Do you remember the drone scene in the movie "3 Idiots"? Well, the drone in that movie was made by a small company called ideaForge. Ankit and his friends bootstrapped ideaForge straight out of college and spent 8 long years before they were able to raise their first funding. Listen on to learn about the amazing journey of ideaForge and the evolution of the drone industry in India.

Note: This conversation was recorded some time back and the metrics mentioned may have changed since then.

Read the text version of the episode.

Read more about ideaForge :-

1.A Lot Of Civil Unlocking Is Happening As Rules Have Opened Up: IdeaForge CEO, Ankit Mehta

2.Ideaforge reaffirms defence’s central role in its strategy for growth

3.Revolutionizing Drones: CUMI & ideaForge Nanomaterial-powered future

Technology is coming to disrupt the way you learn music, and a company at the forefront of this revolution is Artium. Artium is an ed-tech platform for music learners, they have built a custom technology stack that allows them to train music learners worldwide.

Business news often talks about companies that become successful overnight, but if you want to learn how to build a business from scratch, you should hunt for tales that are more of a slow-cooked stew than a microwaved success burrito. Rajat talks about his two-decade journey of building up first Happily Unmarried, and then the leading men’s grooming brand Ustraa.

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about Ustraa:-

1.Happily Unmarried to Ustraa 2.0: Life on razor's edge

2.VLCC acquires Ustraa through a strategic merger

3.Technological innovation will shape men’s grooming in the years to come

Sanjay is an Indian-born American who built the index business of Morningstar. He talks about why indexes are a big business, how they have evolved over the years and what is on the horizon.

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about Morningstar:-

1.Morningstar Introduces Industry's First Global Unicorn Index Series

From being almost penniless to finding product-market fit to becoming a powerhouse- with his first startup TravelTriangle, Sanchit went through it all. But almost like the monk who sold his Ferrari, Sanchit realised that he was seeking something deeper and that started his journey of building up Inner Fit.

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about the startups :-

1.The journey of travel triangle from a bootstrapped holiday marketplace to a well-funded platform serving travellers to 60 destinations.

"In our current capacity, we are 100 people strong working equivalent to 20,000 Warm Bodies."

This staggering metric from Manish Gupta highlights the sheer efficiency and disruptive potential of AI in traditional industries like call centers. Rezo.ai isn't just automating tasks; it's achieving workforce multiplication through technology, fundamentally changing how businesses scale customer interactions.

Meet the Guests: Manish Gupta & Rashi Gupta (Ph.D.) are the Co-Founders of Rezo.ai, the husband-and-wife duo revolutionizing customer experience with AI. Manish (CEO) holds an M.Tech from IIT Delhi and previously served as CTO at RateGain. Rashi, a data science expert, earned her Ph.D. from the University of Helsinki and two Master's degrees from IIT Delhi. Together, they've built Rezo.ai into a profitable venture (for 8 consecutive quarters!) handling 30 lakh calls daily and targeting a $10 Million ARR.

Key Insights from the Conversation:

• Value-Based Pricing: Shifting from simple rate cards to demonstrating clear ROI based on the enterprise's cost savings and value gained was key to unlocking larger B2B deals.
• Human + AI Collaboration: AI excels at handling high-volume, short (<3 min) interactions, freeing up human agents for complex, empathetic, or emergency situations requiring a human touch.
• Vernacular is Crucial: Supporting multiple Indian languages (10+) is essential for the Indian market, requiring sophisticated NLP and speech engines beyond simple translation.
• AI Augmentation, Not Replacement: Implementing AI hasn't led to agent layoffs; instead, employees are upskilled and redeployed for higher-value tasks.
• Enterprise AI Needs Guardrails: While powerful, generative AI like ChatGPT needs careful implementation with boundaries in B2B settings to ensure compliance and prevent brand damage.
• Funding Purpose: Raise capital strategically to fuel growth (like US expansion), not just because VC money is available.

Chapters:

• 0:00 - Intro: Meet Manish & Rashi Gupta
• 1:18 - What is Rezo.ai? The AI-Powered Call Center Explained
• 2:23 - The Human Touch: Where AI Stops & Agents Step In
• 5:46 - Founder Journey: IIT Days, First Startup Failure & Rezo's Genesis
• 10:18 - Finding PMF: Pivoting from Text Chatbots to Voice AI
• 16:02 - Landing Maruti: Building Trust & Vernacular Voice Capability
• 19:04 - Tech Deep Dive: Speech Engines, NLP & Handling Indian Languages
• 26:58 - Integrating Generative AI (ChatGPT) Responsibly
• 31:57 - Pricing B2B AI: The Power of Value-Based Selling
• 38:39 - Rapid Deployment: Onboarding Enterprise Clients in Days
• 49:48 - Scaling & Profitability: Reaching $10M ARR Target
• 51:43 - Funding Strategy & US Expansion Plans
• 55:35 - Competition & Advice for Aspiring Founders

Hashtags: #RezoAI #ManishGupta #RashiGupta #AICallCenter #ConversationalAI #VoiceAI #CustomerExperience #CX #B2BStartup #SaaS #EnterpriseAI #StartupIndia #IndianStartups #IITDelhi #FounderThesis #Podcast #AIinIndia #VernacularAI #NLP #MachineLearning #Profitability #Bootstrapping #ValueBasedPricing #FutureOfWork #Automation #CustomerSupport #TechPodcast #Entrepreneurship

Rohit started FinancePeer - a peer-to-peer lending startup but showing remarkable agility, he soon pivoted the company to become a leading player helping fund school fees for parents. He shares his journey of discovering product-market fit for LEO1, and the journey of building multiple moats for what is a very profitable and sticky business.

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about LEO1:-

1.LEO1’S Unique Fee Financing Model Making Quality Education Accessible To Parents In Karnataka

2.How fee financing is creating a win-win situation for parents and schools

3.Education’s commercialisation: Unraveling the constraints

4.“Blended education is the way forward for the education sector.” Rohit Gajbhiye

5.Financepeer founder Rohit Gajbhiye features in Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list

HomeLane changed India's home interior design scenario by using technology to offer personalized and professional interior services. Starting from his humble beginnings in 1993, Srikanth takes us all the way to the present with his current venture HomeLane.

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about HomeLane:-

1.From 90 Days at Wipro to Founding a Rs 268 Crore Empire: A Young Techie's Incredible Journey

2.How third-time entrepreneur Srikanth Iyer got it right

3.[The turning point] How the book ‘uncommon service’ helped Homelane hit a home run in profitability

4.Your business can't be good at everything; choose focus area carefully: Srikanth Iyer, co-founder and CEO, HomeLane.com

Not one to fit into the corporate straitjacket, Aanan kept experimenting until finding his calling in consumer health with his brainchild, Wellversed. Wellversed is a house of brands which are digital native with an online first sales strategy. The startup has 40+ brands in its kitty and it achieved this feat with just 3 mn dollars in funding!

Read the text version of the episode here.

Read more about Wellversed:-

1‘Full stack wellness’: Indian brand Wellversed on ‘owning the ecosystem’ to understand the consumer

2.How Wellversed is Planning to be a Unilever of the Wellness Category

3.Creating a universe of modern-day health and wellness products

4.Wellversed’s vision to make wellness accessible to all

5.Wellversed Acquires And Scales Consumer Health and Wellness Brands To Build A House Of Brands