previous company.

Q & A

Who is Joseph and what is his role in Syncly?

Joseph is the co-founder and CEO of Syncly, an AI platform that helps companies understand customer feedback at scale.

What was the initial challenge Joseph faced in his first company?

Joseph faced the challenge of finding the first ten customers and generating revenue, which took about three years.

What was the first vertical that Joseph's company targeted?

The first vertical they targeted was the fashion industry, despite having no prior connection to it.

How did Joseph's company approach potential customers in the fashion industry?

They called around 500 prospects in the fashion industry, essentially every company in Korea at the time, and personally visited factories to demonstrate their technology and algorithm.

What was the turning point for Joseph in understanding customer needs?

The turning point was when a customer told Joseph that they didn't care about the technology used, but rather about getting their job done using his solution.

What is the focus of Syncly as an AI platform?

Syncly focuses on helping companies understand customer feedback at scale, enabling everyone in the company to benefit from this feedback to build better products or conduct better marketing campaigns.

What was the impact of AlphaGo on Joseph's decision to enter the AI field?

AlphaGo, built by DeepMind, shocked the world by demonstrating that AI could outwit humans, which inspired Joseph to jump into AI and make a change.

What was the strategy Joseph used to prove the value of his company's technology?

Joseph offered a three-month trial period to prove the value of their technology. If the customers saw value, they would pay what they thought was valuable; otherwise, they wouldn't have to pay.

Why did Joseph decide to start a new company after selling his previous one?

Joseph wanted to enter a new, different market and domain, aiming to create a more global product.

What is Joseph's approach to understanding customer problems and building solutions?

Joseph emphasizes deeply understanding customers' workflows and daily lives, building trust, and providing value first through meetups or training sessions before offering a solution.

How does Joseph view the importance of co-founders in a startup?

Joseph believes that finding co-founders is like a marriage, requiring a great fit and complementary skill sets to work together effectively and build the best company.