How do you build a billion-dollar AI business with Product-Led Growth?

Discover the secrets behind Fireflies.ai’s unicorn success.

In this episode of Liftoff with Keith, Krish Ramineni, Co-founder & CEO of Fireflies.ai, reveals how he scaled the market’s leading AI notetaker into a unicorn over a decade-long journey packed with lessons in innovation, product-led growth, and resilience.

Once a Microsoft Product Manager, Krish now leads product, design, and GTM at Fireflies, championing a vision where humans and AI collaborate to achieve extraordinary things.

💡 In This Deep-Dive Interview, You’ll Learn:

- The PLG growth playbook that helped Fireflies win the market

- How Krish blends product innovation with GTM strategy

- Lessons from surviving (and thriving through) the AI hype cycles

- Krish’s unique approach to leading product, design, and sales as a founder

- Special offers for Fireflies and Perplexity Pro customers - don’t miss out!

Whether you’re a SaaS founder, PLG operator, or AI enthusiast, this conversation is loaded with practical insights for anyone aiming to build a game-changing business.

SPECIAL OFFER: If you love Fireflies and Perplexity, you're in for a treat!

Fireflies customers on Pro and Business plans can sign up to receive one year of Perplexity Pro at no cost, while Enterprise customers can get three months of Perplexity Enterprise Pro free.

Likewise, Perplexity Pro customers can receive three months of Fireflies Business, and Perplexity Enterprise Pro customers can get three months of Fireflies Enterprise.

Check it out by visiting https://fireflies.ai/...

📌 Don’t miss Krish’s biggest advice for founders navigating the AI revolution!

👋 Connect with Krish:

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

Follow more of Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD?si=56076fd0e8634f1e

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more founder stories and startup insights!

#SaaS #PLG #AI #StartupGrowth #KrishRamineni #FirefliesAI #FounderJourney #ProductLedGrowth #LiftoffPodcast

Can AI manage AI?

Rapt AI CTO Anil shares how agentic AI management will transform data centers, reduce costs, and unlock exponential compute at scale.

Anil reveals:

▫️ The hidden cost of 5% GPU under-utilization

▫️ Why current AI models are outpacing infrastructure

▫️ The future of agentic AI for data centers

▫️ The battle between chip-level vs. evolutionary innovation

▫️ How Rapt AI is helping customers maximize tokens per watt

A must-watch for AI engineers, data center architects, and tech leaders building the future.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Scaling AI is more than just stacking GPUs, it's about making every dollar and watt count.

Chris Sosa, Director of Engineering at AMD, reveals how they’re pushing the limits of AI hardware efficiency.

Chris shares:

▫️ The biggest bottleneck in scaling AI workloads today

▫️ Why idle GPUs drain your budget

▫️ The struggle between training vs. inference at scale

▫️ How AMD’s ROCm stack is changing AI accessibility

▫️ His vision for smarter AI orchestration and platforms

A must-watch for engineers, AI builders, and tech leaders hungry for insights on the future of AI infrastructure.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Most people think building AI infrastructure is all about software. But the real bottlenecks?

Power, cooling, and optimizing hardware.

Vik Malyala, Managing Director at Supermicro, reveals the surprising struggles in building data centers to meet the AI demand.

He explains:

▫️ Why most data centers aren’t ready for the AI boom

▫️ How Supermicro optimizes hardware for maximum efficiency

▫️ Why 200 kilowatts per rack is just the beginning

▫️ The future of liquid cooling and energy sustainability

▫️ How AI will move from massive clusters to the edge

▫️ What every business needs to know before scaling AI infrastructure

If you want to understand the future of AI, hardware, and data centers, this is a must-watch.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

AI is evolving fast, but the economics are breaking down. RK Anand, co-founder of Recogni, reveals the hidden crisis inside AI's explosive growth.

RK has spent his career building technology to power AI systems. From tokens to compute, he exposes the challenges in scaling AI profitably, and what it takes to fix the system.

In this episode, RK shares:

▫️ Why AI’s "token economy" no longer works

▫️ The real reason AI models are getting 100x more expensive

▫️ What it means when compute demand skyrockets

▫️ How to build AI infrastructure that won’t break the bank

▫️ Why energy and power are the biggest bottlenecks for AI

If you want to understand the real cost of AI, this is a must-watch.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

We’re racing to build AI, but who’s thinking about the why?

Ashley Tarver, Microsoft’s Evangelist of Data and AI, explores the AI paradox: We expect AI to solve human problems, yet we don’t know what a perfect world looks like.

Ashley shares:

▫️ The AI paradox: why humans and AI don’t speak the same language

▫️ How companies should approach ethics, bias, and safety in AI▫️ The role of Centers of Excellence in guiding AI strategy

▫️ Why it’s too early to fully trust AI, but too important to ignore it

▫️ The future of AI regulation and societal impact

This is the conversation that every company, and every citizen, needs to hear.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

What does it take to build a multi-million dollar AI startup from scratch, without raising a cent?

In this episode of Liftoff, we sit down with Ricardo Ghekiere, the founder of BetterPic, the viral AI platform creating professional headshots in minutes. Bootstrapped from $0 to $4 million in just 15 months, Ricardo shares the real story behind BetterPic’s explosive growth from Belgium to the global stage.

💡 Inside the episode:

- How BetterPic outperformed better-funded competitors

- The 7-month experiment to crack the most effective marketing channels

- Why SEO became their secret weapon

- The power of product-led growth in B2B

- How Ricardo is evolving into a founder-CEO and raising a $1.5M pre-seed round

- A sneak peek into Better Studio and the next AI frontier: fashion

👉 Learn from a founder who’s redefining how humans and AI work together.

🔗 Try BetterPic: https://www.betterpic.io/

🔗 Connect with Ricardo: linkedin.com/in/ricardo-ghekiere

Subscribe for more game-changing insights!

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

LinkedIn: /liftoffwithkeith

Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Robots are no longer science fiction.

Sviat, Chief Strategy Officer at Bright Machines, reveals why the future of AI isn't just about text and images, but building the real world, brick by brick, chip by chip.

Sviat explains:

▫️ Why AI in robotics is the real AI revolution

▫️ The challenges of powering and cooling next-gen data centers

▫️ How supply chain shocks are fueling US manufacturing

▫️ The trillion-dollar opportunity in reshoring

▫️ Why simulation and robotics will reshape industries by 2030

A must-watch for tech leaders, investors, and anyone curious about the future of AI in the physical world.

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

What does it really take to build a SaaS powerhouse like BetterCloud from scratch?

In this episode of Liftoff with Keith, serial entrepreneur David Politis shares his extraordinary journey, from learning business at his father’s side as a kid, to leading multiple successful companies, to building BetterCloud into a $100M ARR SaaS juggernaut.

💡 In This Deep-Dive Interview, You'll Learn:

- The scrappy growth hacking strategy that took BetterCloud from zero to $1M in ARR

- Why doing things that don’t scale is essential for startup success

- How AI is reshaping go-to-market strategies (and why you need a “Go-to-Market Engineer”)

- Fundraising tips every founder should know, pitching, storytelling, and landing that seed round

- David’s media journey: growing a podcast audience from zero to thousands

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, SaaS leader, or just love a good business story, this episode is packed with hard-earned insights you won’t hear anywhere else.

📌 Don’t miss David’s top advice for scaling startups in the AI era!

👋 Connect with David:

- Not Another CEO Podcast (https://podcast.notanotherceo.com/)

- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidpolitis)

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more founder stories and startup insights!

#SaaS #Entrepreneurship #AI #StartupTips #DavidPolitis #BetterCloud #FounderJourney #GrowthHacking #LiftoffPodcast

From the streets to the boardroom, Ken Miller’s story is nothing short of extraordinary.

In this powerful interview, Ken shares how he transformed from a homeless, three-time felon battling addiction to a multi-business owner, author, and mentor making a difference in countless lives.

In this episode:

- Ken’s inspiring journey of overcoming addiction and incarceration

- Life lessons from the penitentiary to the C-suite

- The turning point that changed everything

- Why AI is the ultimate equalizer, and how Ken built an AI company

- His powerful mentoring model that’s transforming young men’s lives

- The book Becoming Ken, and why it’s a must-read

If you’ve ever faced setbacks, questioned your worth, or wondered how to turn pain into purpose, this episode is for you.

Follow more of Ken:

- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kenmiller84

- Website: KenMillerSpeaks.com

Follow more of the Liftoff with Keith:

- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3cFpLXfYvcUsxvsT9MwyAD

- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/liftoff-with-keith-newman/id1560219589

- Substack: https://keithnewman.substack.com/

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liftoffwithkeith/

- Newman Media Studios: https://newmanmediastudios.com/

For sponsorship inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

👍 Like, comment, and subscribe for more inspiring conversations!

#Resilience #AI #Entrepreneurship #AddictionRecovery #LifeLessons #Mentorship #KenMiller #LiftoffPodcast