Blog

Founder Mode – Episode 10 – How to Bootstrap Your Tech Team Using AI with JJ Zhuang

by Caitlin Escarciga

Episode 10: Serial CTO and Acompli co-founder JJ Zhuang joins Kevin and Jason to explain why the next generation of great products will be built by tiny, AI-super-powered teams. He unpacks lessons from taking Acompli’s first line of code to a $200 million Microsoft exit, steering Instacart through pandemic hyper-growth, and relearning to code with tools like GitHub Copilot, Cursor and Devin now writing the majority of his team’s code. Along the way JJ outlines the shift from hiring stack specialists to adaptable generalists, the rise of agentic “AI teammates,” and his mantra of “fast software” that lets founders prototype, test and ship at the speed of imagination—while still cutting through the 2025 hype cycle around agents and other buzzwords.

apple podcast logo
amazon music logo
youtube logo

Founder Mode

Top Articles

Founder Mode – Episode 35 – AI, Health & Home with Max Drescher

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...
Founder Mode – Episode 21 – The Healthcare Innovation Bottleneck with Rebecca Shufeldt

Thursday, August 21, 2025

Founder Mode – Episode 21 – The Healthcare Innovation Bottleneck with Rebecca Shufeldt

Episode 21: Hosts Kevin Henrikson and Jason Shafton go beyond the headlines to unpack the real bottlenecks that stall healthcare—and how to fix them—with consultant and operator Rebecca Shufeldt, founder of Ignite Healthcare Solutions. Drawing on her path from urgent care ops to EHR/revenue cycle leadership, Rebecca explains why go‑live is “day zero,” how her...
Founder Mode – Episode 34 – When Founders Show Up

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...
Founder Mode – Episode 22 – Building Happiness with Anurag Agarwalla

Thursday, August 28, 2025

Founder Mode – Episode 22 – Building Happiness with Anurag Agarwalla

EPISODE 22: In this episode of Founder Mode, Anurag Agarwalla shares his journey from leading fast-moving engineering teams at Uber to building hpy, an AI-powered platform designed to support therapists and patients in achieving better outcomes. He explains why emotional systems matter as much as technical ones, how to design for happiness without burning out,...

See more

Browse Categories

See more

Ready to unlock your growth?

Book Free Call

We take a custom approach to your growth goals by assembling and leading the best-in-class marketing team to support your next stage.