I am excited to have Hiten Sonpal, CEO of RISE Robotics, disrupting a $600B market by replacing century-old hydraulics with Beltdraulic technology—3X faster, 3X more efficient, zero emissions.

In this conversation, Hiten Sonpal, CEO of Rise Robotics, shares his journey from childhood fascination with technology to leading a company that is revolutionizing the robotics industry. He discusses his extensive experience at iRobot, the innovative Beltrolix technology, and the successful crowdfunding campaign that engaged retail investors. He emphasizes the importance of partnerships, market entry strategies, and the need for resilience and risk-taking in entrepreneurship.

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction to Hiten Sonpal and Rice Robotics

03:06 Hiten's Journey into Technology and Robotics

05:27 Experience at iRobot and Transition to Entrepreneurship

07:06 Innovations at Rise Robotics: The Beltrolix Technology

08:13 Achieving the Guinness World Record for Robotic Arm

09:16 Crowdfunding Success and Retail Investor Engagement

13:41 Balancing Expectations from VCs and Retail Investors

15:10 Shipping Consumer Robots vs. Industrial Machinery

18:07 Future of Home Robots in the Western World

21:42 Supply Chain Dynamics: US vs. China

24:39 AI and Industrial Automation: Future Trends

26:34 Company Culture at Rice Robotics

27:42 Partnerships vs. Product Sales in Enterprise

29:59 Advice for Future Entrepreneurs

Hiten's Links

LDN/ X – https://www.linkedin.com/in/hiten-sonpal/

Website –https://wefunder.com/riserobotics https://rise.riserobotics.com/invest

My Links

Podcast: https://lifeselfmastery.com/itunes

Newsletter: https://partner-grow.beehiiv.com/subscribe

YouTube: youtube.com/lifeselfmastery

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitmal

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit857/

I am excited to have Ronan Chambers is the co-founder of etn., a technology show built for Europe. Previously, he was a founding team member at Convergence, which was acquired by Salesforce, where he worked on Agentforce.

In this conversation, Ronan Chambers, co-founder of ETN, discusses his journey from tech startups to creating a technology show for Europe. He explores the European startup ecosystem, misconceptions, emerging tech hubs, and the future of media in venture capital. Ronan shares insights on building an audience, sponsorship strategies, and the importance of leadership in startups.

Timestamps

00:00 Introduction to Ronan Chambers and ETN

01:12 Ronan's Journey into Tech Startups

02:53 Leaving Salesforce for ETN

04:42 Inspiration from US Media and the Need for European Coverage

06:52 The State of the European Startup Ecosystem

10:38 Misconceptions About European Startups

13:04 Underrated Tech Hubs in Europe

14:37 The Future of Media in Venture Capital

16:57 Advice for New Product Builders

19:04 Balancing Audience Building and Product Development

22:13 Reaching Out to Sponsors

25:25 Creating Content for Diverse European Audiences

27:04 Changing Mindsets in European Founders

29:30 Lessons from Convergence and Salesforce

32:22 Overcoming Fear in Podcasting

34:16 Highlighting Emerging European Founders

36:40 Future Goals for ETN

Ronan's Links

LDN/ X – https://www.linkedin.com/in/ronan-chambers-189118196/

X - https://x.com/ronanchamberss

Website – https://www.etnshow.co/

My Links

Podcast: https://lifeselfmastery.com/itunes

Newsletter: https://partner-grow.beehiiv.com/subscribe

YouTube: youtube.com/lifeselfmastery

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitmal

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit857/

I am thrilled to have Akshat Mandloi, the co-founder of Smallest.ai, a voice AI startup recently named among Inc42's "30 Startups to Watch" for 2025. A former senior data scientist at Bosch and IIT Guwahati alum, he's building hyper-realistic voice agents that support 30+ languages with ultra-low latency for enterprises worldwide.

In this conversation, Akshat Mandloi, co-founder of Smallest AI, discusses his journey from working at Bosch to starting his own company, the challenges of operating in different markets, and the intricacies of developing voice AI technology. Akshat shares insights on language prioritization, the competitive landscape, and what it means to create enterprise-ready solutions. The conversation also touches on funding, building a strong company culture, hiring practices, and the future of voice AI technology.

Timestamps

00:00 The Journey to Smallest AI

02:11 Navigating Operational Challenges

05:12 Language Prioritization in Voice AI

06:57 Building a Competitive Edge in Voice AI

10:15 The Build vs. Buy Debate

12:11 Funding and Investor Insights

14:11 Cultivating a High-Ownership Culture

16:21 Designing for User Needs

18:17 Remote Work vs. In-Person Collaboration

19:11 The Future of Voice AI

21:07 Speed as a Competitive Advantage

22:57 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

25:01 Vision for the Future

Akshat's Links

LDN/ X – https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshat-2503/

Website - https://smallest.ai/

My Links

Podcast: https://lifeselfmastery.com/itunes

Newsletter: https://partner-grow.beehiiv.com/subscribe

YouTube: youtube.com/lifeselfmastery

Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitmal

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit857/