🎙️ New Ep. Craig J. Lewis | 750K Contractors Paid, $25M Raised, MassChallenge Board: From Gig Wage to Ogentic AI

Hey There,

The newest episode of The Startup Growth Podcast is live!

Craig J. Lewis is the Founder & CEO Ogentic AI, builder of Zing—an AI-native enterprise browser that turns intent → action in a secure, workflow-native workspace. Before Ogentic, he founded Gig Wage (750k contractors paid, ~$1B moved, $25M+ raised) and learned payroll inside ADP. That operator muscle fuels Ogentic’s pace: incorporated in June, alpha in July, beta in August. He also serves on the governing board at MassChallenge and angels actively.

In this episode, Craig shares velocity advice like: ship before perfect (feedback > stealth), build pro-human AI (human-in-the-loop), and treat fundraising like sales (expect 19 no’s, optimize investor–founder fit, when it’s right—TTFM). He outlines the back-office stack that keeps your startup in good shape and his board philosophy: offer perspective, not prescriptions. If you’re building enterprise AI—or just want to move in weeks, not quarters—this one’s for you.

Key Topics Covered:

• Ogentic AI focuses on enterprise productivity and automation.

• Building a strong back office is crucial for startups.

• Fundraising is a numbers game; persistence is key.

• Feedback is essential for product development.

• AI will replace some jobs but also create new ones.

• Having a technical co-founder can accelerate growth.

• Navigating the fundraising landscape requires understanding investor fit.

• MassChallenge supports entrepreneurs in solving global challenges.

• The future of work will involve augmenting human capabilities with AI.

• Startups should find their niche in the AI market.

I hope you find this educational content valuable and can apply it in your business. Until next week - keep experimenting, keep scaling, keep building.

David J Phillips

Founder & CEO at Fondo

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