Startup Hustle

Startup Hustle
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Startup Hustle is a podcast for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs.  With the mission of telling the real story of startups and entrepreneurs, topics range from funding to failure and beyond.  If you want to start, own, or build a business then you're in the right place.   

  1. 5 hrs ago

    Building the Ramp of the Philippines: Fintech for the Underbanked

    "There are eight digital banks trying to build the Chime of the Philippines. No one's building the Ramp or the Brex. That's the opportunity." I talked with Zach Marks, founder and CEO of Jia, on Startup Hustle this week. Jia is building modern digital banking for small businesses in emerging markets, starting in the Philippines, powered by an AI credit engine that turns messy, handwritten paperwork into an underwriting decision in minutes instead of weeks. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ Why small businesses in emerging markets are so underserved, and why banks there take zero risk while asking founders to put their house up as collateral ⚡ How Zach went from teaching English and befriending samosa vendors in India to launching fintech markets across 15+ countries ⚡ How Jia's AI credit engine cuts a three-week manual underwriting file down to minutes, with a low non-performing loan rate ⚡ The real story of doing business in the Philippines, from BIR shakedowns to why the best local talent still beats every other emerging market ⚡ Why building a strong local culture and hiring leaders who embody it matters more than anything when you hire abroad If you're building in fintech, emerging markets, or with an offshore team, this one is worth your time. Listen to the Startup Hustle podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts! ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 01:16 Introduction and Guest Background 02:20 Starting in Construction and Key Clients 03:24 The Inspiration Behind the Book 04:23 Early Life Challenges and Lessons Learned 07:03 Common Entrepreneurial Traits and Backgrounds 09:38 Key Lessons from the Book 10:27 Business Lessons for Tech Entrepreneurs 11:55 Impact of AI on Construction and Design 13:50 Acquiring Big Name Clients and Referrals 16:24 Building a Scalable Business Model 18:24 The Power of Case Studies and Content Marketing 20:05 Showcasing Work Through Content and Videos 24:00 Final Advice and Closing Remarks Links & ResourcesConnect with Zach Marks on LinkedIn Jia - https://jia.xyz/ Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you're trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead. Unlock working capital with Jia

  2. Aug 20

    Nothing to Lose: What Really Drives Entrepreneurs

    "There's no magical growth lever. You just do a good job, every day, for 23 years, and the referrals do the rest." I talked with Matt Watts, founder of MWA Projects and author of Made With Ambition, on Startup Hustle this week. Matt designs and builds some of the most striking commercial spaces in the world, from Jimmy Choo's London HQ to Nike showrooms, Net-a-Porter, and a new lounge for Netflix. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ Why there's no magic growth lever, and how one great job snowballed into Nike, Hermès, ASOS, and Stella McCartney through pure referral ⚡ How a difficult childhood and a bitter divorce shaped the risk appetite so many entrepreneurs share, playing not to lose instead of playing to win ⚡ The AI horror story where a tool invented 10 years of Harrods experience for his head of facilities "because it thought it sounded better" ⚡ Why case studies are the mistake too many founders skip, and how showing beats telling in a visual business ⚡ Why the CEO has to drive the marketing, and why "TikTok next week" is now on the agenda ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:48 Introduction and Guest Background 01:52 Starting in Construction and Key Clients 03:18 The Inspiration Behind the Book 03:55 Early Life Challenges and Lessons Learned 06:35 Common Entrepreneurial Traits and Backgrounds 09:09 Key Lessons from the Book 09:59 Business Lessons for Tech Entrepreneurs 11:27 Impact of AI on Construction and Design 13:22 Acquiring Big Name Clients and Referrals 15:56 Building a Scalable Business Model 17:56 The Power of Case Studies and Content Marketing 19:37 Showcasing Work Through Content and Videos 23:32 Final Advice and Closing Remarks Links & ResourcesConnect with Matt Watts on LinkedIn Website: MWA Projects What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you're building a business the slow, durable way, this one is worth your time. Listen to the Startup Hustle podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts!

  3. Aug 13

    The 2026 State of IT Staffing: Trends in Hiring, AI, and Offshore

    "Both things are true. Software jobs are projected to grow 15%, and 74% of employers say they can't fill the roles. That's the whole story of IT staffing in 2026." This week on Startup Hustle, Matt Brown, Full Scale's head of marketing, put me in the guest chair to walk through our new State of IT Staffing report, a data-heavy look at where tech hiring actually stands heading into 2026. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ The 2026 paradox, why the field isn't shrinking but the entry ramp into it is breaking, with new-grad hiring down 65% at big tech ⚡ Why the job shifted from "engineering" back to "development," and why AI made product thinking the scarce skill ⚡ Why AI sped up the typing but left the judgment exactly as hard, so the value moved to senior people ⚡ Why retention is the number the industry can't fake, and why AI turned it from nice-to-have into the whole game ⚡ Why software has never been cheaper to build, and why that's a reason to build more, not cut If you're hiring engineers, leading a team, or building a career in software, this one is worth your time. ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:33 Introduction and overview of the episode 02:39 Full scale's employee satisfaction and recognition 05:30 The impact of AI on software development roles 10:40 The 2026 paradox: job growth vs. role filling 15:35 The importance of product thinking and customer feedback 20:36 Decoupling headcount from output with AI 25:21 Remote work, location independence, and cultural shifts 30:37 Running engineering teams in 2026 and beyond 35:35 The need for strategic focus and organizational agility 40:37 Conclusion and key takeaways from the episode Links & Resources Read the full report - [https://fullscale.io/blog/state-of-it-staffing/ Full Scale(https://fullscale.io/blog/state-of-it-staffing) – Build your dev team quickly and affordably What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint If you're trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead.

  4. Aug 6

    Why AI Made Software Engineers More Human

    "AI scribes are just a feature. The record of clinical judgment is the moat." I talked with Kush Shah, founder and CEO of Noted Dent, on Startup Hustle this week. Noted Dent uses AI to handle clinical documentation for dentists, so practitioners aren't stuck writing notes at 11pm or on the weekend, and so they're covered when the auditors and health funds come knocking. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ Why vibe coding gets you to an MVP and no further, and why Kush deleted 8,000 lines of AI-generated code in three months ⚡ Why the job of a software engineer has changed, and how AI has actually made it more human ⚡ Why demand, not product, is the hardest thing in any business, even eight years in ⚡ Why startups are the best place for young engineers to learn, and why job-title silos hold them back ⚡ What actually makes the leap to CEO so hard when you come from a technical background If you're a technical founder, an engineer eyeing your next move, or anyone building in a regulated space, this one is worth your time. Listen to the Startup Hustle podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts! ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 01:06 Introduction and Anthony Jackson's background 02:47 Is software development dead again? 03:48 The impact of AI on coding and human judgment 04:41 The importance of responsibility in software development 06:33 The challenge of product management and customer feedback 10:52 Transitioning from individual contributor to manager 12:00 Building effective teams and leadership culture 15:14 Anthony Jackson's leadership OS book and approach 19:00 The significance of company and team culture 21:41 The impact of good and bad managers 22:06 Anthony Jackson's newsletter and coaching 23:48 Connecting software developers with customers 25:40 Empathy for users and understanding their experience 29:06 Where to find Anthony Jackson's resources and books Links & ResourcesConnect with Kush Shah on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kush-shah-kush/ Noted Dent - https://noteddent.com/ What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you’re trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead. Follow the show, rate it, and send this to someone who’s still trying to do “real Scrum.” They need it more than you do.

  5. Jul 30

    LeadershipOS Decoded: Building Teams That Run Without You in the Room

    "Back in the 1900s when I was crossing the Great Plains in a covered wagon, programming in the back, the cover headline was: Software Development is Dead." I talked with Anthony Jackson, a CTO with 30 years across healthcare tech and enterprise software and author of the Architecture Protocol series, on Startup Hustle this week. Anthony is the creator of LeadershipOS, a framework for building teams that keep running when the leader isn't in the room. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ Why "software development is dead" has been a headline for 30+ years, and why the human judgment layer never goes away ⚡ Why the real gap isn't more engineers, it's product people (and engineers who think like them) ⚡ What actually changes when you go from individual contributor to manager, and why almost no company trains you for it ⚡ Why every line of code still needs a name attached to it, especially in regulated industries ⚡ How "lossy compression" quietly ruins decisions as they filter up and back down through management ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:32 Introduction and Anthony Jackson's background 02:13 Is software development dead again? 03:14 The impact of AI on coding and human judgment 04:07 The importance of responsibility in software development 05:59 The challenge of product management and customer feedback 10:18 Transitioning from individual contributor to manager 11:36 Building effective teams and leadership culture 14:41 Anthony Jackson's leadership OS book and approach 18:26 The significance of company and team culture 21:07 The impact of good and bad managers 21:38 Anthony Jackson's newsletter and coaching 23:14 Connecting software developers with customers 25:06 Empathy for users and understanding their experience 28:18 Where to find Anthony Jackson's resources and books Links & ResourcesConnect with Anthony Jackson on LinkedIn Anthony Jackson's Website - https://technicaleader.coach What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you’re trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead. Follow the show, rate it, and send this to someone who’s still trying to do “real Scrum.” They need it more than you do.

  6. Jul 23

    It's Not About the Code. It's About the Problem.

    I don't view engineers being out of a job. I view software engineers finally coming back to a real job." I talked with Adrian Gutierrez, co-founder of Ledgre, on Startup Hustle this week. Ledgre is an AI-native accounting platform built specifically for real estate investors, putting agentic AI to work doing the bookkeeping instead of handing you one more piece of software to manage. Here's what you'll get out of it: ⚡ Why he was the startup's bookkeeper by hand for a year before writing a line of product, and why doing things manually first is the shortcut ⚡ Why AI didn't kill software engineering, it exposed that distribution and the value prop were always the hard part ⚡ Why domain knowledge beat his development skills every time when getting Ledgre off the ground ⚡ What running a startup as a digital nomad across Europe, Spain, and Argentina taught him about which problems are actually worth solving ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:42 Introduction to Adrian Gutierrez and Ledger 01:04 Adrian's background in FinTech and PropTech 00:49 The origin story of Ledgre and market gaps 02:54 How AI is transforming property management tools 04:11 Adrian's experience owning rental properties 05:18 The importance of domain knowledge in product development 06:18 Manual bookkeeping and workflow complexity 07:15 Scaling wisely and understanding problems before automating 08:24 The importance of iteration and customer feedback 08:52 Challenges of outreach and building relationships 10:16 Cold outreach and response rates 11:03 The impact of AI on distribution and problem-solving 12:10 AI exposing weaknesses in traditional software development 13:36 Reviving software engineering practices with AI 14:32 Shift in marketing and distribution roles 15:55 Using AI for marketing and SEO automation 17:22 AI's role in software development and team management 21:10 Living as a digital nomad and its impact on business 22:45 Traveling and understanding global fintech landscapes 24:33 Financial and payment infrastructure differences worldwide 25:13 The value of solving real problems in different markets 25:48 How to learn more about Ledger and Adrian If you're building a product, leading engineers, or working in fintech and proptech, this one is worth your time. Listen to the Startup Hustle podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts! Links & Resources Connect with Adrian Gutierrez on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrian--gutierrez/ Ledgre Website - https://www.ledgre.ai/

  7. Jun 25

    The Speed of Context: Why AI Changed What Engineers Actually Do

    Most engineering teams are still optimizing for the wrong thing. They chase the speed of code when the real bottleneck is the speed of context. Matt Watson and Eban Bisong, founder and CEO of Senvi, get into what actually changes when AI moves from a coding tool to a teammate. Eban has spent his career as a founding engineer, and his approach is hands-on: don't tell skeptical engineers AI works, show them, every standup, until the pushback turns into excitement. At Park DNA he built "RTD2," an OpenClaw-powered droid wired read-only into their data sources, Slack, and Jira. It answered support questions before an engineer could, created its own bug tickets, and joined meetings through Fireflies so nothing got lost. The lesson underneath all of it: record everything, because the team that captures the most context ships the right thing fastest. Matt also shares his own three-week rabbit hole with Claude Cowork, $8K in tokens, a fully rebuilt Full Scale website, a thousand dead blog posts deleted, and 200 more rewritten. They go a few rounds on why it's a bad time to be a coder but a great time to be a builder, why "good enough" is a real standard and not a cop-out, and why ownership beats asking permission every time. If you build software or lead an engineering team, listen now. And if you want to try Eban's voice-first AI journal, visit senvi.ai. ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:42 From Founding Engineer to Solo Founder 01:52 Using AI as an Engineering Leader 03:24 Building RTD2: An AI Teammate for Support 05:27 The Speed of Context, Not Code 06:11 Why You Should Record Everything 08:59 Winning Over AI-Skeptical Engineers 11:50 The AI Spectrum Across 80 Clients 13:35 A Bad Time to Be a Coder, a Great Time to Build 14:03 Why "Good Enough" Is Good Enough 14:52 Human-in-the-Loop and Reviewing AI's Work 16:28 Going All-In on Senvi 19:01 Validating the Product With a Beta Group 21:01 Bootstrapping a Truly AI-Native Company Links & ResourcesConnect with Eban Bisong on LinkedIn Senvi.ai - senvi.ai What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you’re trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead. Follow the show, rate it, and send this to someone who’s still trying to do “real Scrum.” They need it more than you do.

  8. Jun 18

    AI, Protein, and GLP-1s: What's Actually Working in Health Tech

    Most people are already asking AI about their health. Almost none of them believe the answers. Around 40% use it to make wellness choices, but fewer than 5% trust what it says. Matt Watson and Josh Anthony, CEO of Nlumn, dig into why. Josh has spent 25 years in food and nutrition, and his take is blunt: trust drops fast as the question gets serious, from a recipe to a diagnosis, and the fix isn't a smarter chatbot. It's pairing the data with a human people actually trust. They cover what's real right now too. The protein obsession. Beans having a moment. GLP-1s and why weight loss is now about saving muscle, not just dropping fat. Why people are building their own messy personalization stacks because no single company does it well. Matt also explains why he flat out ignores his doctors on cholesterol, and he and Josh go a few rounds on whether ultra-processed food is the problem or a missed opportunity. If you build or invest in health products, listen now. And if you want help with personalized nutrition, reach Josh@nlumn.com or info@nlumn.com. ⏱️ Episode Breakdown 00:28 Introduction to Health Tech and AI 03:36 Trust in AI for Health and Nutrition 06:29 Personalization in Health and Nutrition 09:26 Emerging Trends in Health Tech 12:23 The Role of GLP-1 in Weight Management 15:29 Challenges in the Food Industry 18:37 Innovative Products in Health and Nutrition Links & ResourcesConnect with Joshua Anthony on LinkedIn Nlumn Website - https://www.nlumn.com/ Email - mailto: info@nlumn.com What Smart CTOs Are Doing Differently With Offshore Teams in 2025 Subscribe to the Global Talent Sprint Full Scale – Build your dev team quickly and affordably If you’re trying to get your team out of the basement and into real product ownership, this episode is your playbook. Stop being a ticket factory. Build teams that think, create, and lead.

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About

Startup Hustle is a podcast for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs.  With the mission of telling the real story of startups and entrepreneurs, topics range from funding to failure and beyond.  If you want to start, own, or build a business then you're in the right place.   

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  • Creator
    Startup Hustle
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    1.4K
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2024 Startup Hustle
  • Show Website
    Startup Hustle