Jason Ma turned down offers from Google and Meta to build Dyna Robotics, a $600M startup making AI robots that actually work. We cover the 800-napkin breakthrough, taking robots from lab demos to laundromats, and what it means to power the physical economy. 

Perfect for founders, operators, and anyone curious about applied AI beyond the hype

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

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📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/14-jason-ma/

Making friends as an adult is tough and Sam built Butter to change that. With over 10,000 young adults already using, Butter makes it easy to find new friends through dinners, coffees, runs, and real-world social plans. In this episode, Sam shares her founder story: why existing friend-making apps don’t work, how she shipped fast to build community, and Butter’s bold vision to solve modern loneliness.

Perfect for founders, product builders, and anyone curious about adult friendships.

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/13-sam-richardson/

Ever wonder how a late-night party idea can become a startup that sells out in 48 hours?

That’s exactly what happened with Sip Hrd, the Asian-inspired alcohol brand whose lychee vodka seltzer vanished after its first 150 cases.

In this episode, Phung, Daniel and Hanson share how they built from scratch: recipe testing, dodging alcohol regulations, branding and packaging hurdles, and creative go-to-market strategies.

Perfect for founders building physical products, marketers tackling regulated industries, or anyone curious about turning a wild idea into a fast-selling startup.

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/12-phung-daniel-and-hanson/

They got into Y Combinator with an idea that the partners disliked?

In this episode, the Affil founders share what really happens inside YC, the surprising power of doing things that don’t scale, and how they’re solving compliance pain points in financial affiliate marketing with AI.

Perfect for early-stage founders, builders in regulated industries, and anyone wondering if their startup idea sucks

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/11-vivek-and-john/

We accidentally started a podcast and now we can’t stop. In this behind-the-scenes episode, we reflect on how a random shower thought turned into a real startup media brand. From perfectionism to metrics obsession, quitting fantasies to growing ambitions, we unpack the chaos of building something from scratch while trying to stay sane. If you're curious how media gets made, this one's for you.

He brought cutting-edge AI from Stanford to Vietnam — and flopped. But after just 3 months of rebuilding, he's now leading one of Vietnam’s most exciting edtechs, with 40,000 users and entering 23,000 schools. In this episode, we dive into how he redesigned the product around students' real stressors and learned to ship unpolished versions without shame. We also chat founder psychology, what it takes to bounce back, and why education innovation must center local context.

🎯 Perfect for early-stage founders, edtech builders, and anyone recovering from a messy launch.

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/10-hung-bui/

Floriye Elmazi, co-founder of Sisterwould, didn’t mean to start a haircare brand - she just wanted to help her dad’s skin. Fast forward: she’s stocked in Revolve and Chemist Warehouse, with celeb fans like Lindsay Lohan and Dua Lipa. In this episode, Flo shares how she bootstrapped a business as a single mom, landed retail deals, and built a community-first brand centered on inclusion and purpose - before launch

Topics: Celebrity marketing, inclusive product design, bootstrapped beauty brands, CPG manufacturing, community-led growth, accessible packaging, and retail expansion

Perfect for: Beauty founders, DTC builders, brand marketers, and anyone starting with nothing but conviction

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and fou📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/9-floriye-elmazi/nder stories.

Brian Pham, founder of LiteCard, is betting big on your Apple Wallet. In this episode, he shares how he turned a niche idea into a global platform by ditching loyalty apps and using what’s already in your pocket. We dive into his agency-first GTM strategy, global expansion lessons, and how AI is transforming how brands engage customers.

Topics: Digital marketing transformation, mobile wallet strategy, global scaling, agency partnerships, and rapid-fire founder insights.

Perfect for entrepreneurs, marketers, and retail executives.

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

Robert Huynh built Nook, a blue-collar job marketplace in Vietnam, through Y Combinator. He hit 50,000 users, raised at a $20M valuation, then watched it all crumble. This is his brutally honest post-mortem.

In this raw conversation, Robert reveals:

• The growth hack that got 50K users FAST

• Why a $20M valuation couldn't fix broken unit economics

• The cultural blindspots that killed the business

• How to tell your team you're shutting down

• His mental health struggles during the crisis

• Why co-founder selection makes or breaks everything

• His comeback story with Reforged Labs

This isn't another success story. It's the unfiltered truth about startup failure, the hidden costs of building in unfamiliar markets, and what it really takes to bounce back.

Perfect for entrepreneurs, startup employees, or anyone curious about what happens when the Silicon Valley dream meets harsh reality.

Guest: Robert Huynh - Harvard MBA, 2x Y Combinator alum, Co-Founder of Nook (acquired users but failed) and Reforged Labs (AI marketing agents)

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/7-robert-huynh/

Ben Wood, co-founder of Waste in Progress, joins us to talk about how a random old tent sparked a design business built on upcycling, sustainability, and community partnerships. In this episode, we explore how creative founders can scale impact, balance craft with cash flow, and turn circular design into a viable business model—without burning out. Whether you're building a mission-led brand or bootstrapping a product business, this one’s for you

If this episode helped you, leave a review on Apple Podcasts or follow on Spotify so you never miss an episode. It takes 30 seconds and it's how the next founder finds us.

⏱️ Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction to WipWrk and Textile Upcycling

01:25 - Backstory: How WipWrk Was Born

02:51 - First Product: Chalk Bags for Rock Climbers

04:33 - Partnership with Off Track and the Second Life Project

06:36 - From Prototype to Commercial Business

09:04 - Two Pillars of the Business: Consumer & Commercial

10:41 - Biggest Challenge: Maintaining Mental Balance

12:29 - Creative vs Business: Working with a Partner

14:44 - Why Technical Textiles Are Hard to Recycle

16:55 - Advice for Creative Entrepreneurs

18:49 - Balancing Creative Vision with Business Needs

20:44 - Quick Fire Questions

23:34 - Preventing Burnout as a Founder

24:34 - Ben's Question for the Next Founder

25:32 - Closing Thoughts

💡 If you enjoyed this episode, follow Founders in Motion and leave us a rating — it really helps us reach more future founders like you.

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Hosted by Thea Ngo, a Wharton grad, venture capital investor, and (your new favorite?) interrogator behind Founders in Motion. Subscribe for the stories that don't make the headlines yet.

Subscribe for the insider playbook on building companies, growth tactics, and founder stories.

📄 Full episode transcript + query the show notes → https://foundersinmotion.tech/episodes/6-ben-wood/