Ep # 165: Bootstrapping A Support Platform In An AI Hype Cycle ft. Vlad Shlosberg (CEO, Foqal)

In this episode of the Hyperengage Podcast, Adil Saleh sits down with Vlad Shlosberg, CEO of Foqal, to explore how Slack and Microsoft Teams are reshaping modern support operations, why AI adoption in support is now driven from the top down, and what actually matters in messaging-based support metrics. They unpack the shift from resolution-time obsession to first-response expectations, and how in-channel support changes both customer behavior and SLA design. Vlad breaks down the differences between B2B SaaS and open source communities in Slack, when it makes sense to build your own community versus piggybacking on existing ones, and how community strategy ties back into GTM. The conversation also gets into agentic workflows and why data sources and MCP-style connectors matter more than prompt cleverness when building AI support agents. Finally, Vlad shares how Foqal thinks about expansion: moving from external support to internal IT/HR/RevOps use cases, using Slack virality to land-and-expand across teams, and navigating a crowded market where bootstrapped focus and word-of-mouth often beat high-burn competitors.