James is the Director at Digital Twin Build and Managing Director at Format Design London, with over 15 years of entrepreneurial experience at the intersection of design, technology, and the built environment. Having started as a graphic designer and eventually carved a path into business ownership, James’s journey spans building creative agencies, leading multidisciplinary teams, and pioneering data-driven solutions for the construction and property sectors. His work bridges creative problem-solving, digital transformation, and leadership, making him a valuable resource for aspiring founders interested in both creative industries and emerging tech.

💡 What You’ll Learn from James's Journey:

🔸 Embracing Evolution Over Perfection: James’ career demonstrates that you don’t need a perfect plan to succeed, cultivating adaptability and taking opportunities as they arise can lead to rewarding, unexpected outcomes.

🔸 Commercial Thinking from Day One: He underscores the importance of developing a commercial mindset early, connecting creative or technical skillsets to real-world business needs and client value.

🔸 Leading with Standards and Self-Reflection: James shares candid lessons on building and leading teams, including the necessity of clear communication, maintaining high standards, and evolving your leadership style through self-awareness and feedback.

🔸 Work-Life Integration, Not Just Balance: As both an entrepreneur and a parent, James emphasizes structuring your time, forming healthy habits, and being present in both work and family life, recognizing that success is a dynamic, deeply personal measure.

You can connect with James on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow his journey.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like James.

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Roselle is an accomplished cybersecurity founder and executive, with a unique journey from civil engineering at Princeton to leading cybersecurity efforts at the White House and launching multiple startups, including Uplevel Security (acquired by McAfee) and Key Caliber. With over two decades in technology and security, she is recognized for her deep expertise in computer forensics, commitment to mission-driven entrepreneurship, and advocacy for alignment between security and business outcomes. Roselle has also navigated the challenges of being a female founder, balancing motherhood, personal health, and leadership in a rapidly evolving, high-stakes industry.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Roselle's Journey:
🔸 Embracing Nonlinear Paths: Roselle shows that you don’t need a straight path to success in entrepreneurship, her journey weaves through civil engineering, cybersecurity, government, and startups, demonstrating the power of curiosity, adaptability, and opportunism.
🔸 Mission-Driven Innovation: She highlights how identifying core gaps in your industry, and solving them with novel technology, can be a powerful differentiator, especially against big players with larger marketing budgets.
🔸 The Importance of Prioritization & Wellbeing: Roselle shares candidly about balancing entrepreneurship with family and personal health, emphasizing that founders must put on their own “oxygen mask” first to sustain their ventures for the long haul.
🔸 Community & Resilience in Entrepreneurship: She underscores the necessity of founder communities for support, learning, and collaboration, as well as a founder’s need for resilience in weathering constant setbacks and uncertainty.

You can connect with Roselle on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow her journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Roselle.

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Maria is an accomplished AI researcher, community builder, and talent investor based in London. She co-founded the YAMLRG community, bringing together AI researchers and engineers to discuss advances in machine learning. Maria was a Founder in Residence, and now a Talent Investor at Entrepreneurs First, where she identifies and mentors exceptional individuals to build startups from scratch. With rich experience ranging from AI research to startup investing, Maria exemplifies a unique blend of technical depth, leadership, and community-building prowess.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Maria's Journey:

🔸 The Power of Bias to Action: Maria highlights the importance of acting on ideas instead of just talking, demonstrating bias to action through personal projects and encouraging founders to show evidence of initiative.

🔸 Building and Leading Communities: She shares her experience organizing high-quality, intimate communities for learning and networking, emphasizing the value of connection and knowledge sharing in career growth.

🔸 Navigating Founder-Investor Dynamics: Drawing from her dual roles, Maria reveals insights on understanding both founder and investor perspectives, reminding entrepreneurs of the emotional journey and the critical importance of team fit.

🔸 Staying Ahead in AI & Entrepreneurship: Maria demystifies keeping up with fast-changing technology, recommending hands-on experimentation, leveraging your unique “edge,” and the value of seeking out challenging, unconventional paths.

You can connect with Maria on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow her journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Maria.

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Arul and Shirali Nigam are the sibling co-founders behind Circuit Breaker Labs, a pioneering venture focused on detecting mental health vulnerabilities in AI-powered applications. Blending Arul's technical expertise in AI with Shirali's background in Business Administration and Science, the duo have tackled the growing issue of self-harm and “AI psychosis” stemming from unsafe AI interactions. Their journey includes impactful philanthropic and technical projects, from delivering thousands of meals to frontline workers during the pandemic to building an app supporting travelers with food allergies. Now, with Circuit Breaker Labs, they’re at the forefront of AI safety in mental health, driven by a strong ethical commitment and an ability to iterate quickly based on customer and clinician feedback.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Arul and Shirali's Journeys:

🔸 Leverage Complementary Strengths: Arul and Shirali’s partnership thrives on leveraging their unique backgrounds in AI and business, highlighting the value of co-founders with diverse yet complementary expertise.

🔸 Embrace Rapid Iteration & Feedback: Their pivot from post-deployment guardrails to proactive, development-phase AI red teaming shows the importance of shipping MVPs quickly, gathering feedback, and iterating to meet real customer needs.

🔸 Center Real-World Impact: Staying closely connected to the problem, by talking to end-users, clinicians, and those impacted by unsafe AI, ensures your solution remains meaningful and effective.

🔸 Seek Help & Don’t Fear "No": Consistent outreach and asking for feedback or assistance, even from unexpected sources, is essential, "the worst they can say is no," and the connections you build can be invaluable for both product and mission growth.

You can connect with Arul and Shirali on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow their journeys.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like this exceptional duo Shirali and Arul.

#FoundersVoyage #Entrepreneurship #PodcastAdd more Introduction

Simon is a serial entrepreneur and investor known for applying cutting-edge AI to real-world problems, with a track record spanning over a decade across diverse verticals. As CEO and founding partner of Togi AI, he leads initiatives to bring autonomous intelligence to manufacturing, building on a legacy of transformative startups, successful exits, and hands-on hardware-software integration. Simon has also co-founded one of the world’s largest AI hackathon platforms and accelerators, and actively manages a venture fund investing in deep tech across Europe. His approach blends rapid prototyping, deep technical expertise, and a unique talent for recognising and capitalising on industry transformation opportunities.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Simon's Journey:

🔸 Embrace the Pain and Keep Moving: Building a startup is never a smooth ride, expect setbacks, frustration, and self-doubt. Simon emphasises developing resilience and learning to love the process of continual challenge and adaptation.

🔸 Build, Iterate, and Validate Fast: Simon stresses the importance of rapid prototyping and relentless iteration. Launch early, get real-world feedback, and use it to guide your product and business decisions rather than waiting for perfection or outside funding.

🔸 Chase Deep Value, Don’t Settle for Surface Solutions: For lasting impact and defensability, look for opportunities where you can integrate deeply into verticals (like manufacturing), control more of the value chain, and solve core, not peripheral, problems.

🔸 Choose Investors Strategically, Not Just for Capital: Simon explains that most investors provide little value beyond money. Seek out partners who offer operational leverage, industry insight, and real networks, especially those who've truly experienced your target sector.

You can connect with Simon on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow his journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Simon.

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Erica Olsen is an accomplished entrepreneur, strategic planning expert, and the co-founder and CEO of OnStrategy, a strategic planning software and consulting firm. With over 20 years dedicated to helping organizations worldwide execute their vision, Erica recently launched Madison AI, a fast-growing govtech startup spun out of OnStrategy. Under her leadership, Madison AI has rapidly scaled to 40 government clients in just 18 months, pioneering responsible and user-centric AI solutions for cities and counties. Erica is also the author of "Strategic Planning for Dummies" and a popular creator of practical business content on YouTube, known for her approachable, effective strategies and authentic leadership journey.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Erica's Journey:

🔸 Resilience Through Change: Erica’s openness about weathering economic downturns, personal health crises, and the rapid evolution of technology highlights how resilience and adaptability are critical traits for entrepreneurial longevity.

🔸 The Power of Product-Market Fit: Learn why genuine product-market fit is unmistakable, and essential for scalable growth, as Erica contrasts the grind of professional services with the rocket-ship trajectory of Madison AI.

🔸 Responsible Innovation in GovTech: Discover how Erica’s partnership with government clients and focus on responsible, accessible AI is enabling even small jurisdictions to unlock efficiency through technology without being left behind.

🔸 Redefining Success & Leadership: Erica shares the importance of personal wellbeing, team-first leadership, and redefining entrepreneurial success beyond just financial outcomes, offering a holistic and human perspective on building lasting businesses.

You can connect with Erica on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow her journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Erica.

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Gillian (Wildfire) Sowray is the co-founder and CEO of Fordje, the first AI platform designed to truly understand and structure the complex and ever-changing world of city, zoning, and building codes. With a background that spans political campaigns, an MBA from Carnegie Mellon, and product leadership in clean tech and software, Gillian has channeled her expertise into building a transformative tool for construction and clean energy teams. By taking on one of the biggest bottlenecks in construction, navigating thousands of local regulations, she empowers teams to scale confidently and efficiently across the US and beyond. Under her leadership, Fordje is not only solving a technical challenge but also helping cities and companies bring their values and ambitions for sustainable growth to life.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Gillian's Journey:

🔸 The Power of Customer-Centric Product Development: Gillian’s story highlights the importance of deep customer research, listening to feedback, and focusing on pain points that are both highly niche and broadly impactful.

🔸 Trust-Building in Emerging Markets: Learn how building credibility, especially in industries that are slow to adopt new tech, is crucial, and how leveraging relationships and transparency accelerates early traction.

🔸 Scale and Focus: Gillian demonstrates the discipline required to say “no” to distractions, stay focused on core markets, and design a business model that adapts as technology and customer needs evolve.

🔸 Founders, Teams, and Community: Discover how cultivating open communication in founding teams, surrounding yourself with supportive advisors, and building community is vital for surviving, and thriving, on the entrepreneurial journey.

You can connect with Gillian on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow her journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Gillian.

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Spencer is a senior R&D Robotics Systems engineer at Magnet Medical Robotics, a co-founder of the Founder's Voyage Discord Community, and an MIT Entrepreneurship Bootcamp alumnus. With a deep passion for robotics, household automation, and IoT, Spencer focuses on leveraging technology to improve daily life. Recently, he has delved into developing deployable parabolic dish technology for space communications, pitching innovative ideas to organizations like NATO and seeking to address the infrastructure challenges of modern space exploration. Spencer’s entrepreneurial journey is marked by technical expertise, strategic thinking, and a steadfast commitment to advancing humanity’s reach into space.

💡 What You’ll Learn from Spencer's Journey: 🔸 Turning Inspiration into Action: Discover how early fascination and exposure to sci-fi sparked a tangible pursuit of solving real-world problems in space communication. 🔸 Navigating High-Stakes Grant Applications: Learn Spencer’s approach to writing compelling grant proposals, leveraging AI tools wisely, and refining ideas through collaboration and constructive feedback. 🔸 Building Complementary Teams: Explore the importance of finding co-founders with complementary skills, broad mindsets, and the ability to balance vision with practical considerations in early-stage startups. 🔸 Iterating in Uncharted Markets: Understand how to creatively identify new markets for emerging technology, persist through challenges, and plan multiple paths to funding and viability in the face of uncertainty.

You can connect with Spencer on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ to follow his journey.

🎥 Big thanks to VidOps for supporting Founders Voyage. Use code voyage at ⁠vidops.io⁠ for 10% off expert audio, video, animation, and photography services.

👏 Props to the stellar crew: Nancy Nash, Daniel M. Melo, Carlos Javier Chacón Sánchez, Matthew Ray, and host Spencer Walker-Fooks. You bring this show to life.

🥂 Want to support the journey? Join us on ⁠Patreon⁠ and help amplify more voices like Spencer.

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