<![CDATA[Founder's Seat: Behind The Build]]>Founder’s Seat is where real builders drop the LinkedIn filter. We talk wins, losses, and the messy middle — the stuff you only share with people who’ve actually been there.

]]>www.thefoundersseat.comRiverside.fm (https://riverside.com)Fri, 04 Sep 2026 23:51:32 GMTFri, 04 Sep 2026 20:31:34 GMT60Vivian Cermeno<p>Founder’s Seat is where real builders drop the LinkedIn filter. We talk wins, losses, and the messy middle — the stuff you only share with people who’ve actually been there.</p>episodicVivian Cermenovcermeno6@gmail.comno<![CDATA[Paul Truax — The Delusional Path to Success]]>Paul Truax was tutoring college students when he noticed something: they didn't want a generic AI answer. They wanted someone who actually knew their course. He partnered with a data engineer, raised a pre-seed, and built Cognify Learning Company around that gap.

In this episode we get into the parts founders don't post about — how warm intros actually work in VC, why the best investors behave more like mentors than check-writers, and the marketing calls Paul would take back.

We cover:

• Why warm intros still decide who gets funded

• Treating investors as mentors, not ATMs

• Why company morale is a leadership problem, not an HR one

• The delusional path: staying in it before it works

• The Ink Spot Strategy — how small companies take big markets

• What Paul learned the hard way about influencer marketing

Paul Truax is the founder of Cognify Learning Company, an AI learning platform for higher education and workforce development, based in Austin.

Founder's Seat is where real builders drop the LinkedIn filter. Hosted by Vivian. thefoundersseat.com

]]>2b0afeab-197e-4b36-88f3-cf0ab493a695Fri, 04 Sep 2026 20:51:19 GMT<p>Paul Truax was tutoring college students when he noticed something: they didn't want a generic AI answer. They wanted someone who actually knew their course. He partnered with a data engineer, raised a pre-seed, and built Cognify Learning Company around that gap.</p><p>In this episode we get into the parts founders don't post about — how warm intros actually work in VC, why the best investors behave more like mentors than check-writers, and the marketing calls Paul would take back.</p><p>We cover:</p><p>• Why warm intros still decide who gets funded</p><p>• Treating investors as mentors, not ATMs</p><p>• Why company morale is a leadership problem, not an HR one</p><p>• The delusional path: staying in it before it works</p><p>• The Ink Spot Strategy — how small companies take big markets</p><p>• What Paul learned the hard way about influencer marketing</p><p>Paul Truax is the founder of Cognify Learning Company, an AI learning platform for higher education and workforce development, based in Austin.</p><p>Founder's Seat is where real builders drop the LinkedIn filter. Hosted by Vivian. thefoundersseat.com</p>no00:36:1211Paul Truax — The Delusional Path to Successfull