Founder Story: Kriya dot AI
In our previous article, Work from Internet, we covered how the rise of digital nomads and location agnostic professionals are becoming increasingly popular.
One powerful underlying technology that the on-demand economy could harness is AI.
Artificial Intelligence fundamentally boils down to machines exhibiting intelligence in learning and problem solving as opposed to humans.
Ex-Chief scientist with Baidu, Andrew Ng, discusses how companies must think about having an AI-first strategy and hire a chief AI officer.
This article interviews Ravi, who is the founder and CEO of Kriya.AI — the chat platform where companies instantly hire remote teams to innovate and grow.
What problem is Kriya.AI solving?
Hiring top talent is a daunting process for the companies small to large. This often stifles the innovation and turns into a competition. While on the other hand, top talent prefers to work for themselves.
Why have you decided to solve this problem?
In the age of snapchat and Uber where you push a button to connect/hail a cab — I couldn’t find an easy way to work for myself given my degree and skills. Getting work for the knowledge workers is not that straightforward as opposed to let’s say — driving a cab.
How big is the industry/problem?
It’s a trend and growing aggressively. 40% of the US workforce are independent (including the agencies) and it may hit 50% by 2020. 80% of the millennials prefer to work remote. The size of this market is around $40 Billion and I have no doubts that this may disrupt the $200B+ jobs market.
Who is your target user?
Our clients are corporates and startups who’re looking to innovate faster and grow quicker. Engineering/Marketing teams are the main target users. On the other hand, we are on boarding agencies who’re in the market to serve these clients. We are making it extremely easy for agencies to connect with their clients through chat. There are several things in this world, we can do.
Why is AI important in the on-demand hiring space?
On-demand hiring place runs on the right matching, vetting, and solid on-time payments. AI takes care of all of this in the background helping humans focus on getting work done.
What are the benefits of on-demand business models vs. traditional 9–5 jobs?
We will soon be seeing a world where people are more liberated in what they choose to work on. The more options, more opportunities, followed by independence.
What are the biggest challenges remote teams are facing today?
It’s a cumbersome process to connect with the client, get the proposals going, and finally closing the deal. They often get undercut by low bids. These are some of the problems our AI is addressing in the current iteration.
What advice would you have for teams facing the problem you are solving?
The advice is documented in “Minimum Viable Experiment” which showcases our company milestones as examples of what teams can achieve by following this model.
How is the next 1–3–5 year horizon looking like?
Last year has been great. Next year is going to be really ambitious for us and we are prepping the stage for growth and marketing.
What is the most valuable feature of Kriya.AI?
The core technology we’ve built — lets anyone connect with a skilled labor within 30 minutes. There are several advantages we’ve witnessed by achieving this. Will share more details on who it’s benefitting the best.
What are the biggest threats to this industry?
Service industry is on the verge of getting disrupted. The fewer the number of lawyers between the talent and the client — the longer the commitment and relationship.
