Bringing Israeli AI to the American Auto Industry
Going to Visit
When I met with Ben Wiener from Jumpspeed, he mentioned a company called AutoLeadStar and said that it would revolutionize the auto sales industry using AI. I decided to pay the company a visit and ended up meeting with Valerie Gottschalk, Operations Manager, and Chaya David, Head of Customer Engagement. I learned that AutoLeadStar is actually a subdivision of a company called 40Nuggets and that it is leading a wave of innovation in how auto sales are conducted.
What it Does, and Why
For a long time, the U.S. automotive industry has lagged behind other industries in the country in embracing automated technology for marketing purposes. Now, it is going through a “push and pull” stage, trying to jump ahead, Chaya tells me. To do that, car dealerships need to make the sales process more efficient. AutoLeadStar’s Falcon tool provides dealerships with the ability to “engage more buyers, streamline their data, and sell more cars with the only automated marketing platform in the automotive space right now.”
Origin Story
40Nuggets began in 2012 when Aharon Horwitz, Yishai Goldstein, and Eliav Moshe decided to create a product that would help people prioritize their obligations and make better decisions. They designed apps that would help people commit to specific tasks or projects and break down large goals into more manageable parts. Through these various apps, the team created a core technology that would later become the basis of what 40Nuggets and AutoLeadStar offer today: a way to provide people and companies with the information they need to help them make better buying and sales decisions.
Leading the Way with John Elway
AutoLeadStar currently partners with a number of large dealerships that are among the top 100 dealership groups in the United States. They have an excellent relationship with John Elway Dealerships; Chaya describes the dealership as “of the same mindset, forward-thinking, very hands-on, and tech savvy.” She says they are the “type of client that wants to leverage data, to take risks and try new things.” The head of digital marketing at John Elway Dealerships presented together with AutoLeadStar CEO Aharon Horwitz on trends in the industry at a conference earlier this year. AutoLeadStar looks at groups like these as partners with whom they can get real-time feedback, strategize better solutions, and test new products and services.
Social Impact
40Nuggets’ software can really be applied in almost any industry — data analytics paired with actionable insights is in high demand everywhere — but for now, it is zeroing in on the automotive market. AutoLeadStar chose the car industry for reasons beyond American dealers’ newfound desire to “get ahead.” Aharon Horwitz, CEO of 40Nuggets, was also founder and co-director of PresenTense Israel, the leading organization strengthening Israeli society through entrepreneurship. Chaya says that Aharon wanted to focus on the American auto industry in part because it is “a true meritocracy” in that it provides equal opportunity for everyone to succeed. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a college degree, or if you are a convicted felon,” Chaya explains, all that matters is that “you can sell cars.” It is an industry that Aharon sees as important to advance as “it remains one of the best ways to help everyday people achieve an American dream that employs and supports millions of people and families.”
On Jerusalem
The employees at 40Nuggets interact quite a bit with the local startup ecosystem. They provide mentorship for other startup companies and attend job fair days at the Hebrew University and around the city. 40Nuggets is also interested in promoting employment of diverse populations, including Arabs and ultra-Orthodox Jews. Chaya feels that the type of ecosystem 40Nuggets is trying to create around startup innovation in the Talpiot area is unique to Jerusalem. Chaya says that they are ”bringing AI to the holy city,” which she describes as having “ a cool synergy” of diverse populations working together to “do something bigger.”
