Evolution Exchange USA Podcast

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, we speak with Christopher Grillo, co-founder and CEO of Irnerius, Inc, a Boston based edtech startup focused on helping students and families make more informed college and financial aid decisions.Christopher shares the real problem that sparked the idea, shaped by years in higher education and firsthand exposure to the challenges around student debt, limited counseling resources, and complex decision making.He talks through the early days of building the product, how the MVP has evolved through constant iteration, and the lessons he has learned as a first time founder, including hiring carefully, building with intention, and thinking long term from day one.The conversation also touches on the value of the Boston startup community and the importance of staying balanced while navigating the realities of startup life.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, we sit down with Alesia Razumova, founder of Studypop, a mobile first study platform built specifically for students with ADHD.Alesia shares the personal story behind the business, inspired by her brother’s experience navigating higher education with ADHD and the challenges of burnout, procrastination, and executive function. That experience shaped her mission to build a study system designed around how neurodivergent students actually learn.She discusses how Studypop evolved from an early concept into a full scale platform with goal based learning, auto scheduling, and analytics, as well as the realities of building as a solo founder while self funding and running another business.The conversation also explores Boston’s startup ecosystem, the value of accelerators and founder communities, and the importance of progress over perfection when building something meaningful.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, Johannes, founder and CEO of Diffraqtion, reveals how his company is transforming space imaging through cutting-edge quantum technology. With their flagship satellite Galileo 1, Diffraqtion is developing one of the world’s first quantum camera satellites. It captures images up to 20 times sharper than current systems while drastically reducing production and launch costs.Johannes discusses his path from early work in artificial intelligence and pharmaceutical data science to becoming a deep tech entrepreneur leading innovation in quantum imaging. He explains how Diffraqtion’s passive super-resolution imaging works without using active light sources, making it ideal for satellite observation and unlocking new levels of detail in space imagery.The conversation explores the realities of building a deep tech startup, including the challenges of translating research into commercial hardware, fundraising in a cautious investment climate, and navigating Boston’s dynamic yet high-cost innovation ecosystem. Johannes also highlights the importance of refining a clear business story, building investor confidence, and aligning technical milestones with a long-term vision.If you’re interested in AI, quantum science, or the future of space technology, this episode offers a rare look at how vision, persistence, and storytelling can turn scientific breakthroughs into real-world impact.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, we sit down with Mark Stiles, founder and co creator of Joze.ai, to explore an ambitious mission that aims to solve conflict for humanity. After spending three decades as an attorney focused on proactive planning, Mark saw firsthand the emotional, financial, and generational damage caused by unresolved conflict. Those experiences inspired him to leave legal practice and build Joze.ai, an artificial intelligence platform designed to help people resolve disputes in a healthier, more constructive way.Mark walks us through how Joze.ai evolved from an early proof of concept into a conflict resolution platform built with input from mediators, lawyers, therapists, educators, and strategic coaches. He explains how the product supports real human conflict through structured conversations, guided AI interaction, and optional human oversight through what the team calls a success sherpa.The conversation covers Joze.ai’s initial go to market focus on divorce and family conflict, as well as future applications including sibling disputes, inheritance planning, and proactive founder agreements. Mark also shares why preventing conflict before it happens is just as important as resolving it once it exists.Beyond the product, Mark reflects on transitioning from a long legal career into the startup world, building a mission driven team, and finding inspiration through the Boston startup ecosystem. He shares lessons on founder alignment, vulnerability, community support, and staying grounded while navigating the emotional highs and lows of startup life.This episode is a thoughtful and human centered look at how technology can be used not just to optimize systems, but to reduce pain, improve communication, and help people move forward together.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, we explore how Bay State Energy is transforming the future of nuclear power through microreactor innovation. Co-founder Alexander Urbanski shares how their solid-state power conversion system replaces traditional heavy turbines, cutting reactor weight by 90% and costs by 60%.Bay State Energy’s vision is to make nuclear power scalable, affordable, and sustainable by enabling factory-produced microreactors that can be deployed rapidly around the world. Alexander also discusses the challenges of building in an emerging industry, learning nuclear engineering without a traditional background, and finding the right talent driven by curiosity and adaptability.From Boston’s thriving startup ecosystem to lessons in resilience and clear communication, this conversation uncovers how innovation, timing, and determination can reshape the global energy landscape. If you’re passionate about climate tech, clean energy, or deep-tech entrepreneurship, this episode is a must-watch.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, David Bender shares how he built Brickgraph, a data platform designed to solve one of commercial real estate’s biggest pain points: fragmented, hard-to-use information scattered across multiple systems. Drawing from his early career in London’s real estate industry, David explains how the daily struggle of working with disconnected data sparked the idea for a unified platform powered by geospatial analytics, knowledge graphs, and AI.David opens up about the realities of being a solo founder, describing the challenge of balancing product development with sales, marketing, and the emotional pressure of building a company without a co-founder. He talks about how his product evolved over time while still staying true to the original vision of making real estate data easier to work with and more valuable.He also shares how his first paying customer emerged from consulting work, proving the value of the platform and giving him real-world feedback that shaped its development. David compares startup ecosystems across London, Toronto, and Boston, noting that Boston’s environment pushes founders to think bigger, move faster, and tap into a supportive network.Central to his story is the importance of community, well-being, and sustainability. David highlights that founders must prioritize physical health, mental balance, and relationships to stay resilient over the long term. His core belief is that a founder’s most important responsibility is to consistently show up and manage their energy so they can move the company forward with clarity and momentum.

In this episode of Founders’ Tales, we sit down with Aaron "Checo" Pacheco, founder and CEO of OtterMon AI, to explore how his team is rethinking website monitoring and reliability in an increasingly complex tech landscape.With more than fifteen years of experience in the Boston tech ecosystem, Checo shares how repeated exposure to alert fatigue, monitoring noise, and preventable outages led him and his co founders to build OtterMon AI. Their mission is simple but ambitious. Make monitoring proactive instead of reactive, and turn it into a true partner for developers rather than another tool they have to manage.Checo walks through the evolution of OtterMon’s MVP, from an early chatbot concept to a platform that continuously analyzes signals to surface risks, highlight optimization opportunities, and help teams prevent incidents weeks or even months before they occur. He also explains how close collaboration with design partners shaped the product and helped refine what real customers actually needed.The conversation goes beyond product development and dives into the realities of startup life. Checo shares lessons learned from customer validation, fundraising, hiring for true startup DNA, and building momentum through trust, social proof, and strong relationships. He also reflects on the Boston startup ecosystem, highlighting the importance of community, local resources, and founder support.

n this episode of Founders’ Tales, Chris Hopkins sits down with David Chang, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and co-founder of Via AI. With more than twenty five years of startup experience, David shares lessons from building companies in Boston, being the first product manager at TripAdvisor, leading startups through acquisitions, and investing in over one hundred early stage companies.David explains how Via AI was born from a simple but persistent business problem. When professionals ask who can introduce them to the right person or who knows someone at a specific company, there is no clear or reliable answer. Via AI is building software that helps go to market teams unlock warm introductions and activate their networks more effectively, especially during the earliest stages of building a business.Throughout the conversation, David reflects on the importance of intentional velocity, strong relationships, and learning to navigate near death moments that often define early stage startups. He shares practical fundraising advice based on his ABC framework, which focuses on targeting the right investors, finding true believers, and creating momentum at the right moment.David also offers insight into what investors look for at the pre seed and seed stages, how founders can improve their storytelling when pitching, and how to identify startup DNA when building teams. He closes by reflecting on the Boston startup ecosystem, explaining its strengths, its challenges, and how it can better support first time founders who are trying to break into established circles.