Episodes

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by Mark Stern, founder of the Custom Box Agency, who shares his journey from a corporate career at Deloitte to entrepreneurship. Mark discusses the evolution of his business, which focuses on blending physical and digital experiences to optimize customer journeys. He reveals how physical box experiences can elevate brand identity, increase customer engagement, and drive loyalty in a world that’s increasingly digital. Mark recounts ...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by André Laplume, a professor at the Toronto Metropolitan University, to discuss the fascinating world of spinout ventures. André shares his insights on why the narrative of startups beginning in garages is often misleading, and how many successful companies actually originate as spinouts from established organizations. We explore the concept of spinout ventures, where employees leave an incumbent firm to start their own companies,...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we dive deep into the world of AI and blockchain with our special guest, Jordan Miller. Jordan, the visionary behind the SatoriNet project, shares his ambitious journey to create a decentralized network of computers aimed at predicting the future. We explore how Jordan’s background in blockchain and his fascination with distributed consensus led him to develop a system that gathers and analyzes vast amounts of global data—from economic indicators to...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we welcome Ricardo Jimenez, an entrepreneur, angel investor, and author of the book Crash Course. Ricardo shares his journey from being an entrepreneur to writing a book that delves into the emotional challenges faced by founders. He discusses his motivation for becoming an entrepreneur, his experiences with failure, and the psychological aspects of managing the ups and downs of startup life. Ricardo emphasizes the importance of separating one’s ident...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we sit down with Walid Abou Ali, the CTO and Co-Founder of Places, a groundbreaking F&B discovery platform based in Dubai. Walid shares his unique journey from a 3D artist to a tech innovator in the MENA region, where he has channeled his passion for food and technology into creating a highly advanced search engine for the F&B industry. We dive deep into the challenges and triumphs of building a tech startup in Dubai, the importance of accurate data, ...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we dive into the intricate dynamics between CTOs and CEOs, exploring how these relationships can make or break a startup’s success. Our guest, Hutton Henry, founder of Beyond M&A and a seasoned expert in due diligence, shares his valuable insights on how CTOs and CEOs can better align their goals, manage expectations, and overcome common challenges in high-pressure environments. Hutton discusses the importance of understanding the different sp...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by Juliette Denny, a pioneer in the learning and development space and the driving force behind Growth Engineering and the newly launched Iridescent Technologies. Juliette shares her journey from founding Growth Engineering, a company that has been revolutionizing corporate learning for over 20 years, to her latest venture focused on AI-powered learning solutions. We delve into the evolution of learning technologies, particularly the rol...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by John Horn, the CEO of StubGroup, a leading digital advertising agency. John shares his extensive experience in helping businesses navigate the complex world of digital advertising, with a particular focus on SaaS companies. We dive deep into the challenges SaaS companies face in a crowded marketplace and explore how they can effectively align their go-to-market strategies with digital marketing, especially through platforms like Googl...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” Mehmet Gonullu is joined by Andrew Sykes, a lifelong entrepreneur, professor at the Kellogg Sales Institute, and lead facilitator at Serene Life. Andrew shares his journey from South Africa to the United States, where he now calls Chicago home. With a rich portfolio career, Andrew discusses the diverse hats he wears—from founding “Habits at Work,” a company focused on helping leaders and salespeople develop magnetic habits, to teaching the fine art ...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Benjamin Bohman, CTO and founder of Stratashield AI. With a rich background in technology spanning 25 years, Ben shares his unique journey from starting as an IT department head at 22 to founding his own AI company. He emphasizes that you don’t need to be a techie to succeed in technology, recounting his initial experience of not even owning a computer before diving into the tech world. Ben discusses the rapid evolution of AI ...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” our host, Mehmet, welcomes Rodolph Khlat, the co-founder of Smartr AI, a Dubai-based software development automation engine. Rodolph shares his fascinating journey from a young entrepreneur to a leader in AI-driven software development. He discusses the origins of Smartr AI, a company dedicated to making software development faster and more efficient through automation and artificial intelligence. Rodolph explains how he and his co-founder sta...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by Shehab Beram, the founder of VisionX, the first personal branding studio for product leaders. Shehab shares his extensive journey from Malaysia to Istanbul, discussing his roles and experiences across various companies like Qawafel, Taker, and Mrsool. He provides insights into his work managing products and emphasizing the importance of personal branding for product leaders. Shehab delves into the core responsibilities and chall...

n this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Eoghan O’Donnell, the Chief Innovation Officer at Innovecs. Eoghan takes us through his extensive journey in the tech industry, starting from his early days in Ireland with Symantec, where he worked on the Norton antivirus suite, to his roles at McAfee and Amazon. He shares his experiences of moving across continents, living in Ukraine, and ultimately settling in Australia for family reasons while continuing to work for Innovecs. ...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we have a thought-provoking conversation with Francis Lacoste, an executive coach specializing in CTOs and VPs of engineering. Francis shares his journey from being a software engineer to taking on leadership roles at Salesforce and Heroku, and now coaching executives in scaling startups. He delves into the challenges faced by startups as they grow, particularly the transition from a small team to a larger organization. Francis highlights the identity...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, we have the pleasure of speaking with Jean-Philippe Diel, the founder of SymbionIQ, who joins us from New Zealand. Jean-Philippe shares his fascinating journey from his early days in FMCG to his passion for technology and eventual transition into the tech industry. He describes his experiences working with major companies like Samsung and his ventures into entrepreneurship, which ultimately led to the creation of SymbionIQ. Jean-Philippe delves ...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” Mehmet is joined by Vivek Ramachandran, the CEO and founder of SquareX, for an in-depth discussion on cybersecurity, AI, and browser security. Vivek, a veteran in the cybersecurity field with over 20 years of experience, shares his journey from working at Cisco Systems to becoming an entrepreneur and starting multiple companies, including SquareX. He delves into his fascination with breaking security systems and how this led him to focus on offensiv...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Brad Micklea, the CEO of Jozu. Brad shares his extensive experience in the tech industry, detailing his journey from leading the Amazon API Gateway to founding Jozu. Jozu is building what they believe is the first control plane for AI projects inside enterprises, aiming to help organizations accelerate their AI development and protect their operations. Brad discusses the current challenges enterprises face in integrating AI pr...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Dr. Michael Proksch, Chief Scientist at AccelerEd, who shares his extensive journey from academia to the industry, focusing on AI and value creation. Dr. Proksch discusses his background in economics and how it led him to work with organizations across the globe in the fields of data and AI. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the multiplicative relationship between various factors such as technology, data, business, and p...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” Mehmet welcomes Luis Garcia, co-founder and president of PETE. PETE, which stands for Personalized Education, Training, and Enrichment, provides AI-powered learning tools for workforce development. Luis shares his journey from being a programmer to taking on various roles in project management, product management, and general management, eventually leading to his current role at PETE. He also discusses his significant achievement of launching an onl...

In this episode of the CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by Isar Bhattacharjee, an expert in people and organizational psychology. Isar discusses his journey and why he chose to focus on startups, especially those in rapid growth stages. He explains the evolution of HR from traditional roles to performance-focused approaches and introduces the concept of organizational debt, comparing it to technical debt. Isar highlights common challenges startups face as they scale, such as assigning i...

In this episode of the CTO Show with Mehmet, we are joined by Jafar Shunnar, co-founder of TAP, a groundbreaking career acceleration platform based in Palestine. Jafar delves into his inspiring journey and the mission of TAP to bridge the job gap for high-potential youth in Palestine and Jordan by connecting them with global startups. He sheds light on the unique challenges faced by educated youth in the MENA region and how TAP addresses both talent readiness and company needs. Jafar highl...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” we are joined by Arnaud Lucas, the CTO of Wanderu, a small startup focused on e-commerce solutions for ground transportation in North America. Arnaud, originally from France, shares his extensive experience in the tech industry, having worked with both startups and large companies like Iron Mountain, TripAdvisor, and Wayfair before returning to the startup world. Arnaud discusses his career journey and the factors that led him to become a CTO. He e...

In this episode of “The CTO Show with Mehmet,” host Mehmet Gonullu welcomes leadership development expert Thom Dennis. With over 40 years of experience, Thom shares his journey from serving in the Royal Marines to becoming a pioneer in leadership development and the founder of Serenity in Leadership. Thom discusses the concept of conscious leadership, emphasizing the importance of self-awareness, understanding personal beliefs and values, and taking responsibility for one’s actions in today’s co...

In this episode of The CTO Show with Mehmet, guest Will Pemble, founder of PageLeap and Web.com, shares his journey from founding successful tech companies to re-entering the web hosting industry with PageLeap. Will discusses how his experiences led to the creation of PageLeap, a platform aiming to outperform current competitors in the crowded landing page market by focusing on superior speed, precise SEO optimization, and user-centric design. He explains the importance of building systems with ...