In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we have the pleasure of speaking with Jean-Philippe Diel, the founder of SymbionIQ, who joins us from New Zealand. Jean-Philippe shares his fascinating journey from his early days in FMCG to his passion for technology and eventual transition into the tech industry. He describes his experiences working with major companies like Samsung and his ventures into entrepreneurship, which ultimately led to the creation of SymbionIQ.

Jean-Philippe delves into the inspiration behind SymbionIQ, highlighting the concept of using motion capture and sensors to record and analyze movements. This technology aims to revolutionize remote training by enabling users, such as yoga instructors and physical activity trainers, to create detailed, interactive lessons. He explains how the integration of haptic feedback and AI enhances the learning experience by providing real-time corrections and personalized guidance.

The conversation explores the broader vision of SymbionIQ, which includes building a decentralized healthcare ecosystem that prioritizes data privacy and user control. Jean-Philippe discusses the challenges of the current healthcare system, emphasizing the need for a shift from a “sick care” model to one focused on health span and longevity. He introduces the concept of a protocol network economy, where blockchain technology ensures users maintain ownership of their health data, enabling a more holistic and personalized approach to healthcare.

Jean-Philippe also touches on the potential for integrating augmented reality and virtual reality into SymbionIQ’s platform. By using devices like the Apple Vision Pro, users can interact with their digital selves, receiving precise feedback and guidance in real-time. This innovative approach aims to make fitness and health training more accessible and effective.

The episode concludes with a discussion on the future of SymbionIQ and its potential impact on the healthcare industry. Jean-Philippe shares his plans for raising a pre-seed round to further develop the platform and expand the team. He envisions a collaborative ecosystem where multiple startups can build on SymbionIQ’s backend, creating a comprehensive and user-centric health management system.

More about Jean-Philippe:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanphilippediel/

http://www.symbioniq.com/

01:12 Jean Philippe's Background and Career Journey

02:49 The Birth of Symbionic

05:46 Symbionic's Vision and Data Privacy

10:29 Building a Health Data Ecosystem

13:45 Challenges in Health Data and AI

25:34 Addressing Data Biases and Sovereignty

30:53 Recovering Seed Phrases and Blockchain Security

31:49 User Experience in Web3 Solutions

32:38 Jurisdiction and Regulation in Health Tech

33:13 Innovative Environment in Dubai

34:51 Integrating AI and Blockchain

36:36 Federated Learning and Edge AI

40:08 Future of Motion Capture and VR Integration

46:25 Building a Health Ecosystem

51:02 Raising Funds and Future Vision

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” Mehmet is joined by Vivek Ramachandran, the CEO and founder of SquareX, for an in-depth discussion on cybersecurity, AI, and browser security. Vivek, a veteran in the cybersecurity field with over 20 years of experience, shares his journey from working at Cisco Systems to becoming an entrepreneur and starting multiple companies, including SquareX. He delves into his fascination with breaking security systems and how this led him to focus on offensive cybersecurity research and training.

Vivek explains the current gaps in cybersecurity, particularly in how traditional security solutions like Secure Web Gateways (SWGs) and endpoint security products are insufficient in today’s complex web application environment. He highlights how attackers exploit these gaps, particularly through browsers, which are now the primary workspace for many employees. Vivek’s insights into how attackers use AI to create sophisticated phishing attacks and malware emphasize the need for advanced, browser-native security solutions.

SquareX’s innovative approach involves deploying a browser extension that monitors and analyzes browser and DOM events in real-time using machine learning models. This allows for anomaly detection, policy enforcement, and proactive isolation of suspicious activities and files, thus providing a robust layer of security right where the user interacts with the web. Vivek also discusses the importance of context-aware security measures, which traditional SWGs lack, and how SquareX aims to fill this void.

The conversation also touches on the broader implications of AI in cybersecurity, both as a tool for attackers and defenders. Vivek discusses how AI can be leveraged to enhance security measures, streamline security operations through natural language interfaces, and perform real-time threat detection and response. He also shares practical advice for C-level executives on adapting to the rapid advancements in AI and integrating it effectively into their security posture.

In a lighter segment, Vivek talks about his initiative to create the first hacker comic book, aimed at educating young people about the positive aspects of hacking and cybersecurity. This project reflects his passion for cybersecurity and his desire to change the mainstream perception of hackers.

Towards the end of the episode, Vivek offers valuable advice for aspiring founders, emphasizing patience, resilience, and the importance of realistic expectations. He also highlights the importance of building a company with a deep understanding of the problem space, which in cybersecurity, often comes from having an offensive background.

More about Vivek:

Vivek Ramachandran is the Founder of SquareX, which is building a browser-native security product to mitigate last mile attacks. SquareX has raised USD 6M seed round from Sequoia Capital SEA in April 2023.

Previously, he was the Founder, CEO of Pentester Academy which trained thousands of customers from government agencies, Fortune 500 companies, and smaller enterprises from over 90 countries. Pentester Academy was acquired by INE in 2021.

Vivek has been researching Wi-Fi security for over a decade. He discovered the Caffe Latte attack, broke WEP Cloaking, conceptualized enterprise Wi-Fi Backdoors, created Chellam (Wi-Fi Firewall), WiMonitor Enterprise (802.11ac monitoring), Chigula (Wi-Fi traffic analysis via SQL), Deceptacon (IoT Honeypots) and others. He is the author of multiple five star rated books on Wi-Fi security which have together sold over 20,000+ copies worldwide and have been translated to multiple languages.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivekramachandran/

https://sqrx.com/

01:13 Vivek's Journey in Cybersecurity

02:59 Identifying Market Gaps and Founding SquareX

04:32 Challenges in Cybersecurity and Browser Vulnerabilities

29:39 The Role of AI in Cybersecurity

50:34 Advice for Founders and Conclusion

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Brad Micklea, the CEO of Jozu. Brad shares his extensive experience in the tech industry, detailing his journey from leading the Amazon API Gateway to founding Jozu. Jozu is building what they believe is the first control plane for AI projects inside enterprises, aiming to help organizations accelerate their AI development and protect their operations.

Brad discusses the current challenges enterprises face in integrating AI projects into production. He emphasizes the importance of having the right strategy and organizational structure to execute AI initiatives effectively. Brad shares his insights on the need for a solid connection between AI teams and product teams, ensuring that data scientists are embedded within the product teams to better understand and address customer needs.

One of the core topics explored in this episode is KitOps, Jozu’s open-source project that aims to simplify the management of AI models and their deployment in production. Brad explains how KitOps provides a central registry for all AI project components, ensuring that organizations can manage dependencies and control versions effectively. This approach helps enterprises maintain control over their AI models, ensuring that sensitive data is protected and that AI-driven differentiation is retained within the organization.

Brad also highlights the similarities and differences between MLOps and DevOps, illustrating how KitOps bridges the gap between these two disciplines. He explains the importance of using existing tools while centralizing AI project artifacts to streamline deployment and management processes. This integration allows enterprises to maintain a high level of control and security over their AI operations.

Throughout the conversation, Brad offers valuable advice for tech founders and executives looking to integrate AI into their organizations. He emphasizes the importance of listening to customers and iterating on AI initiatives based on real-world usage and feedback. Brad shares his optimistic view of AI’s potential to unleash human creativity and transform various industries, drawing parallels to past technological disruptions like the internet and mobile computing.

More about Brad:

Brad is the Founder & CEO of Jozu and a project lead for the open source Kitops.ml project, a toolset designed to increase the speed and safety of building, testing, and managing AI/ML models in production. This is Brad’s second startup, his first (Codenvy, the market’s first container-based developer environment) was sold to Red Hat in 2017. In his 25 year career in the developer tools and DevOps software market, he’s been the GM for Amazon’s API Gateway, and built open- and closed-source products that have been leaders in Gartner Magic Quadrants. In his free time he enjoys cycling, reading, and vintage cars.

https://jozu.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradmicklea/

01:08 Brad Micklea's Background and Experience

02:41 Challenges in AI Implementation

04:16 Strategies for Effective AI Integration

04:54 The Role of Documentation in AI Strategy

05:48 Organizational Structure for AI Success

07:06 Moving AI Projects into Production

09:05 Managing AI Models in Production

10:22 Introduction to KitOps

12:27 Centralizing AI Project Components

20:37 KitOps and Enterprise Integration

21:37 Measuring AI Integration Success

25:45 Balancing Public and Private AI Models

27:12 Addressing the Skills Gap in AI

29:13 The Role of Open Source Models

30:41 Specialized AI Models: A Case Study

34:50 The Future of AI and Human Creativity

38:51 Advice for AI Startups

45:12 Building and Testing AI Prototypes

46:10 Conclusion and Final Thoughts