July 1, 2025 • 39 mins
Ever wondered what happens to all that valuable customer data when your audience interacts with your brand on TikTok or Instagram? It disappears into the social giants' algorithms, leaving you paying more for less engagement and limited insights.
This is exactly the problem Rahul Sheth set out to solve with Genuin, a revolutionary platform that gives brands their own white-label social media experience.
Drawing from his impressive background spanning multiple successful tech ventures—DigitalOcean, SoCure, and Carbine—Rahul has created technology that allows any brand to integrate a TikTok-like vertical video feed directly into their website or mobile app.
The results are striking: users spend an additional 16.4 minutes engaged with brands' content, all while the companies collect valuable first-party data about their customers' preferences and behaviors.
The beauty of Genuin's approach lies in its ability to keep the entire customer journey within the brand's ecosystem. Rather than sending potential customers off to research products on Google or watch reviews on YouTube, brands can now host all this discovery content in-house.
For retailers like Walmart or consumer brands like Nike, this means deeper connections with customers, more personalized experiences, and ultimately, better conversion rates.
As Rahul explains, "We are transforming the cost into revenue" by giving brands unlimited inventory for video content that would otherwise be pushed to external platforms.
Looking toward the future, Genuin aims to democratize social media by creating a network effect across hundreds of brands, allowing them to share audiences in relevant, targeted ways.
Whether you're a massive retailer or a startup launching your first product, Genuin's platform offers something revolutionary: control over your audience and ownership of your customer relationships in a world where both have become increasingly rare.
Want to learn more about regaining control of your brand's digital presence? Visit megenuine.com or connect with Rahul directly on LinkedIn to discover how your company can build its own social media experience.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Welcome to the Doing Business in Bentonville, the
Whiskered Warehouse Warriorspodcast.
I'm your host, Josh Safran,with my co-host, Mr Harvey
Williams, with the fantasticbeard today.
Hello, Now you do that.
Do you work on your own on yourbeard?
Do you go to a shop or do youdo that?
Or what's your secret on that?
It's a tight beard.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I've got a very expensive Phillips Norelco that
I bought from CVS five years agoMore pro, and that's how I keep
it trimmed.
I think I've got it on a 12.
I'm not even sure if that'smillimeters, I'm just thinking
about that.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Now, does the wife like the beard?
I'm not even sure if that'smillimeters, I'm just thinking
about that.
Now, does the wife like thebeard?
Is she a big fan?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Oh, big fan.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Big fan of the beard.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I have not had a clean shaven face since my
probably first month at Plug andPlay seven and a half years ago
, because I got hired with abeard and I said, hey, I've got
new colleagues, I've got a newboss, I've got a reputation to
build.
I'll go clean shaven.
I come from an investmentbanking background.
That was very natural to me.
(01:07):
And in the first hour on thefloor with my brand new
teammates, heiss, one of my goodfriends, said hey, who's the
intern?
And the whole room erupts inlaughter.
I'm feeling like a schmuck andI said I'm not doing this again.
I'm going to keep a beard fromhere on out.
(01:28):
And now, thankfully, I'mstarting to thin up top, so I'm
starting to look a little bitmore older, a little bit more
head of greed, a little bit morejust a little bit more
experienced all the way around,josh, and the beard helps fill
that in for me.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Well, the first couple of years working with you
was around my third year, andyou've been here more than that.
Every picture in your profilewas you without a beard, and I
was like you have to change that, because I've never seen you
without a beard, and so now,knowing that's a really old
picture of you that had used tobe in the plugin profile.
Wow, yeah, all right, all right.
Well, moving on for theaudience, because we're not
specifically here to talk onlyabout that today.
But Rahul did get the memo andkept his beard, so we got very
lucky.
Rahul, the founder of Genuine,welcome to the Doing Business in
(02:12):
Bentonville Warehouse WhiskerWarriors podcast today.
Thank you for joining us.
My friend, I had a chance tomeet you in person last week and
really, really impressed withyour tech.
Why don't you just give theaudience a little bit of your
background?
I know you've had multipleexits and you've had multiple
different startups that youfounded, so why don't you start
off with a little bit of a bioaround you, sir?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Yeah, absolutely.
First of all, thanks for havingme.
Josh, ari, great to meet you aswell.
So, yeah, I mean you know verybriefly about myself.
So I'm in finance operations onthe tech world for the last 20
years.
This is my fifth rodeo genuine.
My first one was DigitalOcean,the cloud-based company in New
York.
Did IPO a few years back, wentpublic at $4 billion market cap.
(02:55):
I was in early management forthat company and after that I
went to join a company calledSoCure.
It's in fintech, based in NewYork as well, a deep tech
company.
The last round we did at Socurwas Series D at $4.5 billion
valuation.
Raised total about $450 million.
(03:17):
Same story as well.
Joined the company in earlystage, won the seed stage Series
A.
After that I was at a companycalled Carbine for last three
years as CFO Carbine.
We developed the world's firstcloud-based emergency responding
solution, so we helped upgrade911 system around the globe.
(03:38):
A similar story as well.
Grew the business, you know, 2xyear over year, raised about
$130 million in investment.
We got from Founders, fundequity partners of the amazing
funds.
Then I met Genuine and, youknow, built the team, joined the
(04:04):
team at Genuine a few yearsback and you know.
So I'm looking for my fourthand last exit, hopefully
depending on what's happeningwith Kaibine.
So that's all on the corporateside, and before all that I was
with Stan Young KPMG for a longtime working on the IPO practice
, did many IPOs over there, sobefore you get into Genuine.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Harvey, you would tell me right, there's no such
thing as a sure bet in this game.
But he's pretty close to a surebet, like everything he's
touched has turned to gold.
So that gives me a good feelingon Genuine and where this thing
is going to go right.
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
I mean the pedigree the background.
Rahul has seen almosteverything you can see, I would
imagine, in kind of the last eraof tech startups.
So, yes, it's awesome.
He's almost a sure thing, rahul, does anything stick out just
from your journeys with thosecompanies?
Anything stick out to you.
That's just a funny story, ahorrifying moment securing
victory from the jaws of defeatfive days from cash out.
You pick.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
Yeah, so many Working in the startup.
Every day is a fire drill.
I remember the days at theKaibine where we had literally
one week of cash left in thebank and I was talking to my CEO
that, dude, what are we goingto do?
Like you know, we're working onthe fundraising.
The check hasn't hit the bankyet and we have one week of cash
left and it.
(05:31):
Also.
We went through those moments aswell, you know, with the
sleepless nights and.
But luckily everything workedout and you know we grew the
business amazingly from thatpoint.
I remember the days at you knowSecure and DigitalOcean, where
you know, every day we were likegrowing like crazy.
Right, like you know, there's asuper high growth moment that
(05:58):
we had for like next six months,next 12 months, growing, you
know, month over month, quarterover quarter.
So you know all that.
Plus, I remember the moments atyou know at Genuine, like you
know recently, that you knowwhen the.
You know the fire drill when the.
You know when the.
You know the fire drill whenthe.
You know the service is down orwhen something happens at the
back end in the system and youknow we have like 20 people
working on it to fix it and allthose things.
But yeah, I mean there's, likeyou know, these uh, like I have
seen, like you know, high ofhigh and lows of low uh during
(06:19):
this journey and you know, butit's exciting, like you know, I
think this is what I love, likeI know to be, you know, on the
age, uh, you know if things getuh, you know routine, I get more
uh very easily, so I like to beon that age, you know, like
that feel, and this is uh what Iget.
That.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
So, yeah, I, I love uh every moment of it so give us
a little bit of the, of the,the tech, and genuine is it
genuine or genuine?
I don't want to make sure I'msaying correctly it's a genuine,
genuine, okay?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Get that song out of your head, joshua, just making
sure because, yes, genuine.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
So give us a little bit of the touch on the genuine.
I knew we'd get Harvey singingtoday, so that's why I threw it
out there.
Y'all on it, right, exactlySorry, rahul.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
We digress.
So, GenDune, basically, we havebuilt the generative video
experience infrastructure where,in the simplest terms, think
about if any company, any brandin the world, if they want to
have their own social mediaplatform, if they want to have
their own social mediaexperience that integrates
(07:33):
inside the mobile app or thewebsite inside the digital
channels, then we have thatplatform to make that happen.
Platform to make that happen.
So, any company, any brand justsimilar to Stripe and Shopify
right, If you want to build awebsite, you go to Shopify and
get the website built within afew minutes.
If you want to have seamlesspayment integration, you go to
Stripe and do the integration.
(07:54):
Similarly, if you want to haveyour own social media platform,
then we are the only company inthe world today that provide
end-to-end, 100% white label,your own social media experience
that integrates inside ofdigital channels and boom, from
first minute.
You can have just like TikTok,just like Instagram, just like
Facebook kind of experience foryour user, but they can have the
(08:17):
vertical video feed along withthe entire engagement mechanism
behind that.
So that is what we have builtover the last few years and we
went to market a few months backand seeing amazing traction.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
So if I'm the chief marketing officer at Clorox and
I wanted to talk to you becauseI wanted you to help me put some
cool content behind my CloroxWipes brand, walk me through
what that conversation will looklike and what you'd be able to
do for me.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I mean the problemks or any ofthe brands.
They have lost the ownership tothe social giants.
Today they are totally on themercy of the social giants
algorithm.
If something changes on thesocial giants platform, the AI
algorithm, it impacts thebusiness.
The CAC is going high,otherwise going down Literally
every single content they havein Social Giants.
(09:08):
It's a pay-to-play.
There is no organic boostanymore.
Plus, they don't get all thedata.
They don't get first-party data, they don't get zero-party data
.
They're kind of renting thespace from them by paying so
much without owning it.
So what we can bring to a tablefor the Clorox or any other
brand is that they can have theplug-and-play platform by
(09:35):
integrating our SDK inside theirmobile app on their website.
So we have a robust backendcenter where they can log in.
Simply with the one click of athing, they can build an account
, they can integrate theirGoogle Drive or their social
handles where they have all thecontent.
Our AI platform can fetch allthe content and create the
(09:57):
groups or subgroups or topicsbased on the brand affinity, and
all the content gets curatedautomatically by the AI platform
and gets tagged into particulargroups and within a few minutes
, a few days, they can havetheir own social media platform
just look like TikTok and Metaplatform that sits inside the
digital channels.
(10:18):
So that's where what happens is, by having the platform like
this for the Clorox, they getall the engagement back to the
destination.
Right Now they are, you know,talking to their audience, their
consumer, their users, theircustomers inside the ecosystem.
Right Now they're also having,you know, all the zero party,
(10:40):
first party data, right.
So Clorox now know that.
You know the users exactly.
You know watching which video,where they're commenting, where
they're liking, where they'rebouncing off.
They get all those kinds ofdata which is super valuable for
brand to understand the userprofile.
The third thing is it's expandthe use of the content right.
Right now they're producing allthe content.
They have millions of minutesof content that's going on
(11:03):
through into YouTube or, youknow, social giant platform, but
there's no value for that.
They're not getting true value.
Now they are getting the truevalue of all the content they're
producing because it sitsinside the ecosystem and they
are driving the kind of thatalgorithm, that which content
they want to show to which userand all that thing Right.
(11:23):
And the last thing is you knowthese create the news I want to
stream.
So now we are kind ofincreasing the time spent on
their digital channels.
So now consumers the users, thecustomers are spending more
time on that platform versuswatching those content on the
outside.
The ecosystem, right.
So having people spend moretime it's always great.
(11:46):
So this is what we can bring toa table.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
So are you able to understand I mean, everything
you just said makes a ton ofsense to me If I'm keeping
people on the Clorox website inthis specific example, instead
of pushing them out to TikTokand hoping that they come back?
Are you able to understand whatthey're doing on your website,
what they're looking at, howmuch time they're spending to
really understand and identifywith that consumer and some of
their shopping behaviors?
Speaker 3 (12:08):
Absolutely.
So we provide, we capture andwe provide about 200 events of
data to the brand and all thisdata owned by the Clorox right.
We just process the data, wedon't control the data.
So now Clorox having all thisdata, knowing exactly the user
profile, the user journey, andnot just that, before that right
(12:28):
, like you know, if someone islooking for you know some
cleaning supply on Google, youknow when they come to the
Clorox looking at you, knowthose products, they get the
content to see relevant to thesearch query right, so they know
where the user came from,searching for which item and
what video they're watchingbased on that and how much time
(12:49):
they're spending and all thosethings.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
So, absolutely, this is exactly what we can bring to
the table, because I used towork for a big CPG and you talk
to the marketing team, thenwho's the target audience for
this launch?
And it was the same targetaudience for every launch Mom 25
to 40, right.
It was the same target audiencefor every launch Mom 25 to 40,
right.
Making $85,000 a year householdincome at a minimum.
And that's who they're all.
Well, everybody wants that'sthe sweet spot.
But that's not the person who'sjust like shopping or they're
(13:13):
scrolling on their website, andso you're really marketing to
actually the wrong person,because who you're aspiring to
market to isn't actually who'sshopping for your brand.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
Yeah, absolutely, you got the very, very one point.
So see what happens on thematter, right?
Speaker 1 (13:25):
So when you go on the yeah, Harvey, I got the
relevant point there.
Harvey, See that you impressedHarvey today.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
You know it's been a while since Joss has received
that kind of compliment.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
Raul I, it makes me wonder if he didn't pay you off
before we got started here yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
So like you know, uh, like that's a, that's a beauty,
right that?
Uh, you know, on the on socialgiant platform, you get all kind
of content, right, you'rewatching some content of the
fashion now.
You got the content of the catsand mouse, you know.
So there is no curated brandsafe environment.
The user is getting having thisplatform inside the ecosystem
of the brand.
(14:03):
Now user can join the relevantgroup that they like to join.
For example, we went live withTED last month TED Talk and we
did the integrations in a veryseamless fashion within a few
weeks and went live on themobile app throughout the US.
In the TED app they havecreated eight different groups,
(14:24):
from technology to personalgrowth, to science, to
healthcare, and now a usercoming to TED platform, they can
see those eight groups and,based on the topic of interest
they have, they join one or manydifferent groups and, depending
on which group they join, theyconsume the relevant content.
So the whole relevance is whatwe kind of giving to the brand
(14:46):
and getting to the users.
You know, today users aregetting bombarded with all kinds
of content, right?
So this is why they're gettingthe more curated environment to
consume the content they like toconsume.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
And then for kind of like the future of how you guys
foresee the shopping experienceevolving.
What role do you guys want toplay in kind of how you're
starting to change that dynamicfor the shopping experience?
Because how do we?
tie this back to our listenersLike, okay, in 12 months, in 24
months, this is what you canexpect if you walk into a large
retailer doing business inBentonville.
(15:19):
So if you walk into a Walmart,for example, what might that
look like for the consumer?
You know they're going to bewatching a video, they're going
to see an ad placement, but thenmaybe they're also going to be
able to click on a product inthe video itself and they're
going to see a deal.
Can you kind of elaborate alittle bit on that?
Speaker 3 (15:33):
What we like to make a change is that we want to
bring that entire purchasediscovery journey at the brand's
destination.
You give an example of Walmart,right.
So if I'm looking for, let'ssay, a TV, I look at and I like
the ABC company TV.
I look at them on the Google, Iwant to look at the review, I
want to look at some UGC, somefeedback, so I consume all this
(15:54):
content on the Google ordifferent platform.
Then I come to Walmart and buythat.
Right, I don't spend like oneminute on Walmart and buy that.
Instead of that, what we arebringing is that entire purchase
discovery journey at thebrand's destination.
So now I'm coming on theWalmart and in the Walmart
itself I'm watching all thecontent, all the UGC for the TV,
(16:15):
all the feedback, all thereview videos, and over there
I'm deciding to buy that andadding the card and buy it right
away.
So that entire purchasediscovery journey from end to
end.
It's going to happen at thebrand's destination, right On
top of that, to answer yoursecond question so what change
are we going to make over thenext 12 to 24 months is also
(16:36):
that having our platformintegrated in one and many
different brands, we arecreating the entire network
effect.
So think that we have a brandTed went live.
We have Buzz went live.
We have Walmart, we haveGrubhub, we have Wakefront right
, we have all different multiplebrands.
So think, like you know now asyou being the, you know Walmart
(17:01):
as a brand customer now you canhave access to the Ted ecosystem
, you can have access to.
You know, let's say, you knowiHeart ecosystem or Grubhub
ecosystem, so we can give eachand every brand that additional
reach and distribution that theydon't have it today and that is
a super valuable that you canget millions of new users access
(17:24):
that you don't have it today,in the relevant fashion.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Rahul, when you work when we talked about we talked
about Walmart.
When you work in theintersection of both, I assume
that there is a reason to be foryou to have a contract with a
retailer and a reason for me foryou to have a contract with a
brand.
Walk us through the differences, the similarities, where the
overlap may be.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Yeah, so we typically integrate the platform with the
Walmart as a customer.
So we signed a contract withthe, with the let's in the
walmart example in walmart as acustomer, so we signed the
contract with the walmart.
Now walmart have thousands ofretail brands as the partners,
right, and they have already the, the co-op dollars, they
already have all the contentthey're getting from the, the
(18:08):
brands being advertiser in theecosystem.
Now what we bring to the tableis this new video channel, new
video unit, new video contentthat Walmart can put on the
platform where all the brandscan be a sponsor, can be an
advertiser for this new video adunit, right.
So we are giving that uncapped,unlimited inventory to the
(18:30):
Walmart that they can extend toall the brands they have and all
the brands.
The benefit for them is they'regetting in front of relevant
people.
Right to your earlier point now,they are not showing the video
of washing machine to someone islooking for tv.
They're looking, they areshowing the video of washing
machine to someone who isinterested in washing machine.
So that whole relevance that we, you, that we add that Walmart
(18:53):
get and the brand get.
It's a super valuable and thatis what we are kind of adding to
the layer, but we don't signthe contract with the brand.
The brand become the sponsor atthe retailer.
We are happy to integrate theplatform directly with the brand
as well, if they want.
So we're talking to a fewbrands.
They're like we'd love to bringthis experience on our platform
(19:17):
.
We're not looking to monetize,we're not looking to add
incremental, add revenue, mediarevenue, but we just want to
have this experience where weown the audience, that we
control the communities, wecontrol the algorithm.
So we bring the platform tothem, them and they turn on
these integrations and now theuser's getting that experience
inside the brand's destination,inside the brand's ecosystem,
(19:40):
without having the new revenuestream.
Speaker 2 (19:44):
And then, how do you guys foresee the world changing
for the in-shopping experience,or the in-store experience?
Excuse me, whenever they'regoing to Sam's Club or they're
going to Walmart, are they stillable to interact with the
content if they choose to do so?
Like, how do you guys thinkabout that?
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Yeah, even the physical Walmart store, right,
right, yeah, yeah.
So basically you know ifanyone's going to you know
physical Walmart store like youknow, physical walmart store,
like you know they can have,think about making.
You have now the, the scan forthe qr code outside every aisle
in the store, right?
So you're scanning the qr code.
When you scan the qr code nowyou're seeing that particular
(20:24):
group, a particular communityfor that aisle where you are
consuming the content you knowfor the item you're looking for
in that aisle.
So in the real time you'regetting all kind of validated,
curated video content that youcan consume, looking at the
reviews and feedback of theproduct you're looking to buy.
So just increase that validityin the consumer's mind to
(20:46):
purchase that product.
So, because in the storethere's no one to talk, there's
no one to look at, there's noone to talk, there's no one to
look at, right, there's no oneto ask.
So, having this community ofgroup, you can consume the
content and then you canpurchase the product.
So increase that engagement atthe destination.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
So, rahul, so I'm assuming that if you partner
with a Walmart or a Nike orwhoever the case may be, let's
just use Nike as an example.
I'm a big sneaker guy, so I goonto the Nike website and I'm
scrolling and I'm watchingvideos on the latest Jordans.
The next time I go on, it'sgoing to know enough to start
showing me things directedspecifically to Josh Safran and
(21:24):
my shopping behavior, like right, I assume that's going to be a
much smarter interaction andI'll have a much better shopping
experience using the AI on theNike website.
But can I walk through that alittle bit for me?
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Yeah, absolutely so.
When you go to Nike the firsttime, you might see some content
which is a super popularcontent on the platform by other
people.
So you start seeing those asfirst, right.
Then you can see the differentgroups or different communities
or different categories thatNike might have created.
So you can join one of thosemany communities or groups you
(21:58):
know.
And once you start joiningthose, then you are getting the
content relevant to thosecommunities, those groups.
So now you are consuming thecontent based on your interest.
On top of it, you can get accessto all the members who are part
of those groups and communitiesthat you have joined, so you
can also interact with them, youcan engage with them.
(22:18):
You can see all the comments andall the engagement data for
them, right?
So you know you become kind ofpart of that group, become part
of the community based on atopic of interest For the Nike.
Now Nike knows that which videoyou're watching, how many
seconds you're spending on eachvideo, which group you have
joined, and so Nike is feedingyou the content through AI
(22:43):
algorithms, through AI platform,based on your journey, your
time spent on different groups,different communities watching
different content, based on,also, your purchase journey,
right?
So if you bought, you know twosneakers last month, you know
they might show you the video ofyou know like sandals, for
example, or you know some otherproduct that's relevant to your
(23:04):
sneaker that you bought twomonths ago, right?
So Nike is showing to thepeople exactly what they need to
see, based on the purchasehistory and the engagement
journey in the platform.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
So I think to me I'm at the front but like sorry, I
think I'll let you chime inafter this piece here, but I
think the thing for me that'sthe most interesting I know you
said it up front is you arekeeping me if I'm Nike and I'm
working with you engaged andactive on that website for much
longer and instead of me poppingoff and going into in a chat
(23:36):
group or talking to somewhereelse, you're going to watch
videos on TikTok or YouTube orsomething else you're keeping me
actively engaged on thatwebsite and you're understanding
all of my behaviors while I'mon your website for that period
of time.
I mean this is fascinating tome.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Absolutely.
Just to give you some example,like you know, in last month I
mean in the month of March we'rewaiting for April data In month
of March we have seen about 1.8million minutes spanned on the
platform.
We have seen incremental 16.4minutes spanned by the user at
the destination.
So we are giving thatadditional incremental 16
(24:15):
minutes of watch time of thetime spent by the user in a
store, in your website, in yourmobile app.
So that is super valuable forany brand.
And think about the data youcollect by spending 16 minutes
by the user.
You know every piece of theengagement, every eyeball, every
footprint on different pages.
You know as a brand, you knowall those things.
(24:36):
So this is the data that youknow the brands are not having
today and this is the data wheresocial giants are owning and
controlling.
So now we kind of, you know,breaking that walled garden and
giving those data and engagementback to the brands.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Sorry, Harvey, I cut you off before.
I'm sure what you were going tosay was much more brilliant
than my question.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
It was to let you know that my Nike data is
slightly skewed because I'vebeen buying baby Jordans and
baby Air Force Ones for mydaughters and it's a huge miss.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
My recommendation engine you have small feet?
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Maybe I mean one never knows right, and I love
pink.
Does this have small feet?
Maybe I mean one never knowsright, and I love pink.
Um, does this for your business, for genuine?
Are you guys focusing on aparticular price point for the
product, particular category ofproduct?
Are we talking about, uh,grocery in the same way that we
would talk about, um, powertools?
(25:32):
Right, like, how are you guysthinking about tackling that in
your approach to go after thebig box stores?
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Yeah, so you know we want to remain the tech company.
We will be tech company.
So what we bring is theinfrastructure.
So it's up to the brand.
You know how they want to usethis canvas that we bring right.
You know, but for sure that Ithink the high-value ticket item
is super valuable in this stagebecause that's where they can
(25:59):
get the maximum value out ofpeople spending time on the
platform, because engagement hasa cost as well.
So having that super high-valueitem and moving that quickly by
watching the content, bywatching the video, is a more
ROI for any brand.
So you know people, you knowlike users or customers or
(26:20):
consumers.
You know it definitely getsinfluenced by watching the video
, right?
So by watching multiple videoof the same product multiple
times in different format, youknow it influenced that purchase
decision and you know.
So, yeah, I think a high-ticketvalue item is definitely more
relevant.
But even grocery as well.
(26:42):
Like we are talking to a fewretailers, you know the big box
grocery store retailers and theylove the.
You know the platform becausethey are like you know we all be
looking for, because they'relike you know, all we're looking
for is incremental time spenton the website, on our mobile
app right, even if it gets meone more minute.
People spend more on my store.
You know we would love thatbecause the amount of data that
(27:07):
we will collect and we canutilize that for other reasons,
it is super valuable.
Speaker 2 (27:13):
Think about it.
It's such a powerful way topromote your own private label.
That's where a lot of thesecompanies are going now, of
course, yeah, and plus whathappens all the retailers.
Speaker 3 (27:25):
they have already co-op dollars.
They're already spending the addollars of the retail partners.
So Walmart, for example, theyhave thousands of brands, they
must be getting the ad dollarsof the retail partners.
So, like Walmart, for example,they have thousands of brands
right, they must be getting thead dollars from them.
But what happens is there's noenough inventory on site.
So they spend these dollars offsite on social giants platform
(27:45):
or YouTube or Google, right.
So now, having this unlimitedinventory on their own
destination, they can spendthose dollars over there, and
that is where we transform thecost into revenue.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Rahul on the data that's coming on the output of
this stuff.
Are you mining the data andpackaging it up neatly for your
customer and then helping themwith the sell?
What, or is that left for themto do on the back end?
Speaker 3 (28:13):
Yeah, so we provide the raw data because every
customer we have so far rightnow in the pipeline these are
all the bigger.
You know big brands and bigretailers.
So they have their own BI toolsalready exist that they are
using for multiple applications.
So we provide the raw data andwe can integrate our platform
with any BI tools today thatexist right, so they get all the
raw data and we can integrateour platform with any BI tools
(28:34):
today that exist.
So they get all the raw dataand they already have machinery
set up to produce the reportthey need to produce to look at
the KPI that's relevant to them.
So this data becomes justfitting the KPI that's relevant
to the brand and every brand hasa different KPI.
They're looking for differentdata for different reasons.
So we just provide low data andthey can use the way they want
(28:55):
to use, but we provide thatseamless integration with the BI
tools.
Speaker 2 (29:01):
How would you guys, how would you guys think about
the product in like a year ortwo?
Because where it is right now,it's like perfect timing, right
Like the convergence of verticalvideo format, the convergence
of TikTok and Instagram.
It feels like you guys arehitting it right at the moment
that it's perfect.
You have these large companies,these large stores and brands
(29:24):
that have lost access tofirst-party data.
They've lost, increasingly lost, access to first-party data.
They've lost, increasinglylosing, access to their customer
because a few products or a fewcompanies want to stand in the
way between them and theircustomer, so they're losing that
relationship.
They're looking for a way toget back into it.
Then you have a Jintic AI andthe conversions of those
tailwinds coming in and helpingbrands finally start to wrestle
back control of how they want toproject their image to the
(29:49):
consumer.
You guys are nailing that.
I'm curious how you ride thiswave over the next 12 months, 24
months.
We're going to go through, I'msure, some ups and downs in the
Gen AI space, what you can dowith Agintik AI and other AI
tools, but how does Gen U inlook in two years time?
Speaker 3 (30:09):
no, absolutely so.
Our ultimate vision is todemocratize social media, right?
So the way we're gonna do that,you know.
Two years from now, from now,you will see a genuine platform
integrated in hundreds ofhundreds of brands, right, the
small to big, and we're gonnaprovide, like I was saying
before, that network effect.
So now the brand or theretailer can have access to the
(30:34):
other ecosystem, the otheraudience.
Right, so walmart can open thecommunity inside ted, for
example.
Right, so now you know the teduh, users are watching the
content, but they're alsolooking at the content that you
know, pushed by the Walmart, youknow, using the media dollars
of their brand.
Right, of the Samsung, forexample, or the you know the
(30:54):
other brands that haveunderneath.
So that network effect is whatwe are forecasting, or we are
foreseeing that's going tohappen in the next two years.
The other things we're going todo is that we want to provide
that infrastructure where everycompany, you know, when they,
from the day one, when they openthe entity and they open the
first you know their website onShopify, the first thing they
(31:15):
will do is open the you knowaccount in January and platform
and own their own social mediaplatform.
Right, so you know so.
So any, any company looking forto start the business, to have
their own social handles,they're going to do that on
genuine platform and by doingthat instantly they will get
(31:36):
access to these hundred otherbrands that we have, from
Walmart to Ted to I heart, to,you know, grubhub, where they
can now, you know, get thatadditional reach and
distribution, where they can nowget that additional reach and
distribution.
So we want to provide thatgrowth engine to every single
brand out there, small or big ornew brand, that on day one they
can get access to hundreds ofmillions of people, not on
(31:57):
social giant where they don'thave any understanding of the
user.
Here they're going to have thefull understanding of the user
and they're going to show theproduct or they're going to
reach out to the audience thatis exactly the relevant to the
brand.
So that is what our ultimatevision is.
Speaker 1 (32:13):
Rahul, as you're starting this journey because
you're an earlier company hereand you're thinking about
working with a Walmart or aTarget or a Kroger or a ShopRite
or a Publix or so on is thereanything that you would do with
one or not the other?
Is it okay that you're workingwith many?
Is there anything that youwould do with one or not the
other?
Is it okay that you're workingwith many?
Is there anything the reasonthat if I work with Target, I
can't work with Kroger but I canwork with Costco, like?
(32:34):
What does that look like foryou from how you're going to
pick and choose partners and whoyou want to work with and not
work with?
Speaker 3 (32:39):
Yeah, no, I think you know we can work with each and
anyone.
We don't have any conflict.
Or, you know, we providebasically the technology right.
So each brand can use thetechnology how they want to use.
There is no, you know, datasharing among them.
Every brand will have their owndata.
They're going to have their ownexperience.
(33:00):
They're going to have their owncustomizations and
personalizations based on thebrand affinity and based on the
user profile that they have.
So we just remain thatinfrastructure company where,
you know brands can come andopen their own.
You know TikTok shop.
So we don't.
But the one thing I want tomake sure I want to call out is
(33:22):
that what we are doing none ofother company or big, you know,
if you look at, like Amazon, forexample, none of those can do
it right, because they alreadyhave so much confidence,
interest in the business, sothey cannot provide this
infrastructure to othercompanies.
They can have on their ownplatform, right.
Similarly, you know any other,like Walmart, for example, like
(33:45):
no one can.
You know no big retailer canprovide this white label to the
brands because of obviousreasons.
So genuine is the only platformthat available out there.
They can provide the whitelabel to each and any brand.
Speaker 1 (33:59):
The only platform, Harvey, the one and the only.
I want to make sure that you'reclear on that.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Yes, absolutely Harvey.
Any other questions for?
Speaker 1 (34:07):
Rahul before we ask him to wrap up with website and
LinkedIn and all their pertinentdata and information.
Speaker 2 (34:16):
Are you?
I think maybe we can add tothat, josh Also want to make
sure this is a platform forpeople to try to get the word
out if they're making any keyhires.
There might be folks in thecommunity that would be
interested in joining a startupor joining a rocket ship that
you guys are building right now.
So, in addition to the wrap upand everything else, yes, are
you currently hiring?
In what positions?
(34:37):
How can people get in touchwith you?
What's a good chance for us tobe a funnel for you on the
talent side?
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Are you looking for a job, Harvey?
Just making sure we're puttingthat out in the world that
you're good, right, Look theWhisker Warehouse.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Warriors.
It's a good gig, josh, but whatRahul is building is he's a
four-time.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
Why would you not want to be on his team?
Speaker 2 (35:01):
I want to take my content strategy to the next
level.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
Yeah, of course you want to be with the winners, and
Rahul's definitelydemonstrating he's a winner.
I'd want to work for himExactly, are you?
Speaker 3 (35:11):
hiring Guys.
Come join anytime, we'd love tohave you.
Yeah, and I want to answer thequestion.
We're always looking fortalented people.
It's always hard to find andwe're always looking for the
right skill, the right talent.
Particularly, we are looking fortalent right now in the, you
know, of course, on the AI side.
We are adding tons of AIcapabilities in the platform,
(35:34):
both on the front end and in theback end.
On the back end, we are adding,you know, the whole content
curation, moderation, you know,capabilities where you know,
like Walmart or any other bigbrand, they have tons of content
right Now, curating thosecontent in real time within like
(35:54):
seconds.
You know it required a lot ofyou know the horsepower in the
platform.
So we are continuing investingin that on that side.
So looking for, you know, thetalent on that front.
We're also looking for talent,you course, on the front-end
office to serve the customers.
We are signing many customersthis time.
(36:18):
We're getting amazing tractionand so looking for those
talented account managers, thecustomer success team members
who can kind of help grow theaccount, and we're looking for
people in the engineering side.
So we have a backend office inIndia.
(36:39):
We're looking to expand theoffice or the talent outside of
India as well.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
So looking for those talent so pretty much I don't
meet any of the requirements forhim to hire me, harvey, so I'm
gonna probably just I waswarehouse warriors and uh and
hopefully be able to keep thisplug and play office afloat here
in bentonville.
Speaker 2 (36:59):
We'll just slowly keep adding to our our, uh, our
list of accomplishments here,and then maybe you'll be ready
for the prime time with Rahul,maybe but doubtful.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
Rahul, give us the website, the LinkedIn, the best
ways to contact you.
Speaker 3 (37:15):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Our website is megenuinecom, soyou know we have all the
details on the website,including the carrier page, so
you know please visit that andany questions we have.
We're happy to schedule a callon the website and we can
discuss more detail.
I'm on LinkedIn, rahul Shat, sodefinitely connect me over
(37:37):
there as well.
I'm happy to chat.
My email is rahul atbegenuinecom, so happy to
receive any emails and lookingfor further discussion.
Yeah, what else?
No emails and you know, lookingfor further discussion.
Speaker 1 (37:50):
Um, yeah, what else?
No, that's, I mean, I'mlistening, I the I.
Your background is superimpressive.
The tech is very cool.
Uh, I think that, uh, you'reready to take off.
Um, I think there's a ton ofdifferent uh use cases that make
sense for corporate partnersand folks in this.
Uh, in this community inNorthwest Arkansas, I think the
(38:14):
supplier community is ready forstuff like this, big retailers,
big or small, I mean it'sfantastic tech and I've had a
chance to demo it and go on thewebsite and if you haven't seen
it, please, I encourage peopleto do that, because folks really
want to see the tool play withit and it just makes a lot of
sense for people to get accessto you and what you're doing.
You're about to take off asHarvey said before yeah,
absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (38:30):
And I do want to give a shout out to Joss, actually,
and the whole PNP team.
You guys are awesome.
I think the value you bring tothe table and the connection you
bring to the table is supervaluable.
So, not just January, but anyof the startups I think they're
looking to kind of, you know,expand their, you know, their
network.
I think PNP is the place forthat.
(38:51):
So, thank you guys for all yourhelp and all your support so
far.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
Saeed Sanam, make sure you're listening to this
when raise and promotion timecomes in.
I mean, it's just I'll have toput that into my annual review.
Harvey, with Frederick, makesure he had a chance to hear
that.
That was a great shout out forme.
Speaker 2 (39:06):
Uh, I I heard a really wonderful plug for
sponsors to come in here.
That's what I was hearing amen,sponsor gold.
Um, well, thanks for spendingsome time with us, man, I think
you're building something that'sreally cool, um, and it's.
It's changing the way thatwe're going to shop and engage
(39:26):
with these major retailers, andit's doing it in a we're going
to shop and engage with thesemajor retailers and it's doing
it in a way where the retailershave a voice.
They have a control over thatjourney now, and they're
wrestling that back.
I think that's awesome, yepabsolutely Exactly.
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Thank you, rahul, thanks for making the time,
thanks for having me Appreciateit, harvey, until we meet again.
Welcome to the Doing Business in Bentonville, the
Whiskered Warehouse Warriorspodcast.
I'm your host, Josh Safran,with my co-host, Mr Harvey
Williams, with the fantasticbeard today.
Hello, Now you do that.
Do you work on your own on yourbeard?
Do you go to a shop or do youdo that?
Or what's your secret on that?
It's a tight beard.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I've got a very expensive Phillips Norelco that
I bought from CVS five years agoMore pro, and that's how I keep
it trimmed.
I think I've got it on a 12.
I'm not even sure if that'smillimeters, I'm just thinking
about that.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Now, does the wife like the beard?
I'm not even sure if that'smillimeters, I'm just thinking
about that.
Now, does the wife like thebeard?
Is she a big fan?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Oh, big fan.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Big fan of the beard.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I have not had a clean shaven face since my
probably first month at Plug andPlay seven and a half years ago
, because I got hired with abeard and I said, hey, I've got
new colleagues, I've got a newboss, I've got a reputation to
build.
I'll go clean shaven.
I come from an investmentbanking background.
That was very natural to me.
(01:07):
And in the first hour on thefloor with my brand new
teammates, heiss, one of my goodfriends, said hey, who's the
intern?
And the whole room erupts inlaughter.
I'm feeling like a schmuck andI said I'm not doing this again.
I'm going to keep a beard fromhere on out.
(01:28):
And now, thankfully, I'mstarting to thin up top, so I'm
starting to look a little bitmore older, a little bit more
head of greed, a little bit morejust a little bit more
experienced all the way around,josh, and the beard helps fill
that in for me.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Well, the first couple of years working with you
was around my third year, andyou've been here more than that.
Every picture in your profilewas you without a beard, and I
was like you have to change that, because I've never seen you
without a beard, and so now,knowing that's a really old
picture of you that had used tobe in the plugin profile.
Wow, yeah, all right, all right.
Well, moving on for theaudience, because we're not
specifically here to talk onlyabout that today.
But Rahul did get the memo andkept his beard, so we got very
lucky.
Rahul, the founder of Genuine,welcome to the Doing Business in
(02:12):
Bentonville Warehouse WhiskerWarriors podcast today.
Thank you for joining us.
My friend, I had a chance tomeet you in person last week and
really, really impressed withyour tech.
Why don't you just give theaudience a little bit of your
background?
I know you've had multipleexits and you've had multiple
different startups that youfounded, so why don't you start
off with a little bit of a bioaround you, sir?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
Yeah, absolutely.
First of all, thanks for havingme.
Josh, ari, great to meet you aswell.
So, yeah, I mean you know verybriefly about myself.
So I'm in finance operations onthe tech world for the last 20
years.
This is my fifth rodeo genuine.
My first one was DigitalOcean,the cloud-based company in New
York.
Did IPO a few years back, wentpublic at $4 billion market cap.
(02:55):
I was in early management forthat company and after that I
went to join a company calledSoCure.
It's in fintech, based in NewYork as well, a deep tech
company.
The last round we did at Socurwas Series D at $4.5 billion
valuation.
Raised total about $450 million.
(03:17):
Same story as well.
Joined the company in earlystage, won the seed stage Series
A.
After that I was at a companycalled Carbine for last three
years as CFO Carbine.
We developed the world's firstcloud-based emergency responding
solution, so we helped upgrade911 system around the globe.
(03:38):
A similar story as well.
Grew the business, you know, 2xyear over year, raised about
$130 million in investment.
We got from Founders, fundequity partners of the amazing
funds.
Then I met Genuine and, youknow, built the team, joined the
(04:04):
team at Genuine a few yearsback and you know.
So I'm looking for my fourthand last exit, hopefully
depending on what's happeningwith Kaibine.
So that's all on the corporateside, and before all that I was
with Stan Young KPMG for a longtime working on the IPO practice
, did many IPOs over there, sobefore you get into Genuine.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Harvey, you would tell me right, there's no such
thing as a sure bet in this game.
But he's pretty close to a surebet, like everything he's
touched has turned to gold.
So that gives me a good feelingon Genuine and where this thing
is going to go right.
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
I mean the pedigree the background.
Rahul has seen almosteverything you can see, I would
imagine, in kind of the last eraof tech startups.
So, yes, it's awesome.
He's almost a sure thing, rahul, does anything stick out just
from your journeys with thosecompanies?
Anything stick out to you.
That's just a funny story, ahorrifying moment securing
victory from the jaws of defeatfive days from cash out.
You pick.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
Yeah, so many Working in the startup.
Every day is a fire drill.
I remember the days at theKaibine where we had literally
one week of cash left in thebank and I was talking to my CEO
that, dude, what are we goingto do?
Like you know, we're working onthe fundraising.
The check hasn't hit the bankyet and we have one week of cash
left and it.
(05:31):
Also.
We went through those moments aswell, you know, with the
sleepless nights and.
But luckily everything workedout and you know we grew the
business amazingly from thatpoint.
I remember the days at you knowSecure and DigitalOcean, where
you know, every day we were likegrowing like crazy.
Right, like you know, there's asuper high growth moment that
(05:58):
we had for like next six months,next 12 months, growing, you
know, month over month, quarterover quarter.
So you know all that.
Plus, I remember the moments atyou know at Genuine, like you
know recently, that you knowwhen the.
You know the fire drill when the.
You know when the.
You know the fire drill whenthe.
You know the service is down orwhen something happens at the
back end in the system and youknow we have like 20 people
working on it to fix it and allthose things.
But yeah, I mean there's, likeyou know, these uh, like I have
seen, like you know, high ofhigh and lows of low uh during
(06:19):
this journey and you know, butit's exciting, like you know, I
think this is what I love, likeI know to be, you know, on the
age, uh, you know if things getuh, you know routine, I get more
uh very easily, so I like to beon that age, you know, like
that feel, and this is uh what Iget.
That.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
So, yeah, I, I love uh every moment of it so give us
a little bit of the, of the,the tech, and genuine is it
genuine or genuine?
I don't want to make sure I'msaying correctly it's a genuine,
genuine, okay?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Get that song out of your head, joshua, just making
sure because, yes, genuine.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
So give us a little bit of the touch on the genuine.
I knew we'd get Harvey singingtoday, so that's why I threw it
out there.
Y'all on it, right, exactlySorry, rahul.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
We digress.
So, GenDune, basically, we havebuilt the generative video
experience infrastructure where,in the simplest terms, think
about if any company, any brandin the world, if they want to
have their own social mediaplatform, if they want to have
their own social mediaexperience that integrates
(07:33):
inside the mobile app or thewebsite inside the digital
channels, then we have thatplatform to make that happen.
Platform to make that happen.
So, any company, any brand justsimilar to Stripe and Shopify
right, If you want to build awebsite, you go to Shopify and
get the website built within afew minutes.
If you want to have seamlesspayment integration, you go to
Stripe and do the integration.
(07:54):
Similarly, if you want to haveyour own social media platform,
then we are the only company inthe world today that provide
end-to-end, 100% white label,your own social media experience
that integrates inside ofdigital channels and boom, from
first minute.
You can have just like TikTok,just like Instagram, just like
Facebook kind of experience foryour user, but they can have the
(08:17):
vertical video feed along withthe entire engagement mechanism
behind that.
So that is what we have builtover the last few years and we
went to market a few months backand seeing amazing traction.
Speaker 1 (08:29):
So if I'm the chief marketing officer at Clorox and
I wanted to talk to you becauseI wanted you to help me put some
cool content behind my CloroxWipes brand, walk me through
what that conversation will looklike and what you'd be able to
do for me.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I mean the problemks or any ofthe brands.
They have lost the ownership tothe social giants.
Today they are totally on themercy of the social giants
algorithm.
If something changes on thesocial giants platform, the AI
algorithm, it impacts thebusiness.
The CAC is going high,otherwise going down Literally
every single content they havein Social Giants.
(09:08):
It's a pay-to-play.
There is no organic boostanymore.
Plus, they don't get all thedata.
They don't get first-party data, they don't get zero-party data
.
They're kind of renting thespace from them by paying so
much without owning it.
So what we can bring to a tablefor the Clorox or any other
brand is that they can have theplug-and-play platform by
(09:35):
integrating our SDK inside theirmobile app on their website.
So we have a robust backendcenter where they can log in.
Simply with the one click of athing, they can build an account
, they can integrate theirGoogle Drive or their social
handles where they have all thecontent.
Our AI platform can fetch allthe content and create the
(09:57):
groups or subgroups or topicsbased on the brand affinity, and
all the content gets curatedautomatically by the AI platform
and gets tagged into particulargroups and within a few minutes
, a few days, they can havetheir own social media platform
just look like TikTok and Metaplatform that sits inside the
digital channels.
(10:18):
So that's where what happens is, by having the platform like
this for the Clorox, they getall the engagement back to the
destination.
Right Now they are, you know,talking to their audience, their
consumer, their users, theircustomers inside the ecosystem.
Right Now they're also having,you know, all the zero party,
(10:40):
first party data, right.
So Clorox now know that.
You know the users exactly.
You know watching which video,where they're commenting, where
they're liking, where they'rebouncing off.
They get all those kinds ofdata which is super valuable for
brand to understand the userprofile.
The third thing is it's expandthe use of the content right.
Right now they're producing allthe content.
They have millions of minutesof content that's going on
(11:03):
through into YouTube or, youknow, social giant platform, but
there's no value for that.
They're not getting true value.
Now they are getting the truevalue of all the content they're
producing because it sitsinside the ecosystem and they
are driving the kind of thatalgorithm, that which content
they want to show to which userand all that thing Right.
(11:23):
And the last thing is you knowthese create the news I want to
stream.
So now we are kind ofincreasing the time spent on
their digital channels.
So now consumers the users, thecustomers are spending more
time on that platform versuswatching those content on the
outside.
The ecosystem, right.
So having people spend moretime it's always great.
(11:46):
So this is what we can bring toa table.
Speaker 1 (11:48):
So are you able to understand I mean, everything
you just said makes a ton ofsense to me If I'm keeping
people on the Clorox website inthis specific example, instead
of pushing them out to TikTokand hoping that they come back?
Are you able to understand whatthey're doing on your website,
what they're looking at, howmuch time they're spending to
really understand and identifywith that consumer and some of
their shopping behaviors?
Speaker 3 (12:08):
Absolutely.
So we provide, we capture andwe provide about 200 events of
data to the brand and all thisdata owned by the Clorox right.
We just process the data, wedon't control the data.
So now Clorox having all thisdata, knowing exactly the user
profile, the user journey, andnot just that, before that right
(12:28):
, like you know, if someone islooking for you know some
cleaning supply on Google, youknow when they come to the
Clorox looking at you, knowthose products, they get the
content to see relevant to thesearch query right, so they know
where the user came from,searching for which item and
what video they're watchingbased on that and how much time
(12:49):
they're spending and all thosethings.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
So, absolutely, this is exactly what we can bring to
the table, because I used towork for a big CPG and you talk
to the marketing team, thenwho's the target audience for
this launch?
And it was the same targetaudience for every launch Mom 25
to 40, right.
It was the same target audiencefor every launch Mom 25 to 40,
right.
Making $85,000 a year householdincome at a minimum.
And that's who they're all.
Well, everybody wants that'sthe sweet spot.
But that's not the person who'sjust like shopping or they're
(13:13):
scrolling on their website, andso you're really marketing to
actually the wrong person,because who you're aspiring to
market to isn't actually who'sshopping for your brand.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
Yeah, absolutely, you got the very, very one point.
So see what happens on thematter, right?
Speaker 1 (13:25):
So when you go on the yeah, Harvey, I got the
relevant point there.
Harvey, See that you impressedHarvey today.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
You know it's been a while since Joss has received
that kind of compliment.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
Raul I, it makes me wonder if he didn't pay you off
before we got started here yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
So like you know, uh, like that's a, that's a beauty,
right that?
Uh, you know, on the on socialgiant platform, you get all kind
of content, right, you'rewatching some content of the
fashion now.
You got the content of the catsand mouse, you know.
So there is no curated brandsafe environment.
The user is getting having thisplatform inside the ecosystem
of the brand.
(14:03):
Now user can join the relevantgroup that they like to join.
For example, we went live withTED last month TED Talk and we
did the integrations in a veryseamless fashion within a few
weeks and went live on themobile app throughout the US.
In the TED app they havecreated eight different groups,
(14:24):
from technology to personalgrowth, to science, to
healthcare, and now a usercoming to TED platform, they can
see those eight groups and,based on the topic of interest
they have, they join one or manydifferent groups and, depending
on which group they join, theyconsume the relevant content.
So the whole relevance is whatwe kind of giving to the brand
(14:46):
and getting to the users.
You know, today users aregetting bombarded with all kinds
of content, right?
So this is why they're gettingthe more curated environment to
consume the content they like toconsume.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
And then for kind of like the future of how you guys
foresee the shopping experienceevolving.
What role do you guys want toplay in kind of how you're
starting to change that dynamicfor the shopping experience?
Because how do we?
tie this back to our listenersLike, okay, in 12 months, in 24
months, this is what you canexpect if you walk into a large
retailer doing business inBentonville.
(15:19):
So if you walk into a Walmart,for example, what might that
look like for the consumer?
You know they're going to bewatching a video, they're going
to see an ad placement, but thenmaybe they're also going to be
able to click on a product inthe video itself and they're
going to see a deal.
Can you kind of elaborate alittle bit on that?
Speaker 3 (15:33):
What we like to make a change is that we want to
bring that entire purchasediscovery journey at the brand's
destination.
You give an example of Walmart,right.
So if I'm looking for, let'ssay, a TV, I look at and I like
the ABC company TV.
I look at them on the Google, Iwant to look at the review, I
want to look at some UGC, somefeedback, so I consume all this
(15:54):
content on the Google ordifferent platform.
Then I come to Walmart and buythat.
Right, I don't spend like oneminute on Walmart and buy that.
Instead of that, what we arebringing is that entire purchase
discovery journey at thebrand's destination.
So now I'm coming on theWalmart and in the Walmart
itself I'm watching all thecontent, all the UGC for the TV,
(16:15):
all the feedback, all thereview videos, and over there
I'm deciding to buy that andadding the card and buy it right
away.
So that entire purchasediscovery journey from end to
end.
It's going to happen at thebrand's destination, right On
top of that, to answer yoursecond question so what change
are we going to make over thenext 12 to 24 months is also
(16:36):
that having our platformintegrated in one and many
different brands, we arecreating the entire network
effect.
So think that we have a brandTed went live.
We have Buzz went live.
We have Walmart, we haveGrubhub, we have Wakefront right
, we have all different multiplebrands.
So think, like you know now asyou being the, you know Walmart
(17:01):
as a brand customer now you canhave access to the Ted ecosystem
, you can have access to.
You know, let's say, you knowiHeart ecosystem or Grubhub
ecosystem, so we can give eachand every brand that additional
reach and distribution that theydon't have it today and that is
a super valuable that you canget millions of new users access
(17:24):
that you don't have it today,in the relevant fashion.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Rahul, when you work when we talked about we talked
about Walmart.
When you work in theintersection of both, I assume
that there is a reason to be foryou to have a contract with a
retailer and a reason for me foryou to have a contract with a
brand.
Walk us through the differences, the similarities, where the
overlap may be.
Speaker 3 (17:47):
Yeah, so we typically integrate the platform with the
Walmart as a customer.
So we signed a contract withthe, with the let's in the
walmart example in walmart as acustomer, so we signed the
contract with the walmart.
Now walmart have thousands ofretail brands as the partners,
right, and they have already the, the co-op dollars, they
already have all the contentthey're getting from the, the
(18:08):
brands being advertiser in theecosystem.
Now what we bring to the tableis this new video channel, new
video unit, new video contentthat Walmart can put on the
platform where all the brandscan be a sponsor, can be an
advertiser for this new video adunit, right.
So we are giving that uncapped,unlimited inventory to the
(18:30):
Walmart that they can extend toall the brands they have and all
the brands.
The benefit for them is they'regetting in front of relevant
people.
Right to your earlier point now,they are not showing the video
of washing machine to someone islooking for tv.
They're looking, they areshowing the video of washing
machine to someone who isinterested in washing machine.
So that whole relevance that we, you, that we add that Walmart
(18:53):
get and the brand get.
It's a super valuable and thatis what we are kind of adding to
the layer, but we don't signthe contract with the brand.
The brand become the sponsor atthe retailer.
We are happy to integrate theplatform directly with the brand
as well, if they want.
So we're talking to a fewbrands.
They're like we'd love to bringthis experience on our platform
(19:17):
.
We're not looking to monetize,we're not looking to add
incremental, add revenue, mediarevenue, but we just want to
have this experience where weown the audience, that we
control the communities, wecontrol the algorithm.
So we bring the platform tothem, them and they turn on
these integrations and now theuser's getting that experience
inside the brand's destination,inside the brand's ecosystem,
(19:40):
without having the new revenuestream.
Speaker 2 (19:44):
And then, how do you guys foresee the world changing
for the in-shopping experience,or the in-store experience?
Excuse me, whenever they'regoing to Sam's Club or they're
going to Walmart, are they stillable to interact with the
content if they choose to do so?
Like, how do you guys thinkabout that?
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Yeah, even the physical Walmart store, right,
right, yeah, yeah.
So basically you know ifanyone's going to you know
physical Walmart store like youknow, physical walmart store,
like you know they can have,think about making.
You have now the, the scan forthe qr code outside every aisle
in the store, right?
So you're scanning the qr code.
When you scan the qr code nowyou're seeing that particular
(20:24):
group, a particular communityfor that aisle where you are
consuming the content you knowfor the item you're looking for
in that aisle.
So in the real time you'regetting all kind of validated,
curated video content that youcan consume, looking at the
reviews and feedback of theproduct you're looking to buy.
So just increase that validityin the consumer's mind to
(20:46):
purchase that product.
So, because in the storethere's no one to talk, there's
no one to look at, there's noone to talk, there's no one to
look at, right, there's no oneto ask.
So, having this community ofgroup, you can consume the
content and then you canpurchase the product.
So increase that engagement atthe destination.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
So, rahul, so I'm assuming that if you partner
with a Walmart or a Nike orwhoever the case may be, let's
just use Nike as an example.
I'm a big sneaker guy, so I goonto the Nike website and I'm
scrolling and I'm watchingvideos on the latest Jordans.
The next time I go on, it'sgoing to know enough to start
showing me things directedspecifically to Josh Safran and
(21:24):
my shopping behavior, like right, I assume that's going to be a
much smarter interaction andI'll have a much better shopping
experience using the AI on theNike website.
But can I walk through that alittle bit for me?
Speaker 3 (21:36):
Yeah, absolutely so.
When you go to Nike the firsttime, you might see some content
which is a super popularcontent on the platform by other
people.
So you start seeing those asfirst, right.
Then you can see the differentgroups or different communities
or different categories thatNike might have created.
So you can join one of thosemany communities or groups you
(21:58):
know.
And once you start joiningthose, then you are getting the
content relevant to thosecommunities, those groups.
So now you are consuming thecontent based on your interest.
On top of it, you can get accessto all the members who are part
of those groups and communitiesthat you have joined, so you
can also interact with them, youcan engage with them.
(22:18):
You can see all the comments andall the engagement data for
them, right?
So you know you become kind ofpart of that group, become part
of the community based on atopic of interest For the Nike.
Now Nike knows that which videoyou're watching, how many
seconds you're spending on eachvideo, which group you have
joined, and so Nike is feedingyou the content through AI
(22:43):
algorithms, through AI platform,based on your journey, your
time spent on different groups,different communities watching
different content, based on,also, your purchase journey,
right?
So if you bought, you know twosneakers last month, you know
they might show you the video ofyou know like sandals, for
example, or you know some otherproduct that's relevant to your
(23:04):
sneaker that you bought twomonths ago, right?
So Nike is showing to thepeople exactly what they need to
see, based on the purchasehistory and the engagement
journey in the platform.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
So I think to me I'm at the front but like sorry, I
think I'll let you chime inafter this piece here, but I
think the thing for me that'sthe most interesting I know you
said it up front is you arekeeping me if I'm Nike and I'm
working with you engaged andactive on that website for much
longer and instead of me poppingoff and going into in a chat
(23:36):
group or talking to somewhereelse, you're going to watch
videos on TikTok or YouTube orsomething else you're keeping me
actively engaged on thatwebsite and you're understanding
all of my behaviors while I'mon your website for that period
of time.
I mean this is fascinating tome.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Absolutely.
Just to give you some example,like you know, in last month I
mean in the month of March we'rewaiting for April data In month
of March we have seen about 1.8million minutes spanned on the
platform.
We have seen incremental 16.4minutes spanned by the user at
the destination.
So we are giving thatadditional incremental 16
(24:15):
minutes of watch time of thetime spent by the user in a
store, in your website, in yourmobile app.
So that is super valuable forany brand.
And think about the data youcollect by spending 16 minutes
by the user.
You know every piece of theengagement, every eyeball, every
footprint on different pages.
You know as a brand, you knowall those things.
(24:36):
So this is the data that youknow the brands are not having
today and this is the data wheresocial giants are owning and
controlling.
So now we kind of, you know,breaking that walled garden and
giving those data and engagementback to the brands.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Sorry, Harvey, I cut you off before.
I'm sure what you were going tosay was much more brilliant
than my question.
Speaker 2 (24:54):
It was to let you know that my Nike data is
slightly skewed because I'vebeen buying baby Jordans and
baby Air Force Ones for mydaughters and it's a huge miss.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
My recommendation engine you have small feet?
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Maybe I mean one never knows right, and I love
pink.
Does this have small feet?
Maybe I mean one never knowsright, and I love pink.
Um, does this for your business, for genuine?
Are you guys focusing on aparticular price point for the
product, particular category ofproduct?
Are we talking about, uh,grocery in the same way that we
would talk about, um, powertools?
(25:32):
Right, like, how are you guysthinking about tackling that in
your approach to go after thebig box stores?
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Yeah, so you know we want to remain the tech company.
We will be tech company.
So what we bring is theinfrastructure.
So it's up to the brand.
You know how they want to usethis canvas that we bring right.
You know, but for sure that Ithink the high-value ticket item
is super valuable in this stagebecause that's where they can
(25:59):
get the maximum value out ofpeople spending time on the
platform, because engagement hasa cost as well.
So having that super high-valueitem and moving that quickly by
watching the content, bywatching the video, is a more
ROI for any brand.
So you know people, you knowlike users or customers or
(26:20):
consumers.
You know it definitely getsinfluenced by watching the video
, right?
So by watching multiple videoof the same product multiple
times in different format, youknow it influenced that purchase
decision and you know.
So, yeah, I think a high-ticketvalue item is definitely more
relevant.
But even grocery as well.
(26:42):
Like we are talking to a fewretailers, you know the big box
grocery store retailers and theylove the.
You know the platform becausethey are like you know we all be
looking for, because they'relike you know, all we're looking
for is incremental time spenton the website, on our mobile
app right, even if it gets meone more minute.
People spend more on my store.
You know we would love thatbecause the amount of data that
(27:07):
we will collect and we canutilize that for other reasons,
it is super valuable.
Speaker 2 (27:13):
Think about it.
It's such a powerful way topromote your own private label.
That's where a lot of thesecompanies are going now, of
course, yeah, and plus whathappens all the retailers.
Speaker 3 (27:25):
they have already co-op dollars.
They're already spending the addollars of the retail partners.
So Walmart, for example, theyhave thousands of brands, they
must be getting the ad dollarsof the retail partners.
So, like Walmart, for example,they have thousands of brands
right, they must be getting thead dollars from them.
But what happens is there's noenough inventory on site.
So they spend these dollars offsite on social giants platform
(27:45):
or YouTube or Google, right.
So now, having this unlimitedinventory on their own
destination, they can spendthose dollars over there, and
that is where we transform thecost into revenue.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Rahul on the data that's coming on the output of
this stuff.
Are you mining the data andpackaging it up neatly for your
customer and then helping themwith the sell?
What, or is that left for themto do on the back end?
Speaker 3 (28:13):
Yeah, so we provide the raw data because every
customer we have so far rightnow in the pipeline these are
all the bigger.
You know big brands and bigretailers.
So they have their own BI toolsalready exist that they are
using for multiple applications.
So we provide the raw data andwe can integrate our platform
with any BI tools today thatexist right, so they get all the
raw data and we can integrateour platform with any BI tools
(28:34):
today that exist.
So they get all the raw dataand they already have machinery
set up to produce the reportthey need to produce to look at
the KPI that's relevant to them.
So this data becomes justfitting the KPI that's relevant
to the brand and every brand hasa different KPI.
They're looking for differentdata for different reasons.
So we just provide low data andthey can use the way they want
(28:55):
to use, but we provide thatseamless integration with the BI
tools.
Speaker 2 (29:01):
How would you guys, how would you guys think about
the product in like a year ortwo?
Because where it is right now,it's like perfect timing, right
Like the convergence of verticalvideo format, the convergence
of TikTok and Instagram.
It feels like you guys arehitting it right at the moment
that it's perfect.
You have these large companies,these large stores and brands
(29:24):
that have lost access tofirst-party data.
They've lost, increasingly lost, access to first-party data.
They've lost, increasinglylosing, access to their customer
because a few products or a fewcompanies want to stand in the
way between them and theircustomer, so they're losing that
relationship.
They're looking for a way toget back into it.
Then you have a Jintic AI andthe conversions of those
tailwinds coming in and helpingbrands finally start to wrestle
back control of how they want toproject their image to the
(29:49):
consumer.
You guys are nailing that.
I'm curious how you ride thiswave over the next 12 months, 24
months.
We're going to go through, I'msure, some ups and downs in the
Gen AI space, what you can dowith Agintik AI and other AI
tools, but how does Gen U inlook in two years time?
Speaker 3 (30:09):
no, absolutely so.
Our ultimate vision is todemocratize social media, right?
So the way we're gonna do that,you know.
Two years from now, from now,you will see a genuine platform
integrated in hundreds ofhundreds of brands, right, the
small to big, and we're gonnaprovide, like I was saying
before, that network effect.
So now the brand or theretailer can have access to the
(30:34):
other ecosystem, the otheraudience.
Right, so walmart can open thecommunity inside ted, for
example.
Right, so now you know the teduh, users are watching the
content, but they're alsolooking at the content that you
know, pushed by the Walmart, youknow, using the media dollars
of their brand.
Right, of the Samsung, forexample, or the you know the
(30:54):
other brands that haveunderneath.
So that network effect is whatwe are forecasting, or we are
foreseeing that's going tohappen in the next two years.
The other things we're going todo is that we want to provide
that infrastructure where everycompany, you know, when they,
from the day one, when they openthe entity and they open the
first you know their website onShopify, the first thing they
(31:15):
will do is open the you knowaccount in January and platform
and own their own social mediaplatform.
Right, so you know so.
So any, any company looking forto start the business, to have
their own social handles,they're going to do that on
genuine platform and by doingthat instantly they will get
(31:36):
access to these hundred otherbrands that we have, from
Walmart to Ted to I heart, to,you know, grubhub, where they
can now, you know, get thatadditional reach and
distribution, where they can nowget that additional reach and
distribution.
So we want to provide thatgrowth engine to every single
brand out there, small or big ornew brand, that on day one they
can get access to hundreds ofmillions of people, not on
(31:57):
social giant where they don'thave any understanding of the
user.
Here they're going to have thefull understanding of the user
and they're going to show theproduct or they're going to
reach out to the audience thatis exactly the relevant to the
brand.
So that is what our ultimatevision is.
Speaker 1 (32:13):
Rahul, as you're starting this journey because
you're an earlier company hereand you're thinking about
working with a Walmart or aTarget or a Kroger or a ShopRite
or a Publix or so on is thereanything that you would do with
one or not the other?
Is it okay that you're workingwith many?
Is there anything that youwould do with one or not the
other?
Is it okay that you're workingwith many?
Is there anything the reasonthat if I work with Target, I
can't work with Kroger but I canwork with Costco, like?
(32:34):
What does that look like foryou from how you're going to
pick and choose partners and whoyou want to work with and not
work with?
Speaker 3 (32:39):
Yeah, no, I think you know we can work with each and
anyone.
We don't have any conflict.
Or, you know, we providebasically the technology right.
So each brand can use thetechnology how they want to use.
There is no, you know, datasharing among them.
Every brand will have their owndata.
They're going to have their ownexperience.
(33:00):
They're going to have their owncustomizations and
personalizations based on thebrand affinity and based on the
user profile that they have.
So we just remain thatinfrastructure company where,
you know brands can come andopen their own.
You know TikTok shop.
So we don't.
But the one thing I want tomake sure I want to call out is
(33:22):
that what we are doing none ofother company or big, you know,
if you look at, like Amazon, forexample, none of those can do
it right, because they alreadyhave so much confidence,
interest in the business, sothey cannot provide this
infrastructure to othercompanies.
They can have on their ownplatform, right.
Similarly, you know any other,like Walmart, for example, like
(33:45):
no one can.
You know no big retailer canprovide this white label to the
brands because of obviousreasons.
So genuine is the only platformthat available out there.
They can provide the whitelabel to each and any brand.
Speaker 1 (33:59):
The only platform, Harvey, the one and the only.
I want to make sure that you'reclear on that.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
Yes, absolutely Harvey.
Any other questions for?
Speaker 1 (34:07):
Rahul before we ask him to wrap up with website and
LinkedIn and all their pertinentdata and information.
Speaker 2 (34:16):
Are you?
I think maybe we can add tothat, josh Also want to make
sure this is a platform forpeople to try to get the word
out if they're making any keyhires.
There might be folks in thecommunity that would be
interested in joining a startupor joining a rocket ship that
you guys are building right now.
So, in addition to the wrap upand everything else, yes, are
you currently hiring?
In what positions?
(34:37):
How can people get in touchwith you?
What's a good chance for us tobe a funnel for you on the
talent side?
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Are you looking for a job, Harvey?
Just making sure we're puttingthat out in the world that
you're good, right, Look theWhisker Warehouse.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
Warriors.
It's a good gig, josh, but whatRahul is building is he's a
four-time.
Speaker 1 (34:59):
Why would you not want to be on his team?
Speaker 2 (35:01):
I want to take my content strategy to the next
level.
Speaker 1 (35:04):
Yeah, of course you want to be with the winners, and
Rahul's definitelydemonstrating he's a winner.
I'd want to work for himExactly, are you?
Speaker 3 (35:11):
hiring Guys.
Come join anytime, we'd love tohave you.
Yeah, and I want to answer thequestion.
We're always looking fortalented people.
It's always hard to find andwe're always looking for the
right skill, the right talent.
Particularly, we are looking fortalent right now in the, you
know, of course, on the AI side.
We are adding tons of AIcapabilities in the platform,
(35:34):
both on the front end and in theback end.
On the back end, we are adding,you know, the whole content
curation, moderation, you know,capabilities where you know,
like Walmart or any other bigbrand, they have tons of content
right Now, curating thosecontent in real time within like
(35:54):
seconds.
You know it required a lot ofyou know the horsepower in the
platform.
So we are continuing investingin that on that side.
So looking for, you know, thetalent on that front.
We're also looking for talent,you course, on the front-end
office to serve the customers.
We are signing many customersthis time.
(36:18):
We're getting amazing tractionand so looking for those
talented account managers, thecustomer success team members
who can kind of help grow theaccount, and we're looking for
people in the engineering side.
So we have a backend office inIndia.
(36:39):
We're looking to expand theoffice or the talent outside of
India as well.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
So looking for those talent so pretty much I don't
meet any of the requirements forhim to hire me, harvey, so I'm
gonna probably just I waswarehouse warriors and uh and
hopefully be able to keep thisplug and play office afloat here
in bentonville.
Speaker 2 (36:59):
We'll just slowly keep adding to our our, uh, our
list of accomplishments here,and then maybe you'll be ready
for the prime time with Rahul,maybe but doubtful.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
Rahul, give us the website, the LinkedIn, the best
ways to contact you.
Speaker 3 (37:15):
Yeah, absolutely so.
Our website is megenuinecom, soyou know we have all the
details on the website,including the carrier page, so
you know please visit that andany questions we have.
We're happy to schedule a callon the website and we can
discuss more detail.
I'm on LinkedIn, rahul Shat, sodefinitely connect me over
(37:37):
there as well.
I'm happy to chat.
My email is rahul atbegenuinecom, so happy to
receive any emails and lookingfor further discussion.
Yeah, what else?
No emails and you know, lookingfor further discussion.
Speaker 1 (37:50):
Um, yeah, what else?
No, that's, I mean, I'mlistening, I the I.
Your background is superimpressive.
The tech is very cool.
Uh, I think that, uh, you'reready to take off.
Um, I think there's a ton ofdifferent uh use cases that make
sense for corporate partnersand folks in this.
Uh, in this community inNorthwest Arkansas, I think the
(38:14):
supplier community is ready forstuff like this, big retailers,
big or small, I mean it'sfantastic tech and I've had a
chance to demo it and go on thewebsite and if you haven't seen
it, please, I encourage peopleto do that, because folks really
want to see the tool play withit and it just makes a lot of
sense for people to get accessto you and what you're doing.
You're about to take off asHarvey said before yeah,
absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (38:30):
And I do want to give a shout out to Joss, actually,
and the whole PNP team.
You guys are awesome.
I think the value you bring tothe table and the connection you
bring to the table is supervaluable.
So, not just January, but anyof the startups I think they're
looking to kind of, you know,expand their, you know, their
network.
I think PNP is the place forthat.
(38:51):
So, thank you guys for all yourhelp and all your support so
far.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
Saeed Sanam, make sure you're listening to this
when raise and promotion timecomes in.
I mean, it's just I'll have toput that into my annual review.
Harvey, with Frederick, makesure he had a chance to hear
that.
That was a great shout out forme.
Speaker 2 (39:06):
Uh, I I heard a really wonderful plug for
sponsors to come in here.
That's what I was hearing amen,sponsor gold.
Um, well, thanks for spendingsome time with us, man, I think
you're building something that'sreally cool, um, and it's.
It's changing the way thatwe're going to shop and engage
(39:26):
with these major retailers, andit's doing it in a we're going
to shop and engage with thesemajor retailers and it's doing
it in a way where the retailershave a voice.
They have a control over thatjourney now, and they're
wrestling that back.
I think that's awesome, yepabsolutely Exactly.
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Thank you, rahul, thanks for making the time,
thanks for having me Appreciateit, harvey, until we meet again.
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