#15: Escaping Dictatorship, Hacking the Internet, and Building a World-Class AI Platform

Overview

This episode features Waseem Alshikh, co-founder and CTO of Writer, sharing his extraordinary journey from launching a startup in Syria under an oppressive regime to building a world-class AI platform. The conversation spans his early entrepreneurial struggles, his daring escape from political persecution, and his innovative work in AI, including building enterprise-grade language models and redefining productivity tools.

Notable Quotes

- I shut down the internet for two weeks. That was my revenge. – Waseem Alshikh, on retaliating against the Syrian government.

- The traditional software industry will not exist. We’re rewriting it with AI. – Waseem Alshikh, on the transformative power of AI.

- If you’re starting an AI company today, it’s not too late. We need more AI-native startups. – Waseem Alshikh, encouraging new founders.

🗺️ Early Entrepreneurship and Political Oppression

- At 17, Waseem launched a digital mapping startup in Syria, focusing on major cities like Damascus.

- The Syrian government demanded he hand over the company, citing distrust. When he refused, he was jailed and forced to relinquish the business for $1—though they didn’t even give him the dollar.

- In retaliation, he hacked the country’s internet, shutting it down for two weeks. This act led to his eventual escape to Lebanon.

🚀 Reinvention and the Path to AI

- After fleeing to Lebanon, Waseem taught himself English in six months to pursue computer science, despite initial struggles with language barriers.

- He developed an open-source text summarization tool to aid his studies, marking his first foray into natural language processing (NLP).

- His early work in NLP evolved into building generative AI models, including encoder-decoder systems, years before OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

🌍 Building Enterprise-Grade AI Models

- Writer chose to build its own language models instead of relying on third-party solutions to meet enterprise demands for innovation, transparency, and stability.

- Waseem emphasized the importance of backward compatibility, clear roadmaps, and model transparency for enterprise trust.

- Writer’s AI platform focuses on creating customized agents for industries like healthcare, finance, and retail, boosting productivity through tailored solutions.

💡 Rethinking AI Business Models

- Writer transitioned from complex pricing models (e.g., token-based) to simpler, value-driven structures like seat and platform fees.

- Waseem noted the growing involvement of CFOs in AI purchasing decisions, emphasizing the need to link pricing directly to measurable business outcomes.

- He highlighted the importance of listening to customer feedback and iterating on pricing to differentiate from competitors.

📈 The Future of AI and Open Source

- Waseem advocated for open-sourcing AI tools to build trust with enterprise customers, allowing them to scale without vendor lock-in.

- He predicted that AI will reshape regulated industries like finance and healthcare, though regulatory frameworks are still catching up with rapid technological advancements.

- Despite fierce competition from tech giants, Waseem expressed excitement about the opportunities for startups to innovate in the AI space, calling this a unique moment in history.