In this episode of Tacos & Tech, Neal Bloom sits down with longtime friend, founder, and self-described “Maine Melon,” Jared Ruth, founder of Ripcurrent. What starts as a walk down memory lane through San Diego’s early startup ecosystem turns into a wide-ranging conversation about entrepreneurship, marketing, AI, and the human moments technology should protect - not replace.

Jared shares his journey from decades in telecom and corporate innovation to building Ripcurrent, a marketing and automation agency focused on Main Street businesses. Together, Neal and Jared unpack how generative AI and no-code tools have radically lowered the barrier to building, why small businesses are both overwhelmed and empowered by tech, and how the next era of marketing isn’t about shouting louder - it’s about removing friction so humans can show up where it matters most.

Key Topics Covered

* Jared’s path from telecom and corporate innovation to founding Ripcurrent

* Early days of San Diego’s startup ecosystem, Founder Dinners, and CTO roundtables

* Building “startups inside big companies” and why that experience matters

* The moment GenAI unlocked solo building and rapid experimentation

* Vibe coding, no-code tools, and the rise of AI-native workflows

* Why small and Main Street businesses struggle with modern marketing tech

* Google Business Profiles, search, and what visibility means in an LLM-driven world

* Automation as a way to remove transactional work - not human connection

* Where AI agents help brands and where they can quietly destroy trust

* Why trust and brand moments matter more than the underlying technology

* Parallels between AI adoption and autonomous driving trust curves

* Using technology to give business owners their time - and humanity - back

* The optimism (and responsibility) that comes with building in the AI era

Links & Resources

* Ripcurrent

Connect with Jared & Neal

* Jared Ruth

* Neal Bloom

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