let's cut through the AI hype when evaluating ai startups

Due Diligence to Cut Through the AI Hype

I help investors evaluate a start-up's risks and opportunities, focusing on what the start-up is (or will be) actually doing -- vs what they pitched they're doing -- vs what the customers actually need.

What I Help With

• Review the website/deck, let you know my thoughts, and create questions to ask the start-up, and/or

• Pitch diligence to ask questions, and/or

• Product testing to evaluate if the product really solves the customers' pain points, and/or 

• Dive into Data Room/team/hiring roadmaps/customers, etc. -- and/or any gaps you already see that need more support, and/or

• Meet with the team to review the technical architecture and infrastructure, including how the models are trained and set up, the existing alerts, and security considerations, and/or

• Evaluate code/data/algorithms for any of this, and/or

Any of these steps are optional and can be done in combination, scoped to the gaps/risks you'd like to understand better, or explored as they come up. 

How We'll Work Together

• Meet/email to discuss whether you need conviction to say yes/no, any gaps you've already identified, and what you need support with. 

• Help you diligence the startup, with typical turnaround times of 24-72 hours following receipt of required information for diligence.

• Discuss/email findings, recommendations, and any potential next steps. 

• Here's a Calendly link or my email (Irina at kukuyevaconsulting.com) to discuss how to support you.

How I Charge

• • Sliding scale of cash and carry, depending on how the fund is structured and the type of support you need.

My Mission

I've transformed over 100 startups with a data and AI strategy for iterating on product market fit. When I hear a pitch, I typically have an idea of what the startup is (or should be) doing -- and what challenges lie ahead. I want to help you evaluate start-ups to see if they're making the same mistakes others make -- or if they've created venture-scalable companies with defensible moat(s) and the right teams. 

"AI not delivered as a data product leads to hallucinations and nightmares.” --Irina Kukuyeva, PhD

Please note: The only industries I don't support are cannabis and crypto.

You may also like:

• Advice from me on AI startup diligence on my Substack.