In this episode, Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia interviews Craig Saldanha, Chief Product Officer at Yelp, a leading local business review and discovery platform.
Founded in 2004, Yelp has become a go-to resource for consumers seeking authentic reviews and recommendations for local businesses. With over 300 million user reviews across 35 countries and 42 languages, Yelp has continuously evolved to meet changing consumer needs and technological advancements.

Craig joined Yelp almost three years ago, following a decade-long career at Amazon. As CPO, he leads Product Management and oversees the development of Yelp's consumer and business-facing products. His impressive background includes working on groundbreaking products at Amazon, such as Kindle and Prime Video.

We explore Yelp's transformation from a simple review platform to an AI-powered local business discovery tool, the evolution of AI in local search and customer reviews, and the challenges of integrating AI into an established platform.

What you'll learn:
- How Yelp is leveraging AI to enhance user experience and business connections
- The impact of AI on product development and organizational structure at Yelp
- Yelp's journey in developing AI-powered features like the Yelp Assistant and AI-generated video reviews
- Strategies for maintaining trust and authenticity in an AI-enhanced review ecosystem
- Challenges and opportunities in integrating AI into an established platform like Yelp

Key Takeaways:
- AI Integration: Craig discusses Yelp's innovative use of AI in features like the Yelp Assistant and AI-generated video reviews
- Organizational Structure: He explains how Yelp organizes its product teams around consumers and local businesses to drive value for both sides of the marketplace
- Trust and Authenticity: Craig emphasizes the importance of maintaining trust in reviews while leveraging AI to enhance the user experience
- Content Distribution: He introduces Yelp's strategy to distribute its valuable content through partnerships and APIs in the AI era
- Product Frameworks: Craig highlights the importance of robust decision-making frameworks and a culture of experimentation in product development

As a fun fact, Craig shares his experience using Yelp to plan his first date with his now-wife!

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Credits:
Host: Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia
Guest: Craig Saldanha

In this episode, Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia interviews Paul Adams, Chief Product Officer at Intercom, a leading customer communication platform that has experienced both remarkable success and near-catastrophe.

Founded in 2011, Intercom revolutionized customer service as a SaaS pioneer, reaching a peak valuation of $1.3 billion. However, by 2022, the company faced potential collapse as AI rapidly disrupted its core business. In a dramatic turnaround, Intercom's original founder returned as CEO, transforming the company into an AI-first powerhouse now serving over 50,000 paying customers globally.

Paul's 12-year tenure at Intercom has been pivotal in shaping the company's evolution. As CPO, he leads Product Management, Design, Data Science, and Research. His impressive background includes working on groundbreaking products at Google, such as YouTube and Gmail, during the iPhone's launch era.

In this episode, we explore Intercom's transformation from a simple customer support tool to an AI-powered communication platform, the evolution of AI in customer service, and the challenges of building AI-first products as a non-native AI company.

What you'll learn:
- How Intercom navigated the transition from a traditional SaaS model to an AI-first approach.
- The impact of AI on product development and organizational structure.
- Intercom's journey in developing AI-powered customer service agents.
- Strategies for implementing outcome-based pricing models in the AI era.
- Challenges and opportunities in building AI-first products for established companies.

Key Takeaways:
- AI Transformation: Paul discusses Intercom's bold move to allocate 70% of R&D to AI development.
- Organizational Restructuring: He explains how Intercom is reimagining traditional product roles to adapt to AI-driven development.
- Customer-Centric AI: Paul emphasizes the importance of building AI products in close partnership with customers.
- Pricing Innovation: He introduces Intercom's exploration of outcome-based pricing models aligned with customer success.
- Product Judgment: Paul argues for the increasing importance of product intuition and risk-taking in the AI era.

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Credits:
Host: Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia
Guest: Paul Adams

In this episode, Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia interviews Karandeep Anand, President and Chief Product Officer at Brex, one of the fastest-growing fintech companies in the world.

Founded in 2017, Brex quickly became the go-to financial services partner for most Silicon Valley startups, with 80% of Y Combinator startups using their platform. This rapid growth led to over $1.2 billion in funding and a $12.3 billion valuation. Brex now serves a wide range of companies, from startups to large enterprises, including over 150 public companies with a combined estimated market cap exceeding $2.9 trillion.

Karandeep's impressive career includes 6.5 years at Meta, where he led a team of 3,000 people and served 200M+ businesses globally, and 15 years at Microsoft, heading product management for Azure's application and developer platforms. At Brex, he has been instrumental in transforming the company's Product Management culture and expanding its product into a comprehensive financial platform offering corporate cards, treasury solutions, and software for travel and expenses in one place.

In this episode, we explore Brex's evolution from a startup-focused company to serving enterprise customers, the integration of AI in financial products within a highly regulated environment, and the restructuring of product teams for efficiency and innovation. We also discuss Karandeep's unique perspective on product-market fit and the importance of continuous innovation in a rapidly changing market.

What you'll learn:

• Karandeep's approach to evolving Brex from a startup-focused company to serving enterprise customers.
• How AI is integrated into financial products in a highly regulated environment.
• Strategies for restructuring product teams to drive efficiency and innovation.
• The importance of PMs spending more time on customer calls and listening to customers.
• A third go-to-market motion mixing PLG and SLG: Assisted Product-led growth.
• Why product-market fit is a journey, not a destination, and the importance of continuous innovation.

Key Takeaways:

• AI Integration: Karandeep highlights the use of AI not just in products, but also to reduce change management costs for customers.
• Product Team Restructuring: He discusses the transformation of Brex's product team, emphasizing the role of PMs as ""mini-CEOs"" for their product lines.
• Customer-Centric Approach: Karandeep stresses the importance of PMs being directly involved in sales calls and customer interactions.
• Continuous Innovation: He argues that product-market fit is not a static goal but a continuous journey in today's rapidly changing market.
• Go-to-Market Strategy: Karandeep introduces the concept of "assisted PLG" as a hybrid approach between product-led and sales-led growth.

Social Links:
- Follow our Podcast on Tik Tok here
- Follow Product School on LinkedIn here
- Join Product School's free events here
- Find out more about Product School here

Credits:
Host: Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia
Guest: Karandeep Anand