The Baking Soda Podcast: Featuring Startup Companies on the Rise

Hosted by Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

Technology

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Latest episode

Dec 2024

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EN-US

About the show

What is universal, critical, unlimited in use cases, frequently innovated, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with some inspiration from baking soda. We believe that successful startups share the same properties as this magical powder – namely, being essential, effective and adaptable. Together, and with all of you, we’ll delve further into the journey of early-stage companies and their adventurous CEOs. Join us for our quick ~30 minute episodes; we hope you will subscribe!

Listen to episodes

12 recent

December 18, 2024Episode 1242 min

Workweek: Reshaping professional networks for this century

Join us as we chat with Adam Ryan, Co-founder and CEO of Workweek, and Hebba Youssef, CPO and Creator of I Hate It Here. Workweek is reshaping professional networks by combining expert-driven B2B newsletters, podcasts, and exclusive communities to help business leaders connect and learn.Adam shares the vision behind Workweek’s success, powering brands like Hospitology and I Hate It Here with over 500K subscribers. Hebba discusses her journey as a creator, building one of the largest HR communities, and how Workweek cuts through the noise with meaningful, industry-specific networks.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

November 11, 2024Episode 1144 min

LanceDB: Building developer-friendly, multi-modal vector databases

Join us as we dive into the transformative world of vector databases with Brittany Nguyen and Chang Li. In this episode, they share how LanceDB, a developer-friendly open-source database, is redefining data management for AI. With hyper-scalable vector search, advanced retrieval for RAG, and streaming training data, LanceDB provides a powerful foundation for AI applications.Discover how LanceDB tackles key pain points in AI data handling, from complex data structures to licensing challenges, all while championing accessibility and community engagement. Brittany and Chang also highlight the metrics that truly reflect LanceDB’s impact, moving beyond star counts to focus on active contributors, issue resolution, and community interaction.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

August 8, 2024Episode 1029 min

Delightree: Building the franchise super app

Join us as we dive into the untapped world of franchising technology with Tushar Shah, co-founder and CEO of Delightree. In this episode, Tushar shares how Delightree is revolutionizing the franchise industry with their innovative "franchise super app," streamlining operations for both franchisors (Zors) and franchisees (Zees)Discover how Delightree is addressing unsolved pain points in franchising, from fragmented operations to outdated technology, by providing a centralized platform for tasks, training, communication, and resource management. Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

June 4, 2024Episode 932 min

Wispr: Creating a future of seamless human-technology interfaces

Join us for an engaging episode with Tanay Kothari, CEO and co-founder of Wispr. He'll dive into how Wispr's voice AI product Flow is pioneering a new computing paradigm by capturing the intent behind natural speech using neurotechnology and AI.Discover the challenges of building a cutting-edge voice interface that seamlessly integrates into existing user behaviors. Learn about Wispr's approach to attracting elite talent across multiple disciplines and Tanay's philosophy on nurturing team motivation.Explore how Flow blends the familiar and unfamiliar to deliver an intuitive voice experience that could revolutionize human-machine interaction beyond traditional screens and keyboards.Don't miss this glimpse into the future of voice interfaces. Visit FlowVoice.ai and mention "Baking Soda Podcast" to skip the waitlist.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

April 11, 2024Episode 826 min

Hexus: Supercharging growth with essential AI-powered product collateral

Join us for an engaging episode with Sakshi Pratap, CEO and founder of Hexus AI, as we discuss the transformative impact of their AI-powered platform on product marketing and education. Hexus AI is pioneering in creating comprehensive content, from interactive demos to emails, speeding up market entry and improving product understanding.Hear Wesley Tillu from Section 32 ask about about Sakshi's experiences at Stairwell, Google, and Oracle that led her to create Hexus AI. We'll delve into how Hexus empowers teams beyond designers to craft compelling content and the significance of personalization in enhancing user experiences.Learn how Hexus AI is reshaping product marketing, aiding companies in navigating the shift towards product-led growth, especially in technical and B2B spaces. This episode highlights the role of AI in modernizing product education and marketing, making Hexus a key figure in the industry.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

February 20, 2024Episode 727 min

Emissary: The effective AI-platform for model distillation

Join us for an engaging podcast episode with Tanmay Chopra, CEO and founder of Emissary. He'll delve into how Emissary's proprietary AI platform is transforming the way enterprises approach AI, making it more accessible and productive. Emissary excels in model distillation and continuous iteration, helping companies transition from impressive AI demos to practical, ROI-positive applications that meet real-world needs.Discover how Emissary addresses the challenges Tanmay encountered as a machine learning engineer at Neeva and TikTok. Learn about their approach to making AI understandable and usable in various business contexts, including content compression, expansion, and transformation. This innovative method is not just about technology advancement but also about solving actual business problems, a concept that is revolutionizing AI's role in the enterprise world.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

November 16, 2023Episode 625 min

Constructable: AI-powered search for construction teams delivered in seconds

Join us for an insightful podcast episode with Emma and Molly, co-founders of Constructable (YC S23). They'll discuss how their AI chat tool is revolutionising construction management. Constructable integrates data from various sources like Procore, emails, and documents, quickly answering critical queries such as 'What slope is needed for drainage?' This innovative approach tackles “bad data” issues in construction, a challenge that cost the industry $1.85 trillion in 2020.Discover how Constructable's AI-powered search is transforming the sector, enabling construction managers to find answers in seconds, which used to take hours, thereby helping to prevent costly mistakes.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

October 3, 2023Episode 525 min

Vellum: Productionizing the Development of Reliable LLM Apps

Join us as we delve into an enlightening dialogue with Sidd Seethepalli, CTO & Co-founder of Vellum, to discuss the future of LLM apps in the ever-changing landscape of GenAI. Vellum is simplifying the development process and setting new standards for reliability and efficiency. Their platform has already become essential for dozens of companies, aiding them in streamlining their engineering workflows.If you haven't yet heard of Sidd or Vellum, seize this opportunity to learn how they're ensuring the creation of reliable and quick-to-build LLM apps, making it possible for GenAI to have a tangible impact today.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

September 5, 2023Episode 423 min

Power: Simplifying Clinical Trial Enrollment For All Patients

Join us as we engage in a compelling conversation with Brandon Li, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Power, to discuss the crisis in clinical trial enrollment. In a world where 85% of trials fail to meet enrolment goals, Power is bridging the gap between all patients and vital research. Their platform has already enabled 7,000+ participants to join various trials.If you haven't yet heard of Brandon or Power, don't miss this chance to learn how they're democratising access to life-changing research.Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah

July 30, 2023Episode 322 min

Fractional: Real Estate Investment, Made Inclusive

Join us as we sit down with Stella Han, Co-Founder and CEO of Fractional (YC W21), and discover her incredible journey of buying land in Mexico with her co-founder Carlos. Today, Fractional has made real estate investing as accessible as, well, Baking Soda! They've facilitated the purchase of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of homes.If you haven’t heard of Stella or Fractional, now’s the time to listen in as we explore how her team is changing real estate investing for us all. Why baking soda? What is universal, essential, unlimited in use cases, effective and reliable? Hopefully, your startup, especially with inspiration from this household powder. Co-hosted by: Arif Damji & Kahini Shah