How Dara Ladjevardian Sold His AI Startup in 8 Months

And then raised VC from Keith Rabois for his second one

Author

Michael Houck
October 31, 2024

Hey y’all — have you ever wanted to create a clone of yourself?

After Dara Ladjevardian became a founder, he wanted advice from his grandfather — who some had called the Rockefeller of Iran.

There was only one problem: his grandfather had passed away.

Dara took a book on entrepreneurship his grandfather had written and, by using LLMs, created an AI version he could ask questions to.

Fast forward two years and he’s raised $2.7 million for Delphi, a company built on the concept, from Keith Rabois and Founders Fund.

Oh, and this is all after he built and sold his first AI company in 8 months.

Here’s our full chat:

Listen now on Spotify, Apple, YouTube or your podcast platform of choice.

As a reminder, each Thursday I interview a world-class founder about their unique paths to uncover tactical insights they've learned about how to fundraise, grow, validate, hire, scale, and lead teams.

Also, after each conversation I write up my candid takeaways. Become a member and grab them ✨ here ✨ along with lifetime access to my private founder community and more.

In our chat we discuss:

Founder Journey

  • (00:56) — Dara's grandfather

  • (03:45) — Dara's first encounter with LLMs

  • (06:04) — Launching Friday: Dara's first company

  • (08:10) — The Friday acquisition journey

  • (08:54) — Working at OpenStore post-acquisition

  • (48:03) — Lessons from building Friday

Co-founder Dynamics

  • (09:38) — Choosing the right co-founder

  • (12:01) — Transitioning from solo to co-founder

  • (13:58) — Co-founders: bootstrapped vs. VC-backed companies

Marketing & Positioning

  • (14:49) — Positioning Delphi

  • (21:01) — Delphi's product roadmap

  • (23:38) — PLG growth strategy

  • (26:30) — Testing paid marketing channels

  • (27:30) — Differentiating in the age of AI

  • (33:35) — Dara's vision for building Delphi

  • (37:27) — Attracting talent to your company

Mentorship & Investment

  • (18:38) — Pitching Delphi to Founders Fund

  • (38:16) — The importance of mentorship

  • (40:21) — Lessons from Keith Rabois

  • (41:51) — Effects of high-profile investors

  • (42:57) — Why Keith Rabois invested in Dara

  • (43:55) — Securing well-respected angels

  • (44:44) — Dara’s fundraising tips

  • (47:00) — Recognizing the need for VC backing

Additional Insights

  • (29:18) — Future role of creators

  • (31:02) — Future role of founders

  • (35:26) — Passion as a priority in startups

  • (49:35) — Niche focus vs. broad targeting

Rapid Fire

  • (51:54) — Who's an investor you'd recommend?

  • (52:32) — One thing you'd change about startups?

  • (53:14) — Advice for first-time founders?

  • (53:53) — Something you believe that most disagree with?

Where you can find Dara and Delphi:

Listen now on Spotify, Apple, YouTube or your podcast platform of choice.

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