In this episode of The Savage Leader Podcast, Darren Reinke chats with Aaron Fulkerson, CEO of Opaque Systems. Aaron discusses his transition from entrepreneurship to ServiceNow and how he's found his way back to the entrepreneurial world. He also discusses the issue of trust erosion within the technology sector and how Opaque Systems is spearheading efforts to rebuild this trust through secure application development for collaborative analytics and AI.

Opaque Systems is on a mission to unlock the high-growth market of confidential computing by creating the first Confidential AI platform. It enables secure, collaborative analytics and the usage of AI on confidential and sensitive data stored in Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs).

Show Notes:

• Aaron’s journey from entrepreneurship to ServiceNow to entrepreneurship again [01:10]
• Aaron’s transformative experience in taking time off, reconnecting with personal roots, and sparking new business ideas [02:12]
• How Opaque Systems led Aaron back to entrepreneurship [04:29]
• How UC Berkeley's RISE Lab led to the founding of Opaque Systems [06:48]
• Opaque’s mission and the importance of privacy in data utilization [10:43]
• Addressing the erosion of trust in tech and how Opaque Systems is enabling developers to secure user data and rebuild consumer trust [13:13]
• Balancing entrepreneurship with personal life and strategies for managing work, family, and self-care [14:39]
• The importance of physical and mental fitness in maintaining balance and enhancing productivity [17:08]
• How Aaron plans to capitalize on the rapid developments in artificial intelligence [22:10]
• Generative AI's transformative impact on society and the industry [28:29]
• Aaron's approach to making a positive impact [30:32]

Links:

• Aaron’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronfulkerson/
• Opaque’s Website: https://opaque.co/