Building In Public

Simplify AI Update: Graduating FI + What I am building, and what I need

Issue #3 of the Simplify AI investor update: Founder Institute graduation, where we stand today, what feedback taught us, and my asks.

Anne-Cécile Guillot Bellisario

— 1 min read
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Issue #3 — Building in Public

Hi [FIRST NAME GOES HERE],

Sharing a real update on Simplify AI: what's changed, what we learned, and what I need next.

FI Graduation — February 10

Simplify AI is one of 9 companies that graduated from the Founder Institute San Francisco Fall 2025 program. Thank you to everyone who supported us through that process.

Announcement: FI San Francisco Produces 9 New Technology Companies

Where Simplify AI Stands Today

ICP locked: We're targeting the Frustrated Operator — established Main Street businesses (<10 employees, $500K+ revenue, 2+ years) with 5–10 digital tools that don't talk to each other.

They can't answer: "Which ad brought the $3,000 job?" We're building the decision layer they never had.

Concierge MVP approach: No building ahead of customers. We manually connect their tools with Zapier, hand-build dashboards, and personally deliver insights for each pilot customer. We learn what actually changes decisions before writing product code.

Next milestone: Landing 5 concierge MVP pilots with real paying customers post-graduation.

What Your Feedback Taught Me

Three themes kept coming back across 11+ mentor sessions and investor reviews:

  1. Show what they get, not how it works. We repositioned around outcomes (more customers, better decisions, time saved) with data as the invisible enabler.
  2. The problem is universal, not vertical-specific. A plumber, a florist, and an accountant all face the same fundamental risks: cash flow they can't predict, customers they can't track, and tools that don't connect. We fix what's underneath.
  3. Make the entry point irresistible. Free modules build trust. The concierge delivers the first insight so valuable they want to keep going.

My Asks

  1. Know a Main Street business owner frustrated by tools that don't connect? I need 5 pilot customers.
  2. Run or belong to a group where small business owners gather? I'm looking for 30-minute presentation slots. Hit reply.
  3. Know anyone in your network who serves small businesses but doesn't touch operations or data? I'm building referral partnerships with zero overlap. Intros welcome.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

Anne-Cécile Bellisario
Founder & CEO, Simplify Digital AI
simplifydigital.ai

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