A conversation with industry experts on what makes AI products truly take off.

Decorative image — Meet the experts: AI founder looking for funding?
What does it take to build an AI product that truly takes off? Ofer Shayo (Ignite London) and Tesh Srivastava (Daedalus) share their candid take from Fora’s Jellicoe building.

“You need an insatiable drive to make it because no sane person would go on this journey.”
Ofer ShayoManaging Director, Ignite

How has fundraising changed for AI startups?

OFER: It’s now so much easier to build an MVP [minimum viable product], so the initial product needs to be more developed than before. In 45 minutes, we could sit here and build some sort of product. Does that mean that it’s fundable? No, but the bar has been raised in terms of what you need to bring to the table for fundraising.

TESH: Everyone can now do more with less, so you must go further before you try to raise investment. Now, an MVP is what you used to call a ‘version two’. You have to deliver more before we get to that fundraising conversation.

What characteristics do successful teams have in common?

OFER: You’ve got to be very tenacious and driven. You’re going to hear a lot of ‘no’s, and you have to accept that. You need an insatiable drive to make it because no sane person would go on this journey. It’s a bit like a Bollywood film; you’ve got to love the journey as much as the destination, because the destination is likely to end in failure.

TESH: I like to see smart people that are hungry but also humble, and it relates to what you just said. If you think that you know everything, it will be very hard to connect with people and solve conflicts. Teams need a good balance with everyone being respected but also able to challenge each other.

What makes a pitch stand out and what are the red flags?

OFER: A good deck should be short and simple.Don't make it too technical. Explain the value you’re going to bring to the world. What's the vision? What's the bigger story? And, you need to inspire the investors about how big the product can be internationally. The UK is a strong starting point, but founders should think globally from day one if they want to scale fast.

TESH: I agree with all that. I also think a common misconception is the purpose of the deck. It's not to get investment; it’s to open a conversation.
People put too much information into it and make it overly complex, when no-one is ever going to give you money just based on the deck. I had a friend that worked for a venture capital firm in London and he got about a thousand decks every single week, so it must stand out.

“The advice I’d give is to put your ego aside. You don't have to win every battle.”
Tesh SrivastavaCEO & Co-Founder, Daedalus

Do you share some people’s concerns about the growth of AI?

OFER: I’m very excited about AI but I am also concerned about how it's used. We are already seeing examples across the industry of how AI can be misused, and how quickly the technology can create unintended consequences if it is not guided responsibly. The key is education, education and education. People need to understand that with power comes responsibility.

Developers and users have to think beyond what is exciting and consider the wider impact on society, global influence and geopolitics. AI can create enormous value, but we need awareness and guidance to ensure it is used for good.

TESH: I’ve been in a few parliamentary roundtables about AI and I don’t think anyone quite knows what to do yet. But there is an active effort to do something and my gut feel is we’ll probably have frameworks and guidelines rather than specific rules. How useful that will be, and how compliant big players will be, I don’t know.

My biggest concern is actually the nature of work going forward when so many basic skills are automated. When I was at KPMG, I used to take meeting minutes. I was 23 years old and I was in the room with CEOs of large banks, accompanying my director. I had no right to be in that room but I learned through osmosis. Now you can just have those minutes automated, so the grad doesn’t get in the room. How do you learn important things without being around the conversations?

What career advice would you give your younger self?

TESH: I started this journey in my mid-20s and I was very ego-led when I was younger. I always needed to win. The advice I’d give is to try and put your ego aside because you don’t have to win every battle. I also really cared about what other people thought – not just in terms of work – and that wasted a lot of time.

OFER: I look at the big picture when I’m making tactical or strategic decisions now. When there is a conflict with an employee, partner, customer or investor, it’s good to consider the bigger picture over the long term. Building a company is a marathon. Many things that look like a crisis are just an obstacle that you can easily overcome if you’re looking at the big picture. This is something I learned later which I wish I'd known earlier.

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