Kartik Bala is the Co-founder and CEO of SnapSmile (@snapsmile), a tech app that utilizes Artificial Intelligence to monitor your oral health from health while acting as your personal AI dental coach. He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss his early entrepreneurial hustles, receiving CAD $25,000 in funding for his company through Next AI - A NEXT Canada Program (@next_canada), why he tries to take more risks now (spoiler: because we don’t live forever), and much more.
Follow Kartik:
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kartikbalasundaram/)
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/karti_bal)
Timestamps
00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Kartik Bala
02:59 - Kartik’s first hustles; drop shipping phone cases and clothing customization
05:33 - How did the entrepreneurial bug bite Kartik?
07:24 - How his parents feel about him leaving behind ‘more secure’ opportunities
09:00 - Kartik shows love to Ryerson University and its offerings
11:57 - SnapSmile’s admittance into Next AI - A NEXT Canada Program
13:42 - Why Kartik started SnapSmile
16:53 - Income generation strategy (at-home monitoring
20:05 - Who are SnapSmile’s competitors?
22:02 - Kartik’s vision for the company in the next 3-5 years
23:38 - How SnapSmile secured funding (bootstrapping vs. fundraising)
25:53 - The background of SnapSmile’s three co-founders
28:14 - SnapSmile’s biggest challenges and how they overcame them
30:05 - How Kartik balances the demands of a start-up and his personal interests
31:29 - How COVID affected Kartik from a professional and personal standpoint
32:47 - Books/podcasts that Kartik has learned from during the pandemic
35:04 - Kartik’s epiphany; realizing we don’t live forever
36:15 - The legacy Kartik wants to leave behind - how he wants friends/family to remember him
37:40 - How has the Toronto-Tamil community affected Kartik on a personal and professional level
39:11 - Who inspires Kartik?
41:52 - Advice Kartik has for other aspiring Tamil creators
48:06 - Would You Rather
52:46 - The Wrap Up
Intro Music
Produced And Mixed By:
- The Tamil Creator
- Yanchan
Written By:
- Aravinthan Ehamparam
- Yanchan Rajmohan