The Morning P!NG

For years, startup investing was reserved for institutions, venture funds, and a small group of accredited investors. Sherwood Neiss (Woodie) helped change that. As one of the architects behind investment crowdfunding, Managing Partner of D3VC , and author of Investomers , Woodie joins The Morning P!ng to discuss how ownership is evolving and why companies that turn customers into investors may ha...

Cut the line and get straight to the numbers! This week on The Morning p!ng , we're joined by Mike Ogasapian , a "triple threat" who’s all-in on p!ng : he’s an investor , a future franchisee, AND a commercial real estate broker.  Mike breaks down the crushing real estate economics that traditional coffee shops face, think massive land costs and high labor, and reveals how p!ng’s hype...

In this crossover episode of The Morning P!ng , Ping co-founders Rob Whitten and Jane Lo sit down with Hiten Sonpal , CEO of RISE Robotics , to pull back the curtain on the founder-investor relationship.  Hiten breaks down his personal investment thesis: the critical "3 Ts" (Team, TAM, and Traction) that made him support p!ng. Rob and Jane reveal why they put their money into RISE (it’s...

Tired of the drive-thru line eating up your morning? According to the team at p!ng ⁠ , it is not bad luck... it is a broken system. This week on The Morning P!NG podcast ⁠ , founders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten are joined by new CTO Rory MacKean ⁠ , a robotics engineer and startup builder with a background spanning factory automation, autonomous mobile robots, agricultural robotics, and consumer robot...

The 120-Square-Foot Land Grab: How Robotics is Cracking the Real Estate Code Forget everything you know about drive-thrus. This week, we're dissecting the game-changer that is p!ng's coffee pod.  Commercial real estate legends Jim Sylvia (JSylvia Advisory Services) and Louis Cirignano The Synergy Group join the p!ng founders to talk about how a 120 sq. ft. autonomous coffee pod, with no wa...

In the coffee world, keeping a customer is the hardest part. So, what do you do when 67% of your customers keep coming back? Host Justin Starbird and p!ng CEO Rob Witten are joined by Jon Kelley, an EMT, one of p!ng’s first customers, and a highly passionate investor. Jon, a lifelong New Englander who grew up surrounded by Dunkin’, breaks down exactly how p!ng’s robotic pod turned his one-time cur...

Investing in the Drive-Thru of Tomorrow Justin Starbird is joined by p!ng co-founders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten , along with their lead investor, Haley Bryant from Hustle Fund , to get the unfiltered story of how they met. Haley breaks down the Hustle Fund thesis, why they bet on a team's execution, not just the "spicy pitch deck," and how Rob and Jane's ability to "come back...

It’s the question everyone asks: "How are you ever going to beat the biggest name in coffee!?"  And the answer from p!ng founders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten? We already are. We're not playing the same game. While the competition is busy managing chaos, adding endless apps, confusing menus, and more clicks, p!ng has removed it. We took the 70-year-old drive-thru, tossed out the headaches...

It’s the morning after the Super Bowl in New England. In Boston, spirits are mixed, and coffee is not optional. Justin Starbird is back with p!ng CoFounders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten to talk about their community round and what it feels like to open the doors to everyday investors. They share why crowdfunding mattered from the start, what it’s been like to reconnect with friends and family you have...

In this special Morning p!ng Coffee Chat , we sit down with robotics pioneer Helen Greiner , Cofounder of iRobot, alongside longtime collaborator Chris Norman and Rob Whitten . From the early PackBot days to the global success of Roomba, Helen shares what it really took to bring robots out of the lab and into everyday life.  We talk about: Why most founders start with the wrong problem The 12-year...

You know that moment when you pull up to the drive-thru and already regret it? Episode 2 is for that exact feeling. Justin Starbird sits down again with p!ng cofounders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten to talk through how the whole system actually works, without turning it into a science fair. They break down how the app and on-site sensors line you up in the right order, why the window handoff matters, an...

Coffee lines are still a mess. This episode is about fixing them. Justin Starbird sits down with p!ng cofounders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten to talk about why drive-thru coffee still feels stuck in the past, and why New England impatience might be the perfect fuel for a better system. Scratchy speaker, wrong order, cold cup. A New England classic. They share the origin story, their backgrounds, and wh...

The coffee is hot. The sun is barely up. Justin Starbird joins p!ng CoFounders Jane Lo and Rob Whitten to open the very first conversation of The Morning p!ng . This episode introduces the story behind p!ng, a modern coffee experience built around speed, community, and bold ideas. The founders talk through early risks, long mornings, small wins, and the real work of building a startup people trust...