Articles about Founder Mode
Thursday, December 18, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 37 – Simple Design is Best with Austin Boer
EPISODE 37: In this episode of Founder Mode, Kevin Henrikson and Jason Shafton sit down with Austin Boer, co-founder of Sleke, to unpack what it takes to build a “dumb phone” that still supports modern life. Austin shares how a simple insight from the r/dumbphone subreddit shaped Sleke’s mission: people want fewer distractions, not less...
Thursday, December 11, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 36 – Future of Fundraising with Tim Barnes
EPISODE 36: In this episode of Founder Mode, Tim Barnes, cofounder of Scout, joins Kevin Henrikson and Jason Shafton to rethink how founders approach fundraising in an AI-first world. Tim explains why most startups leave non-dilutive capital on the table, how Scout uses AI to match companies with thousands of active grant opportunities and automate...
Thursday, December 4, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 35 – AI, Health & Home with Max Drescher
EPISODE 35: Kevin and Jason sit down with Healthcare AI Guy founder Max Drescher to unpack how AI is actually changing healthcare, from front-desk voice automation and AI scribes to clinical decision tools and consumer apps that give people more ownership of their data. Max shares how a habit of writing internal M&A news briefs...
Thursday, November 20, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 34 – When Founders Show Up
EPISODE 34: In this episode, Kevin and Jason break down how founders can turn conferences from low-ROI distractions into high-leverage growth engines. Fresh off a major healthcare event in Nashville, they unpack why most networking fails, how Pretty Good AI turned a platinum sponsorship into a full activation with mini-golf and meeting pods, and the...
Thursday, November 13, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 33 – Electrifying Aviation with Kevin Noertker
EPISODE 33: Kevin Noertker, co-founder and CEO of Ampaire, is leading the charge toward sustainable aviation by electrifying the skies. In this episode, Kevin Henrikson and Jason Shafton visit Ampaire’s Long Beach hangar to talk about hybrid-electric aircraft, scaling innovation in a century-old industry, and why “hybrid isn’t the compromise—it’s the bridge.” Kevin shares how...
Thursday, November 6, 2025
Founder Mode – Episode 32 – Will AI Replace Developers with Natalie Kaminski
EPISODE 32: Founder Mode sits down with Natalie Kaminski of JetRockets to cut through AI hype in software development. Natalie shares findings from a five-month experiment using code assistants: top engineers see ~30% efficiency on tedious tasks, but AI can duplicate components, forget context, and mislead juniors who can’t evaluate output. She argues developers matter...
