Finding Founders

The Joy-Driven Inventor — Kevin Surace on Building 5 Companies, Revolutionizing Tech & AI Video #224

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In this episode, we sit down with Kevin Surace, a legendary inventor, keynote speaker, and the man credited with creating the world’s first virtual assistant—technology that would eventually power Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant. With 94 patents under his belt and a track record of turning vision into billion-dollar industries, Kevin walks us through his unconventional path from tinkering with radios at age 12 to co-founding Air Communications, revolutionizing enterprise AI at Appvance, and retrofitting the Empire State Building to save millions in energy costs.


We cover:

  • How he landed 12 job offers out of college through coding his own mail-merge system in 1985.
  • Lessons from building the first data-capable cell phone used by the FBI and U.S. schools.
  • The inside story of how General Magic's patents led to billions in licensing revenue from Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft.
  • Why most founders get fired from their own startups—and how he bounced back stronger.
  • How to identify pain points, build intellectual moats, and lead with joy and integrity.
  • And finally, his latest work combining AI and video to push boundaries in storytelling and tech.


    • Packed with actionable insights, hard-won wisdom, and inspirational storytelling, this is a masterclass in curiosity-fueled innovation. Kevin’s journey will leave you rethinking how you build, lead, and live.

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