Welcome back to Building Great Experiences Season 2.

In this episode, Drew sits down with Juan Garzón, Managing Director of Innovate Charlotte and a longtime startup ecosystem builder. Juan shares his winding entrepreneurial journey, from founding a mortgage marketplace during the early 2000s, to brand strategy in the corporate world, to becoming one of the most trusted connectors for founders in the Carolinas.

Together, Drew and Juan unpack the new startup playbook in the age of AI and what they’ve learned from hosting Product Jam, a one-day, hands-on workshop designed to help early-stage founders go from idea to prototype fast.

The conversation dives deep into:

1. Why ecosystems and communities are critical to founder success
2. Lessons learned from three cohorts of Product Jam and how it differs from traditional accelerators
3. The shift from pitching ideas to proving value fast with prototypes and AI-powered tools
4. How non-technical founders can use AI to communicate better with co-founders, customers, and investors
5. Why brand and authenticity are becoming the ultimate differentiators in a noisy AI world
6. Tactical tools and practices every founder should adopt from note-takers and automation to AI as a mentor and collaborator

Chapters:

[00:00] – Welcome & Juan’s origin story

[02:00] – Discovering the power of startup ecosystems

[05:45] – Why community & mentorship matter for founders

[08:30] – Product Jam: a new model for early-stage founders

[14:00] – The new startup playbook in the AI era

[22:00] – Brand, authenticity & standing out in a noisy market

[30:00] – Tactical tools every founder should adopt

[38:30] – Final thoughts & where to find Juan online

Connect w/ Drew & StealthX

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

StealthX: https://stealthx.co

Connect w/ Juan & Innovate Charlotte

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

Innovate Charlotte: https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovatecharlotte/about/