Ones to Watch: Virtualness and BLNG.AI
By Greg Kahn
Emerging Tech Exchange
Founder & CEO
Published on July 6, 2023
The elements of an impressive tech startup are fairly clear: an innovative product and approach to problem solving in an area with sizable market potential; a strong strategic and tactical vision that seizes a timely opportunity; impassioned, inspiring leadership that knows when to be flexible and when to stand firm.
Over the past year, I’ve gotten to know two companies that exemplify all those common attributes — and then some: Virtualness and BLNG.AI. (Full disclosure: I am on the advisory boards of both companies.)
Let’s start with Virtualness. This San Francisco-based tech company has been charting the next phases of web3 and the creator economy since its launch in mid-2022.
It was co-founded two global tech stars: Kirthiga Reddy, employee #1 and former Managing Director of Facebook India & South Asia, and Saurabh Doshi, former Head of Meta, Asia-Pacific for Entertainment. Kirthiga was previously an Investment Partner at Softbank Investment Advisers. Prior to Meta, Saurabh was VP at Viacom Group & Star India.
In May, the company, which is backed by Polygon Ventures, Micron Ventures, Carolyn Everson, Randi Zuckerberg, was inducted into the prestigious TiE50 Awards Program. The TiE50 award is a program of TiEcon, the world’s largest conference for tech entrepreneurs, and recognizes the top technology and technology-enabled startups worldwide. Virtualness was recognized for its mobile-first platform that connects creators and brands to their community while adding meaningful income through digital goods.
In June, Singapore-based business incubator and startup accelerator Antler recognized Virtualness as “a platform to watch” in the “Community Ownership” category of its 2023 Creator Economy Report.
I first met Kirthiga and Saurabh at the Oceans First Annual Investor meeting. We all instantly clicked on the need for a true bridge between the current web2 world and the decentralized one of web3.
While the company’s technology is solid, part of the difference Virtualness brings to the marketplace is a truly global approach to e-commerce — this is not an inwardly looking Silicon Valley startup. It’s why they’re able to connect with creators wherever they are and whatever they’re focused on. Virtualness’s founders see that the growth of web3 is coming from all corners of the world and they have formed an international team to meet that rapidly growing need.
Now a bit about BLNG.AI: This Los Angeles startup is poised to lead the way in how creativity and generative artificial intelligence are brought to life in the jewelry industry. BLNG.AI is a company whose ideas and timing could not be more ideal. The company is hyper-focused on giving individuals and businesses the ability to design and personalize their own jewelry.
Jewelry making might sound like a trivial thing. But consider the success of companies like Etsy, the maker marketplace where jewelry sales helped generate an estimated $2.5 billion in 2022, a 10.1% increase year-over-year.
In terms of people who are thinking about putting the practical use cases of generative AI into action, get to know BLNG.AI’s founders, Valerie Leblond and Dumëne Comploi.
Valerie is such a dynamic founder with a wide range. Still, if I had to boil down the central idea that’s animated her career, it’s in unlocking creativity in both physical and digital environments. She’s done this for entities as diverse as Cirque du Soleil and UCLA Architecture and Urban Design, where she ran the IDEAS research & development program.
The idea of bringing ideas to life is what defines Valerie’s own work. BLNG.AI allows her to open creativity to others.
Her partner, Dumëne, also serves as BLNG.AI’s CTO. These two represent the perfect mix of art and science. He’s also spent about a decade at Disney. Most recently, his work encompassed managing the creative direction, development and overall project leadership of new tools, technologies, and techniques for delivering advances in themed entertainment.
His work there also included finding ways to incorporate AI to enhance the company’s theme park guest experiences.
As Valerie and Dumëne look to build up the company’s talented staffers, BLNG.AI recently hired four Disney Imagineering pioneers to its bench.
Both Virtualness and BLNG.AI are proving their respective abilities to put the power of AI in individuals' hands. They both represent different aspects of “the future of human-centered creativity” and the role that generative AI has to play in reaching its true potential while also demonstrating the real-world value.
Greg Kahn
Emerging Tech Exchange
Founder & CEO
