Spotlight On

AI is considered to be one of today’s most significant inflection points — but is the enthusiasm warranted, or is it mere hype? In this episode of Spotlight On: AI, Accel partners delve into the state of the market and what comes next, drawing on the insights and predictions about artificial intelligence shared throughout this season. During the season, we interviewed 12 leaders applying AI in all...

Arm has been a force in the technology ecosystem since 1990. Their unique model allows them to ride the waves of innovation without being tied to just one moment in time. As a result, they’ve powered them all: smartphones, cloud software, edge computing, and now, AI. For most of this period, Rene Haas, Arm’s CEO, has been working in the semiconductor industry. On this episode of Spotlight On: AI,...

Recent developments in artificial intelligence have sparked an outcry for control over personal data. While regulators, politicians, and the business community have been thinking about how to improve data privacy, there is still much more work to do. Kate Parker, Transcend’s COO, will discuss the progress in data governance, how companies can adopt and build secure AI services, and why it is criti...

Generative AI has transformed technology, presenting new opportunities and raising concerns about potential harm. There is no shortage of questions about how to hold generative AI accountable – or if we can at all. Glen Wise and his team are answering these questions through Cinder’s trust and safety platform. Because of the recent advancements in artificial intelligence, companies face new challe...

AI can be used to reduce human bias, but if we’re not careful, it can also learn it. In this episode of Spotlight On: AI, Daniel Yanisse, Co-Founder and CEO of Checkr and Accel partner Rich Wong discuss their concerns, hopes, and advice for building a fairer future. “Be self-aware. You know where bias may be, so be cautious where there is AI in those business processes. What becomes dangerous is w...

Ironclad's story is one of great patience, careful preparation, and steadfast belief in the transformative power of artificial intelligence. For nearly a decade, the team has been preparing for the AI moment we are now in. Join us as Cai GoGwilt, Co-Founder and Chief Architect of Ironclad, shares the challenges and triumphs of their journey since founding the company in 2014. The story inspires fo...

A self-proclaimed sci-fi enthusiast, Victor Ribarbelli is drawn to the exciting frontiers of technology. His work began with website development and evolved into a passion for company building. Eventually, he found his place in the European startup ecosystem as Synthesia’s Co-Founder and CEO, where he has had a lasting impact. After a year of exploring VR, AR, and AI startup ideas, he crossed path...

Jack Krawczyk, Google Bard’s Product Lead, has a founder-like obsession with pooling feedback and measuring success. Since launching in March 2023, Bard has been quickly recognized as an extraordinary tool for unlocking creativity. In this episode, Jack shares his experiences building Bard, his advice for founders, and discusses the creative opportunities to come from AI. We first got to know Jack...

It was only recently that Scale AI stepped into the limelight. But since 2016, it has been one of Silicon Valley’s quiet but indispensable forces – the data infrastructure powering the entire AI industry. Today, every significant large language model (LLM) is built on top of Scale’s data engine. Because of Scale, AI has the potential to transform the global economy. “AI is the most important techn...

Shensi Ding and Gil Feig met during a computer science class in college and quickly formed a close friendship. Years later, they would reconnect and launch Merge. In this episode of Spotlight On: AI, Shensi reflects on their founding story and how Merge has evolved from streamlining product integrations to serving the quickly growing market of AI companies. Today, Merge is powering the next genera...

Ada’s founding story is one the Accel team has always loved. Before its launch, founders Mike Murchison and David Hariri convinced seven customer service teams to let them work as support agents. After a year of exhaustive intake, they knew that for Ada’s customer service platform to add real value, AI was imperative. This was 2016 and at that time, an AI-first approach to customer service was uni...

We first got to know Daniel Sturman during his time at Cloudera, and have always valued his insights on building great technical teams. Daniel was part of Accel’s original "Spotlight On" series, which debuted as a blog back in 2019. His insights on Building Great Teams were as salient then as they are now. In this episode of Spotlight On, we expand upon the subject of team building, by examining i...

Dylan Fox, founder and CEO of AssemblyAI discusses the profound changes to the AI landscape over the past eight years, gives insight into where he thinks AI is going as a category, and offers advice on how founders should approach hiring, problem identification, customer interaction, and more. In 2015 Dylan Fox was a machine learning engineer at Cisco. Amazon Alexa launched earlier that year, taki...