Runbear: Empowering Teams with Custom AI Solutions - The Journey of Snow Lee and Liam

Company profile

Description:
Runbear is a startup founded by Snow Lee and Liam, focusing on integrating custom LLM applications into everyday work tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams. The company addresses the challenge of making AI applications more accessible and useful in daily workflows, enabling users to improve their work performance with AI. With their product, Plug Bear, they aim to simplify the integration process, which has already attracted over 1,200 companies in just three months since launch.
Category:
AI & Data Services / AI Chatbots
Product type:
webapp
Founding year:
2023
Number of founders:
2

Company business details

Motivation to build the product

The founders were motivated by the need to make AI applications more accessible to non-technical users, addressing the cognitive overload that many teams face in their daily work. They recognized that integrating AI into communication tools could significantly enhance productivity and streamline workflows.

Problem that their product solves

Runbear solves the problem of cognitive overload in workplace environments by allowing non-technical teams to create custom AI assistants for communication tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams. This is important for users who need to manage repetitive tasks and information retrieval efficiently without requiring complex coding skills.

Their unfair advantage

Runbear's unfair advantage lies in its ability to empower non-technical users to create custom AI solutions quickly and efficiently, significantly reducing the time and complexity typically associated with AI integration.

Strategies

Pre-Launch (Product Development & MVP)

EO Builders Club Launch

EO launched the EO Builders Club, a private membership for founders and entrepreneurs. This club features exclusive content such as webinars and cohort-based learning programs, providing members access to insights from top-tier VCs and entrepreneurs. The initiative aims to empower entrepreneurship by creating a supportive network for members to share experiences and learn from each other.

Mission-Driven Development

Before launching Run Bear, Snow Lee and his team focused on defining a clear mission: to reduce cognitive overload for users. They recognized that many people were overwhelmed by the amount of information they had to process daily. This mission guided their product development, ensuring that the features they built would directly address this need. They initially launched an AI co-pilot for DevOps engineers but pivoted to allow non-technical users to create their own AI agents, aligning with their mission to simplify the user experience.

Beta Testing with Free Model

Before fully launching Runbear, Snow and his team released a beta version of their product for free. This allowed them to gather valuable feedback from early users and refine their offering. The positive response from beta testers motivated them to transition to a paid model, resulting in around 100 paying customers shortly after the launch.

Launch Stage

Live Streaming Sessions

Hannah Lee from The EO team hosted the first live streaming session of EO Studio, featuring founder Snow Lee. This session aimed to engage the audience with in-depth conversations about entrepreneurship and startup experiences. The live format allowed for real-time interaction, encouraging participants to ask questions in the chat, thus fostering a community atmosphere and enhancing viewer engagement.

Pivoting Based on User Feedback

After launching their initial product aimed at DevOps engineers, Snow Lee and his team realized that their target audience was not fully engaged. They discovered that non-technical users were more interested in their product than developers. This insight led them to pivot their focus from developers to non-technical teams, allowing these users to create their own AI agents. This strategic pivot was crucial for aligning their product with the actual needs of their users, ultimately leading to greater adoption and satisfaction.

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Learn more about Runbear

Builders Talk | Leadership Lessons from 3x Founder | Snow Lee | Runbear

- 3x founder, currently building plugbear.io at Runbear.
YouTube

AI or Humans? CEO Reveals How 10-Min AI Agents Are Transforming Enterprise Teams | Snow Lee

Snow Lee reveals why AI won't replace humans but will transform how we work—creating custom AI teammates in just 10 minutes that save companies 180+ hours per week.• How LaserAway saved 180+ hours weekly with AI agents between support and medical teams.
YouTube

Interview with Snow, CEO of Runbear

In this interview, Snow shares his journey of co-founding Runbear, a product that offers custom GPTs for communication tools, discussing customer acquisition, competitive advantages, and advice for new entrepreneurs.
Read