Startups Decoded

We’re more connected than ever. More lonely than ever. Along the way, something broke.Michelle Parsons left ed-tech to build Lora — a platform using astrology as a framework for genuine human connection.The twist? The tech isn’t the point. The vulnerability is.Andy Walsh sat down with Michelle Parsons, co-founder of Lora, to unpack one of the most uncomfortable truths in tech: we built tools for connection and ended up more isolated.Michelle is a product leader (Kayak, Netflix, Spotify) who spent years watching personalization shape content discovery — and started asking why we weren’t applying that thinking to how people find each other. Lora is her answer.Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTubeSubscribe nowPresented by Deel: If you’re at the stage of making your first or second hire — and doing it across borders — Deel is worth knowing about. They’re supporting Startups Decoded this season for good reason. → LEARN MORE ←What We Cover:Why social media broke the promise of connection — and why it’s structuralAstrology as an onboarding framework for vulnerability (yes, really)The difference between shallow engagement and meaningful relationshipHow Lora uses personalization to facilitate depth, not just retentionWhat community impact looks like when you measure connection, not clicksMichelle ParsonsA product leader who’s built and scaled at Kayak, Spotify, Netflix, and Hinge — where she served as CPO and tripled both the user base and revenue. Most recently, she co-founded Lex, a queer-first social platform named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies. Now she’s building Lora, a platform for deeper, more authentic human connection.Andy Walsh2× exited founder and host of Startups Decoded (500,000+ downloads + Top 2% globally).Access All Areas.Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTubeSubscribe: SubstackConnect: LinkedInWeb: startupsdecoded.comSocials: TikTok || Instagram || XThe Studio ​Filmed on location at 28th&Park. A content & production studio for New York’s visionary Builders, Investors, Artists, Musicians, & Creators to amplify their voice & share bold stories. Use the code “Decoded” for 25% off your first booking.Music Credit“Neptuno” – Phondupe (Album: Onykia) 

Most founders spend years building audiences on platforms they don’t control. Nathan Gwilliam watched a guy go from $96M a year to zero — because Amazon changed its mind. The lesson wasn’t about Amazon. It was about whose land you’re building on.Andy Walsh sat down with Nathan Gwilliam — serial entrepreneur and founder of PodUp — to pull apart one of the most dangerous assumptions founders make: that reach equals ownership.After building Adoption.com into the world’s most visited adoption platform and watching founders lose everything to platform policy shifts, Nathan has spent two decades on one question: what does it actually mean to own your audience?Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTubeSubscribe nowPresented by DeelIf you're at the stage of making your first or second hire — and doing it across borders — Deel is worth knowing about. They're supporting Startups Decoded this season for good reason. LEARN MORE.InsightMost founders think about distribution as a growth problem. Nathan reframes it as an ownership problem. This conversation covers first-party data, passion-based community, and why the next big shift in marketing isn’t AI — it’s credibility.What We CoverWhy third-party platforms are rented landToyota’s Five Whys applied to audience and ICPPassion-based vs. brand-based marketingFirst-party data as a strategic assetThe credibility marketing shift replacing adsNathan GwilliamA serial entrepreneur, platform strategist, and founder of PodUp, an AI-powered podcasting platform. Over the past two decades he has built and sold multiple ventures, created Adoption.com, the world’s most visited adoption site, and helped media brands grow audiences into the hundreds of millions. Today, he helps entrepreneurs and business leaders build platforms they own.Andy Walsh 2× exited founder and host of Startups Decoded (500,000 downloads + Top 2% globally).Access All Areas.Listen: Apple || Spotify || YouTubeSubscribe: SubstackConnect: LinkedInWeb: startupsdecoded.comSocials: TikTok || Instagram || XThe Studio ​Filmed on location at 28th&Park. A content & production studio for New York’s visionary Builders, Investors, Artists, Musicians, & Creators to amplify their voice & share bold stories. Use the code “Decoded” for 25% off your first booking.Music Credit“Neptuno” – Phondupe (Album: Onykia)