In this episode, Ben Cera, founder of Polsia, breaks down how he built an AI platform designed to help people build and run businesses. At the time we filmed, Polsia was approaching a $9.5M annual run rate, with Ben as its only employee. We get into what he learned working under Travis Kalanick at CloudKitchens, the agents behind Polsia, and the human judgment that still matters when AI can handle more of the work.Made possible by Poppy AI, the sponsor of this episode.https://start.getpoppy.ai/joshua-mhHNpA QUICK NOTE BEFORE YOU WATCHI recorded this conversation with Ben in San Francisco earlier this year, around May/June. I’m sorry to Ben and everyone who’s been waiting that it took this long to release. A mix of personal challenges, production delays, and footage issues pushed it back, but I still wanted to share this conversation with you.A lot has happened at Polsia since we sat down. In September, it added publishing integrations for TikTok, Instagram, Facebook Pages, and Pinterest. On October 15, it announced more customized landing pages with automated visual checks. And on October 19, Ben shared that Polsia was approaching a $25M annual run rate and teased Polsia v2. For additional context, Polsia announced a $30M funding round at a $250M valuation on May 22. The numbers, pricing, and features discussed in the interview reflect the company at the time of recording. Run rate is an annualized snapshot, not revenue already earned or profit, and the revenue figures are company-reported. Some details have changed, but the lessons about building, finding customers, and using AI with intention are still worth hearing.IN THIS EPISODE▪ Why Polsia is “AI slop” spelled backwards▪ What Ben learned from five years working under Travis Kalanick at CloudKitchens▪ Reaching a $9.5M annual run rate as a solo founder▪ Testing demand with Facebook ads, a landing page, and a Typeform▪ Inside the agent stack: engineering, marketing, support, and research▪ Why Polsia works overnight and sends a morning update▪ The Meta Ads agent that creates video ads and manages campaigns▪ How Ben operates without other employees while working with outside partners▪ The marketing stunt where AI handled investor conversations▪ The 80/20 approach: automation alongside human taste and judgment▪ Why building a product is different from getting paying customers▪ His advice on marketing, experimenting, and putting your work out thereBEN CERA / POLSIAWebsite: https://polsia.comX: https://x.com/BenceraTHE BUILDING LEVERAGE PODCASTInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshualarosa.aiNewsletter: https://substack.com/@buildingleveragepodCHAPTERS00:00 Intro01:15 Polsia’s $9.5M Annual Run Rate and One-Person Team04:30 Why Polsia Is “AI Slop” Spelled Backwards07:10 Was Ben Technical Before Vibe Coding Polsia?10:45 Five Years Working Under Travis Kalanick at CloudKitchens14:20 The Biggest Lesson Travis Taught Him About Scaling18:05 Don’t Hire Until You’ve Closed 10 Customers Yourself21:30 Finding Demand and Working Toward Product-Market Fit25:15 Testing Demand With Facebook Ads and a Typeform29:00 Walking Through the Polsia Onboarding Flow34:38 The “Surprise Me” Feature38:18 Why Polsia Works Overnight42:08 Inside the Meta Ads Agent46:28 New Ideas vs. Existing Businesses50:13 Technical vs. Non-Technical Founders53:38 Staying Solo and Working With Outside Partners57:18 The Conflict That Made Ben Want to Build Alone1:01:03 Customer Stories and Unexpected Use Cases1:05:28 Letting AI Handle Investor Conversations1:09:13 Growth and Annual Run Rate at the Time of Recording1:12:58 The 80/20 Approach to AI and Human Judgment1:16:38 The One-Person Billion-Dollar Company Question1:19:23 Ben’s Marketing Advice for Founders1:22:08 Wrap-Up📩 Subscribe for new episodes!
