Foreign Founders

Watch The Flamingo Effect using TODAQ Micro’s technologyHassan Khan is a co-Founder and the CEO of TODAQ Micro, a fintech that enables instant micropayments for producers of movies, shows and documentaries that want a direct-to-consumer, frictionless, pay-as-you-do experience where they can control their customer relationship, control their content, and have better real-time monetization. Consumers and fans benefit from getting just what they want with one tap without requiring logins or subscriptions.He is also a co-founder of TODAQ Labs, a deeptech R&D lab that works with Cambridge University and ARM Technologies and has released new web application protocols and cryptographic technologies to enable open web microtransactions.In 2015, Hassan founded his first company, Quantius, a fintech lender which collateralized IP and intangibleassets to secure growth credit for knowledge rich SMEs. In 2019, Quantius placed third in the Canadian Hedge Fund Awards Private Debt category. The Quantius platform is now the Business Development Bank of Canada’s National IP Innovation Fund.He was a consultant with McKinsey & Company from 2009 to 2014 serving clients on digital transformation. Hassan’s background started as an Army Signals Officer with the Canadian Army. During his time in service he created integrated cryptographic capabilities for security and emergency response agencies to cooperate for security operations in the former Yugoslavia and the G8 Summit, disaster response for the British Columbia forest fires, and other activities.Hassan is a computer engineering graduate from the Royal Military College of Canada and completed his prior schooling at Upper Canada College in Toronto.In this episode we talk about:Hassan’s upbringing in Canada and joining the Canadian ArmySeeing the process of rebuilding after warCreating opportunities for small businesses in his first startupSupporting studios monetize their work and get paidHow TODAQ Micro created the first digital rental share systemAre you a studio interested in selling and renting your movies and TV show, while getting paid quickly? Work with TODAQ Micro.Enjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders

Learn more about how PolyGone Systems is removing microplasticsYidian Liu is the Co-founder and COO of PolyGone Systems and a Forbes 30 under 30 Fellow. PolyGone Systems is a Princeton University spinout cleantech company with a mission to remove microplastic pollutants from our waterways. Yidian was a trained designer with a Master’s degree in Architecture from Princeton University. Since 2021, Yidian and her team have won over $2.4M in grant awards and have successfully raised their pre-seed venture capital funding. On this episode, we’re covering everything microplastics from what it is to the Polygone solutions.In this episode we cover:Yidian’s journey from being an architect to wanting to solve the problems “below the surface”The truth about microplasticsHow PolyGone Systems startedPolyGone Systems WebsiteYidian Liu LinkedInEnjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders

Try Ohai.ai - a personal assistant for your familySheila Lirio Marcelo is a Filipino-American entrepreneur with over 20 years of leadership experience in internet consumer marketplace businesses. She founded Care.com in 2006, taking the company public in 2014 and serving as Chairwoman and CEO until its sale to IAC in 2020. Currently, she is the Co-Founder and CEO of Ohai.ai, an AI technology startup aimed at improving family life. Marcelo has received numerous accolades, including being named on Forbes 50 over 50, recognized as one of Fortune’s “Top 10 Women Entrepreneurs,” and honored as a Henry Crown Fellow and Young Global Leader. She holds a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College, a J.D. and M.B.A from Harvard University, and became the youngest recipient of the Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award in 2014.This incredible conversation is worth listening to. We cover more about Sheila’s background as an immigrant founder, compared to her other interviews! Highlight include:Sheila mirroring her entrepreneurial mother from an early ageBeing insecure about starting her first companyWhy she decided to move on from Care.comStarting Ohai.ai to help more familiesEnjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders

I’m so delighted to have my friend, Elizabeth Tishchenko. Elizabeth was previously on episode 10 of the show, as the co-founder of her company, Nevemind, a consumer facing application using AI to manage your life. She shut down the company in 2024, so I wanted to reach out to her again and talk about her experience.Elizabeth is a Ukrainian nomad, serial entrepreneur, and AI consultant, currently serving as CEO of her third startup, FleetMind. A Techstars '23 and Antler '22 alum, she also teaches AI in Business and Product Management at General Assembly.Welcome back to Foreign Founders!In this episode, we talk about:The journey through with Nevemind and shutting down the companyWhere she spent time after moving on and the challenges she facedTeaching AI to product builders and founders - and the tips and tricks!What she is doing with her new role at FleetMindElizabeth Tishchenko LinkedInListen to Elizabeth on Episode 10Enjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders

Every couple needs a smart, shared brain spaceI’m happy to have my friend, Abdullah “Ax” Ali, on Foreign Founders. Ax’s story starts as a war refugee arriving in Baltimore with just $20, working his way through community college to one of the top PhD programs in Human-Computer interactions and publishing over 20 award-winning peer reviewed papers along the way. With stints at Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Bilt, he’s co-founded 3rd Brain for couples to do life better, together.In this episode, we talk about:Ax’s childhood growing up in a war torn country, moving to Jordan and then to the U.S.Watching “The Social Network” and being inspired to build technology productsPursuing PhD in Human-Computer interactions, and Ax shares the most interesting paper he co-wroteHow Ax and his co-founder used so many different products and techniques to plan as a coupleLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theaxali/3rd Brain Website: https://www.3rd-brain.com/iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/3rd-brain-couples-organizer/id6476935088Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thirdbrainEnjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders

Get your own AI Phoenyx to learn a new languageOriginally from Paraná, a small town in Argentina, Carolina is on a mission to help kids learn a second language at the optimal age—when they are young, their brains are most receptive, and they have the time to explore and grow. After building a successful corporate career in Argentina, she sought a new challenge and moved to the US to earn her MBA at MIT Sloan. Following graduation, Carolina co-founded BetterVet, a mobile veterinary startup that raised $40M in 2022 and recently merged with The Vets. Today, she’s revolutionizing bilingual education for children with MyPhoenyx, an AI-powered smart toy designed to make language learning fun, engaging, and screen-free.In this episode, we talk about:Carolina’s first exposure to learning English as a childGraduating from her MBA program and wearing multiple hats at a startupBalancing hardware, software and AI as she built her first prototype using Raspberry PiCarolina Goncebat LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolinagoncebat/MyPhoenyx: https://www.myphoenyx.com/Enjoy the episode!If you love this episode, please share and review the podcast! It will help more immigrant and international founders find these content.You can find us here: https://linktr.ee/foreignfounders