EP #125: Nish Ithayakumar - Co-Founder of YC Startup Ponyrun (AI-Driven Sales Prospecting Tool)

Nish Ithayakumar is a Vancouver-raised tech entrepreneur currently living in San Francisco, running Ponyrun (formerly Nimbus), an AI-based sales tool that helps automate research for high-quality results at scale, and the company was part of the prestigious Y-Combinator program.

He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss growing up in Vancouver (including the Grizzlies), playing “way too many video games” growing up, firsthand benefits of the Y-Combinator program for his startup, the Eureka moment that sparked the birth of Ponyrun, how his investors reacted to him pivoting from Nimbus to Ponyrun, leveraging a consulting job to open doors for his tech aspirations, the path to starting his own business (Ponyrun), the pros and cons of San Francisco, the importance of being an active listener, and so much more.

Follow Nish:
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nithayakumar/)

Timestamps

00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Nish Ithayakumar
01:08 - Nish speaks on his upbringing; video games and calculating what mattered
03:15 - Not being a fan of food
04:40 - Growing up during the Vancouver Grizzlies era
05:52 - From Vancouver to Toronto to San Francisco; following his passion for tech
06:43 - The challenges of transition from Canada to America for work
08:01 - Working for multiple companies before starting his own (Nimbus)
09:53 - His “Eureka moment”
11:19 - From targeting small customers to bigger ones
13:37 - How his investors reacted to him pivoting from Nimbus to Ponyrun
15:53 - Coming up with the name Ponyrun; focusing on what mattered (customers)
16:39 - Excelling at creating solutions; seeing a gap for automation
18:59 - Are the responses they’ve received positive, negative, or neutral?
21:29 - How CRM fits into his business operations
22:17 - Ponyrun surpassing Nimbus revenue in five months of operations
23:12 - Benefits of being part of the Y Combinator program; fundraising, network, etc.
25:21 - How the easy path dilutes you
26:20 - Being at an inflection point
27:25 - Is too much automation a bad; having to handhold and showcase value
29:09 - Having a product that could help generate more sales for himself
30:40 - His business model; a monthly subscription
31:06 - What are Nish’s future plans for Ponyrun?
31:57 - Does he miss Vancouver and was moving to San Francisco the right decision?
33:15 - The perception of San Francisco
35:47 - Nish’s favourite things about living in San Francisco; views, food, and more
37:10 - Where he sees himself professionally/personally over the next 5-10 years
38:34 - How his family feels about San Francisco; their role in his decision-making
39:16 - The importance of sense of community amidst today’s loneliness epidemic
40:12 - Learning lessons he’s picked up along his journey; active listening as a skill
43:41 - The Tamil community in Vancouver versus San Francisco versus Toronto
45:57 - Advice he would give his 16-year-old self
49:18 - The personal legacy he wants to be remembered for by friends and family
50:01 - Creator Confessions
1:02:15 - The Wrap Up

Intro Music

Produced And Mixed By:
- The Tamil Creator
- Yanchan

Written By:
- Aravinthan Ehamparam
- Yanchan Rajmohan