Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast

That’s the story behind this week’s episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, where we talk about how a small team turned a career setback into a thriving media platform connecting brands and publishers.

Instead of chasing hype, they focused on balance — flexibility over speed, strategy over ego, and results over noise.

Here’s what hits hardest:

Outsourcing isn’t a shortcut — it’s a growth strategy.

“Generative Engine Optimization” might be the future of SEO.

AI can assist, but trust still has to be human.

The real job of a CEO? It never turns off.

It’s a raw, smart look at what scaling really feels like — the choices that shape a company and the new realities of building tech when AI is rewriting the rulebook and how software development outsourcing and AI are reshaping how startups build, grow, and adapt.

In the latest Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Oleg Sadikov sits down with Alon Talmor, founder and CEO of Ask-AI, to talk about what really happens when enterprise AI meets reality.

Alon’s story starts long before Ask-AI. He co-founded BlueTail, which was later acquired by Salesforce, became Chief Data Scientist at Data.com, and completed a PhD in Natural Language Processing under Prof. Jonathan Berant at Tel Aviv University. He’s also led AI initiatives at AllenAI and given talks about the connection between AI and the human brain.

But here’s where it gets interesting — despite all that experience, Alon says the biggest challenge isn’t building powerful AI. It’s making it useful.

“Generative AI is overhyped everywhere,” Alon says. “The real challenge isn’t the tech — it’s getting people to use it in ways that actually move the needle.”

We dove deep into how enterprises can move past the shiny demos and focus on ROI that matters — not vanity metrics like “time saved.” Alon shared four real indicators of AI success: faster employee ramp-up, smarter resource use, measurable capacity gains, and clear business outcomes.

He also predicts something bold:

“AI will replace most SaaS tools. You’ll open fewer tabs — and your assistant will handle the rest.”

The conversation didn’t stop there. We talked about how AI research and industry are drifting apart, why software development outsourcing can accelerate innovation if done right, and what it takes to scale teams across continents without losing focus or culture.

Ever wonder what it’s really like to move from managing products to managing an entire company? That’s exactly what Katherine Zambaldi, CEO at FarmTrace, shares in the latest episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast.

Katherine’s journey cuts across consulting, product management, and leadership — proof that the best lessons in scaling tech companies often come from hands-on experience. Her story goes beyond titles; it’s about learning to let go, trust your team, and lead with clarity in a fast-moving world of software development services and digital transformation.

Katherine’s journey cuts across consulting, product management, and leadership — proof that the best lessons in scaling tech companies often come from hands-on experience. Her story goes beyond titles; it’s about learning to let go, trust your team, and lead with clarity in a fast-moving world of software development services and digital transformation.

💬 “Trying to do everything myself is my biggest weakness.” That line hit hard — because every founder or leader has been there.

In this episode, Katherine and host Oleg Sadikov dive into: • How consulting shaped her leadership approach • Building trust inside small, high-impact teams • Outsourcing as a smart extension of product strategy • The daily balance between people, product, and purpose • The mindset shifts behind startup growth

If you’ve ever built something from scratch, worn too many hats, or led a team, this conversation will resonate deeply.

Some founders start with an MBA. Others start by teaching themselves to code at 13.

That’s exactly what Bram Wiepjes did before going on to found BaseRow, an open-source no-code platform now used by enterprises who want flexibility, scalability, and control over their data.

In the latest episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Bram joins Oleg Sadikov to unpack his journey and the bigger picture of where no-code is headed.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

The early years → How freelancing and small projects turned into a lifelong obsession with building software.

First failure, best teacher → Bram’s first startup collapsed, but it gave him the insights to create BaseRow.

Why open source matters → Privacy, compliance, and the enterprise appetite for self-hosted solutions.

Building under pressure → Balancing part-time freelancing with full-time product development.

Startup lessons → Ship when you promise, hire faster, and (sometimes) listen to investors.

AI + no-code → Why the combination with AI development is powerful, but why users will always need a human-friendly interface.

Software development outsourcing or in-house? → Bram’s take on finding the balance without losing institutional knowledge.

Listen here: https://devico.io/podcasts/bram-wiepjes

Join the Devico Breakfast Bar for compelling discussions led by a seasoned industry expert who generously shares a wealth of knowledge and firsthand experience.

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Learn more about Devico's software development outsourcing services - 

https://devico.io/services/software-development-outsourcing

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What can a former professional cyclist teach us about building world-class product teams? As it turns out, quite a lot.

In the latest episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Oleg Sadikov, co-founder and CEO at Devico & DeviQA, speaks with Dylan Casey, a professional cyclist turned technology leader at Google, Yahoo, Goldman Sachs, and now co-founder of WEDŪ.

Dylan’s story is a masterclass in adaptability. He explains how the same focus, resilience, and teamwork that defined his athletic career also became the foundation for his leadership in Silicon Valley.

Lessons that transfer across industries

One of the standout themes of the conversation is the power of transferable skills. Dylan emphasizes how non-traditional backgrounds whether from sports, arts, or other fields can fuel leadership in technology.

The parallels are striking: just as a cycling team needs strategy, accountability, and trust to win, so too does a product team building in high-pressure environments.

Another highlight of the episode is Dylan’s perspective on software development outsourcing. Outsourcing is no longer just about reducing costs—it has evolved into a strategic way to assemble global A-teams.

By tapping into distributed expertise, companies can accelerate delivery, maintain high quality, and ensure flexibility when scaling. Dylan and Oleg discuss how this new model allows organizations to stay competitive without sacrificing team performance.

Whether you’re leading a startup or running enterprise-scale operations, Dylan’s journey shows that thriving under pressure is a universal skill. Add in the strategic advantage of software development outsourcing, and companies can build resilient, high-performing teams that deliver at scale.

🎧 Listen to the full episode: Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast – Dylan Casey Episode

What happens when years of neuroscience research meet cutting-edge AI development? You get Move Ahead, an AI-powered gaming platform helping kids move, learn, and grow.

On the latest episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Oleg Sadikov chats with Johann Issartel, CEO & co-founder of Move Ahead, about the real journey of taking deep research and turning it into something that works on any device.

Johann and his team created more than just a game, they built a tool that shows how AI development can have a real-world impact on learning and accessibility.

Micromanagement kills trust. 🚫 But doing nothing leaves teams stuck. So how do you actually move the needle on developer productivity without hovering over every line of code?

That’s exactly what this episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast digs into. Oleg Sadikov (CEO at Devico & DeviQA) sits down with Yishai Beeri, CTO at LinearB, to explore the human side of scaling engineering teams.

💡 Key takeaways

“Productivity isn’t about counting commits—it’s about removing friction between people.”

Developer bottlenecks are usually human, not technical

Metrics should guide, not spy (aka: no Big Brother vibes)

AI won’t replace devs, but it will change what “ownership” means

Software development teams thrive when they’re structured for autonomy, not dependency

Culture shapes how automation gets adopted

Why listen?

Yishai draws on decades of experience—from early-stage startups to global enterprises. This convo flips the script: less about velocity charts, more about enabling developers to do their best work without burnout.

🎧 Stream the full episode now → https://devico.io/podcasts/yishai-beeri

“Pricing isn’t solved by one algorithm. It’s a process of constant learning.”

That’s Arian Oosthoek, co-founder of Simpson, on the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast.

In this episode, he shares how Simpson went from an academic project to a SaaS platform shaping pricing strategies for mid-market companies. The conversation covers market resistance, timing in AI adoption, and what “hyperlearning” really means.

What stood out in this conversation is how resistance shaped the product. Early on, the market wasn’t ready. Companies were skeptical. They didn’t want to hand over pricing decisions to algorithms they didn’t understand. Instead of forcing adoption, Simpson doubled down on flexibility and control — giving businesses transparency and practical tools they could actually trust.

📌 Episode highlights:

Why black-box pricing algorithms fail in real-world business contexts

How to move from resistance to scaled adoption

The role of timing in AI software development product rollouts (too early, and you lose the crowd)

How software development outsourcing works in high-context domains like pricing

What Arian calls “hyperlearning” — continuous optimization built into the core of the system

Healthcare loves innovation. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: most “innovations” never make it past the pilot stage. Why? Because they don’t get adopted by the very people they’re supposed to help — clinicians.

That’s exactly the challenge Øyvind Grimsgaard, CEO of YouWell, set out to solve. His story is a reminder that in healthcare, progress happens not when you build for clinicians, but when you build with them.

Listen here: https://www.deviqa.com/podcasts/oyvind-grimsgaard/

What we can learn from YouWell’s story

Clinician collaboration = real product-market fit

AI must support, not replace, human expertise

Dedicated software development teams thrive when they co-own outcomes

Specificity matters: scalable platforms still need local relevance

👉 Subscribe to the Devico Breakfast Bar Newsletter 👉 Follow Oleg on LinkedIn

Most companies obsess over securing production environments… but what about the dozens of SaaS apps your team uses daily? Google Drive, Slack, Notion, Salesforce. Each login. Each shared file. Each integration. That’s where the biggest blind spots hide.

In the latest Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Oleg Sadikov talks with Omri Weinberg, co-founder and CEO at DoControl, who saw how dangerous SaaS oversharing was becoming—and built a platform that now protects billions of assets worldwide.

And this conversation? It’s not your standard “cybersecurity 101.” It’s raw, it’s practical, and it hits where it hurts: the underestimated risks that slip past even the most well-funded companies.

🔑 Episode Highlights

The messy truth of SaaS data governance (way harder than you think)

How AI makes SaaS security stronger… and more complicated

The silent risks that keep CISOs up at night

Why outsourcing isn’t just cost-cutting — it’s survival fuel, especially in software development outsourcing strategies

What it really takes to scale a SaaS startup in a crowded, noisy market

How SaaS testing fits into building secure, scalable products

💡 If you’ve ever wondered whether your SaaS stack is secretly your weakest security link, this episode is your wake-up call.

🎧 Listen now → https://www.deviqa.com/podcasts/omri-weinberg/

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Learn more about Devico's AI security and compliance services -  https://ai.devico.io/services/ai-security-compliance   

No funding. No shortcuts. No fluff. Just one founder, a lean team, and a massive vision: rebuild how cities plan, collaborate, and grow.

In our latest episode of The Devico Breakfast Bar, we sit down with Avi Afalo, founder of Simplex 3D, to unpack how he built a full-stack urban planning platform—from aerial scanning hardware to zoning law AI—without raising a single round of VC funding.

“If you make the wrong bet while bootstrapping, you’re putting the whole business at risk.”

This is a blueprint for anyone building serious tech without a safety net.

Episode highlights:

• Built a 3D SaaS from scratch and handles everything from data collection to AI zoning • AI that assists, not replaces humans in control of city-impacting decisions • Remote teams = integrated dedicated software development teams with shared mission • Used by both private and public sectors for creating one source of truth for all stakeholders • Focused scaling with zero fat with bootstrapping forced clarity, precision, and fast iteration

This episode is for SaaS founders, urban tech nerds, product leads, and anyone scaling tech under pressure.

In this episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, host Oleg Sadikov sits down with Quentin Scrimshire, co-founder and CEO of Modo Energy, to unpack what it really takes to build a deep tech company at the heart of the electrification revolution.

We talk about how Modo’s data underpins billion-euro power assets, why being AI-native is now the standard, and how to scale a high-trust product without bloated headcount or broken processes.

Quentin shares how Modo’s software – designed to forecast the performance and value of power assets – has become part of the financial backbone for billions of euros in grid infrastructure. That means every line of code, every forecast, every update must meet the highest standard of trust and reliability.

But this episode isn’t just about energy—it’s a masterclass in how to build a lean, principled, AI development team that can move fast without breaking things. And whether you’re scaling a product or looking to hire software developers with the mindset to handle high-stakes systems, this conversation delivers real, actionable insight.

Listen here: https://devico.io/podcasts/quentin-scrimshire

What we cover:

Why data = infrastructure when it comes to power markets and electrification

How to scale without chaos using “principles-first” leadership inspired by Ray Dalio

Being AI-native: why every hire must prove they can deeply integrate AI tools into their work

Build vs. Buy: Modo’s strategy for experimenting fast and rebuilding only when it matters

In-person culture in a global company: why Modo mandates 3 office days per week

Software development outsourcing the right way: how their early bet on Ukrainian talent became a long-term strength

Balancing innovation speed with product trustworthiness—especially when decisions are high-stakes

What does it take to build fintech products that actually work for SMEs? Not just code — but deep domain insight, strategic tech choices, and leadership that bridges product, engineering, and business.

In the latest Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Jakob Carlbring — founder of Strawbay, Blingdale, and Quiddly — joins host Oleg Sadikov to share hard-won lessons from building financial tools and ERP platforms from scratch.

From AI adoption services to software development outsourcing, this episode covers how to scale smart — without losing clarity or control.

Listen here: https://www.deviqa.com/podcasts/jakob-carlbring/

What we learned from Jakob Carlbring

SMEs don’t need more features — they need cash flow clarity

Jakob’s work with growing businesses revealed a recurring issue: cash flow tools that fail to reflect real-time realities.

The solution? Build systems that think like SMEs do — flexible, adaptive, and integrated.

Fintech products need to surface insights, not just provide data dumps.

Building an ERP from the ground up isn’t for the faint of heart

Jakob shares the architectural mindset required to develop a customizable, secure ERP system — not just for today’s users, but for tomorrow’s scaling.

Start with a strong core. Let the rest flex.

Design security and scalability in tandem.

Use modular thinking to reduce rework and accelerate delivery.

AI adoption: move fast, but not blind

AI is everywhere — but Jakob warns against rushing in.

Align AI use cases with real business problems.

Don’t offload decision-making to opaque models.

Maintain human-in-the-loop governance, especially in finance.

This is essential advice for leaders rolling out AI adoption services inside fast-moving product teams.

Outsourcing development without losing the plot

When building across multiple ventures, Jakob leaned on software development outsourcing — but with strategy.

Keep core architecture and vision in-house.

Choose partners who understand your domain, not just your stack.

Build systems for knowledge transfer to avoid single points of failure.

Tech teams that scale start with mindset

Jakob’s hiring philosophy focuses less on resumes and more on product intuition.

Prioritize engineers who understand business constraints.

Look for people who can ship fast and maintain long-term quality.

Build teams that communicate, challenge, and iterate with purpose.

In the latest episode of the Devico Breakfast Bar Podcast, Oleg Sadikov — CEO and co-founder of Devico and DeviQA — sits down with Mateo Rojas-Carulla, co-founder of Lakera, to explore what it really takes to secure AI systems in today’s rapidly evolving tech landscape.

The conversation touches on everything from the viral success of Gandalf, Lakera’s AI-powered game that exposed prompt injection vulnerabilities, to the infrastructure challenges of protecting GenAI applications at scale. Mateo shares firsthand insights into why GenAI security demands a new playbook — one that breaks away from traditional cybersecurity assumptions.

Listeners will also gain practical strategies for scaling development with dedicated teams and making the most of software outsourcing services — without compromising on speed, safety, or control.

Listen here: https://www.deviqa.com/podcasts/mateo-rojas-carulla/

Highlights:

How GenAI is changing the rules of digital security

Why Gandalf went viral—and what it revealed

Key differences between AI security and classic cybersecurity

The role of distributed teams and time-zone-resilient collaboration

How smart outsourcing enables fast, secure AI product development

“You need validation, not just vision.” – Juha Riippi

What happens when a seasoned IT consultant dives headfirst into the deep end of quantum-powered simulations?

In this episode, Oleg Sadikov (CEO of Devico & DeviQA) sits down with Juha Riippi, CEO & co-founder of Quanscient, who went from 16 years in IT consulting to launching a deep tech startup rewriting the rules of simulation to talk about the real challenges of building in deep tech — and what it takes to succeed.

👉 A startup shaking up the simulation game — and a founder with zero chill about half-baked tech.

Expect real talk about: • How to structure remote-first, full-stack engineers teams • Why CTOs must stay involved in product development • When to outsource software development — and how to keep control • The underestimated power of user feedback in deep tech • Hiring for innovation, not just resumes

🔥 If you're building something bold, leading a tech team, or just deep into engineering podcasts — this one's your jam.

Ever wonder what really goes on behind the scenes when someone launches not just one, but multiple companies? 

In this episode of Devico Podcast Bar Series, Oleg Sadikov sits down with serial founder Aage Reerslev (think Zevoy, now Andsend) for a chat about the wild ride of building from scratch.

Aage opens up about why entering new markets is always messier than it looks—and how having the right support can make all the difference. (note from us: that’s where things like build-operate-transfer services or a reliable software development outsourcing company quietly save the day.) 

The convo goes beyond the usual founder stories:

Honest wins and tough failures

Where AI actually fits in the startup journey

Why the human side of business still matters most, no matter how much tech you use

How smart support structures (the quiet ones) help founders stay sane and successful

This week, Oleg Sadikov chats with Ruben Burdin, founder and CEO of Stacksync and Y Combinator alum. They dive into the messy world of real-time enterprise data sync — the tech challenges, the business grind, and the lessons learned scaling a tough deep-tech product.

What you’ll hear:

Why syncing data in real time is no joke

Surprising opportunities in B2B SaaS software development services & sales tech

The truth about AI in enterprise workflows

Startup tips for landing that first big client

Secrets to managing a global dev team

If you’re into tech, startups, or scaling products — this episode’s for you.

🔗 Check out the full episode and follow Devico & DeviQA for more!

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