Startup Founders Can Accelerate Their Fundraising with Boxsy

Elisabeth Bykoff went from aerospace engineering in France to building Boxsy, an AI-powered platform that helps startups scale operationally while connecting them with investors and ecosystem partners. In this episode, she shares her 20+ year journey in the US, the challenges of being a non-technical founder in AI, and why she believes the venture ecosystem needs more transparency on both sides.

What You'll Learn:

• How to transition from services to product companies successfully
• Why taking calculated risks as an immigrant entrepreneur pays off
• The evolution from "ops in a box" to agentic COO platforms
• How AI is changing fundraising and startup operations
• Why VCs and startups both need more transparency
• The challenges of losing multiple CTOs as a non-technical founder

⏰ KEY TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Introduction: Meet Elisabeth Bykoff, Founder of Boxsy

02:30 - From French Aerospace Engineering to Seattle (Early Background)

05:45 - The Boeing Rejection: Pivoting from Engineering to Business

09:15 - 10 Years at PWC: Building Salesforce Practice and Getting Green Card

12:00 - Leaving Partnership Track: Jumping into Pre-IPO World with Aptus

15:30 - Key Learning: Services vs. Product Company Transition

18:45 - Series A Experience: From $290M Revenue to $1M ARR

21:20 - The Boxsy Origin: "Ops in a Box" Concept During COVID

24:15 - 2023 Validation Year: Patient Approach to Market Research

27:40 - The Pivot Discovery: Investors Want Transparency Too

30:45 - Current Focus: Fundraising Readiness and Investor Matching

33:30 - Target Market: VCs Managing 10-400 Portfolio Companies

36:20 - The Challenge: Losing Two CTOs Since July 2024

39:15 - Non-Technical Founder Reality: Lovable vs. Months of Development

41:25 - Future Predictions: More Solo Entrepreneurs, Hands-On VCs

44:30 - Book Discussion: "French Landing" - 20 Stories from 20 Years

47:15 - Healthcare Horror Stories: Why Pet Insurance Makes More Sense

49:45 - Optimistic Outlook: AI as the Next Internet-Level Breakthrough

🔗 Connect with Elisabeth:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elisabethbykoff/

Read Her Book: "French Landing" (Available in audiobook, narrated by Elisabeth)

Website: https://www.boxsy.io/

🎯 About Boxsy: Boxsy is a unified platform helping founders raise faster and investors make smarter, data-backed decisions.

#Entrepreneurship #AI #StartupOperations #Fundraising #VentureCapital #Immigration #TechFounder #BookLaunch

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