Sober, Solo, and Scaling: Koby Conrad on Building Sunflower from the Ground Up

What happens when a high-growth operator turns founder—and builds a company rooted in personal mission? Koby Conrad, solo founder and CEO of Sunflower, joins First Builders to share his journey from Rupa Health’s go-to-market lead to creating a digital recovery platform for the 1.2 billion people affected by addiction.A former zero-to-one standout at Rupa Health, Koby helped scale the company from a $22M valuation to a life-changing acquisition. Now he’s bringing those lessons—and his own seven years of sobriety—into building Sunflower, a mobile-first addiction recovery app grounded in emotional resonance, habit loops, and community design.In this episode, Koby unpacks:– The early signals he trusted to launch Sunflower– What he learned about growth, management, and mindset at Rupa– How he raised capital pre-launch and built in public– Why being a solo, non-technical founder didn’t stop himIt’s a story about identity, scale, sobriety—and how the best builders are the ones who stay close to the problem.Follow Koby ConradLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kobychaseconradTwitter: https://twitter.com/kobychaseCompany: https://www.joinsunflower.comBook: https://channelsofgrowth.comMake sure you follow us on all our social channels below and watch full episodes on YouTube.Subscribe to our newsletter to get new episode drops in your inbox.Show NotesKoby’s path from Rupa Health to solo founder of SunflowerLessons on startup growth, hiring, and building high-slope teamsInside Sunflower: AI-powered habit tracking, CBT prompts, and community-driven recoveryVulnerability and leadership: staying grounded while scalingBook Mentioned: The Mom Test by Rob FitzpatrickKoby’s book: Channels of GrowthVisit: https://www.joinsunflower.comFOLLOW THE COUNCIL & FIRST BUILDERSNewsletterYouTube: @firstbuilderspodInstagram: @thecouncilcapitalTwitter/X: @first_builders_TikTok: @firstbuilderspodLinkedIn: The Council