BUILD617 Pod

Benj Cohen is the founder and CEO of Proton.ai, one of Boston’s breakout vertical AI companies.He started Proton while studying applied math and data science at Harvard, inspired by a problem he saw firsthand through his family’s distribution business, Benco Dental: distributors have massive amounts of customer, product, and order data, but most of it is still underused.Proton.ai is building the AI platform for distributors, helping sales teams know who to call, what to sell, what products to recommend, and how to automate the messy workflows behind a huge part of the economy.In this episode, we talk about Benj’s path from Harvard to building Proton, almost dropping out to pursue the company, why distribution is such an overlooked industry, how vertical AI is changing B2B software, and why Boston is an incredible place to build serious AI companies.This is a conversation about founder market fit, family business roots, vertical AI, distribution, and the optimism behind building in Boston.

Helen Greiner didn’t just study robotics at MIT, she helped invent the category. The Roomba is one of the most recognized robots of all time.As co-founder of iRobot, she took robots from research labs in Massachusetts to millions of homes, battlefields, and disaster zones. Long before AI was hype, she was building systems that had to work in the real world.This episode is about physical AI. Not models, not demos, not theory.We get into:what it actually takes to turn bits into atomswhy most robotics companies fail to shiphow Massachusetts became the origin point for real-world AI systemswhat the US is getting wrong about competing globally in hardware and autonomyIf you care about building things that exist outside a screen, this one is different.

Eric Paley has seen every layer of the startup ecosystem.He built and exited a deep tech company, backed world changing startups at Founder Collective, and now leads economic development efforts for Massachusetts.In this episode of #BUILD617, we go deep on what actually drives venture scale outcomes in Boston and across Massachusetts and why the region is more competitive than most people think.We cover:• Why Massachusetts is more than just Boston and already a top tier tech ecosystem• Why Boston quietly delivers strong venture returns• The opportunity in “bits + atoms” companies and why MA is uniquely positioned• Why the real unlock with AI is knowing how to actually use it• Boston’s marketing problem and how perception shapes outcomes• Why it’s time to move beyond Route 128 nostalgia• The role of initiatives like the Mass AI Coalition in shaping the futureEric shares a grounded but optimistic perspective on building in Massachusetts long term and why the next generation of great companies can and should be built here.If you're a founder, operator, or investor thinking about where to build, this conversation matters.🎙️ Listen to BUILD617 for real conversations with founders building in Boston and beyond.

Jason Kelly shares the story behind building Ginkgo from MIT into one of the most important synthetic biology companies in the world.In this episode of the BUILD617 Podcast we talk aboutHow Ginkgo became the breakout syn bio company of a generationWhat it took to pitch directly into Y Combinator and Sam AltmanWhy Jason is still all in on building in BostonThe rise of deep tech robotics autonomous labs and reasoning modelsWhat policy and legislation need to do to unlock the next wave of innovationThis conversation is about more than one company.It is about how ecosystems win.Founders who scale.Then stay.Then build the future where they started.Recorded in Boston with support from Link Ventures and Rho.If you care about startups deep tech biotech AI or the future of building companies in Boston this episode is required listening.BUILD617 lets go 🚀

David Chang has been building companies in Boston for over 25 years.Multiple startups. Multiple cycles. Wins. Failures. Resets. And he is still building.In this BUILD617 Podcast episode, we sit down with one of the most experienced operators in the Boston tech ecosystem to talk about what only time can teach you.This is not theory. It is lived experience.David has seen hype cycles come and go. He has watched companies rise fast and disappear just as quickly. He has stayed through downturns when others left and started again when it would have been easier not to.We talk about:What 25 years of building actually teaches youHow cycles shape founders in ways people underestimateWhy endurance matters more than timingWhat builders today are getting wrongWhat David would focus on if he were starting fresh right nowBUILD617 exists to create a public place for honest conversations among people who are actually building. Not commentary. Not hindsight theater. Real lessons from the arena.Huge thanks to Rho for sponsoring the BUILD617 podcast and backing founder led conversations in Boston.

Episode 1 of the BUILD617 podcast kicks off with a simple but urgent question: how do we make Boston a place where world changing companies are not just funded but actually built. This episode sets the foundation for BUILD617 by exploring what is working, what is broken, and why real progress comes from founder led conversations, trust, and showing up in person to rebuild the connective tissue of the Boston tech ecosystem.