Episode 4: J. Michelle Maraj- Building the Next Chapter With AI + Vizibly.Live

What happens when the technology disrupting your career becomes the thing that opens up what comes next?A few months ago, J. Michelle Maraj was laid off shortly after finding out she was pregnant with her second child. Michelle had built a career in data visualization and business intelligence, helping companies turn complex data into something people could actually understand and use.So, with a new baby arriving at the end of September and an unexpected career transition in front of her, Michelle started building.In this episode of Socratyc Stories: The Women Who Build, Michelle shares how getting laid off gave her the space to dive into AI, participate in Lovable's She Builds Season 3, and learn an entirely new set of technical skills by solving real problems as she encountered them.That experimentation eventually brought her back to an idea she had started before She Builds: Vizibly.Live, a virtual event activation platform that helps event organizers create personalized, shareable "data badges" for their attendees. Vizibly.Live is designed to create some of that same connection for virtual events, online communities, meetups, trainings, and conferences without requiring the cost or logistics of a traditional event activation.Michelle and I talk about learning by building instead of waiting until you feel fully qualified, moving from Lovable into tools like GitHub and Supabase as the product became more sophisticated, and the strange experience of being laid off because of AI and then realizing how much fun it can be to build with it.We also talk about something founders don't always like to admit: you don't necessarily have to build everything alone.Michelle shares why bringing on her co-founder, Sophie, changed the trajectory of Vizibly.Live. Their skills are different enough that Michelle can continue owning the technical build while Sophie brings event activation experience, industry relationships, accountability, and a completely different perspective to the business.As Michelle puts it, sometimes when you've taken something as far as you can on your own, finding the right person to build alongside you may be the thing that gets you to the next level.How you can support J. MichelleBeta test Vizibly.Live. If you organize virtual or in-person events, Michelle would love feedback on the platform, setup experience, and whether it's something you would use.Try creating a data badge: https://vizibly.liveKnow an event organizer, community leader, meetup organizer, or someone who uses event activations? An introduction would be incredibly helpful as Michelle and her co-founder continue validating the product and the market.Connect with J. Michelle on LinkedIn: J. Michelle Maraj on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/marajjm)Find more about our host, Nicole Alos, ICF-PCC, CEC, at http://www.NicoleAlos.com🎵 Music licensed through SoundstripeCode: F4ZFDHBTZUGMGLKE 🎵#WomenWhoBuild #WomenInTech #AI #VibeCoding #DataVisualization #FemaleFounders #Entrepreneurship #viziblylive #SocratycStoriesAI disclosure: Riverside's AI-powered tools were used as part of the production and editing workflow for this episode.All Rights Reserved Socratyc, LLC 2026.Brought to you by Socratyc and Socratyc Sidekick.