heelo Talks #01: From Big Tech to Founder
What does it take to leave Big Tech, win your first customers, and build a company in the AI era?
Join the first edition of heelo Talks for a conversation with Bo Lei, Co-founder & CTO of Fleak, about the decisions, trade-offs, and practical lessons behind the journey from Netflix and Splunk to startup life.
Bo has helped build data systems operating at global scale. He also knows what it’s like to start with a prototype in a garage. This conversation brings those experiences together for a closer look at building an AI company—from the initial conviction to the everyday work of making it happen.
Taking the leap
Years of engineering experience provide a foundation. Starting a company brings a new set of responsibilities. We’ll hear Bo’s reflections on becoming a founder and turning a problem he had encountered firsthand into something of his own.
Winning your first customers
Every company has an early chapter before its name means anything to customers. We’ll revisit that chapter of Fleak’s journey: bringing a technical product into the market, building relationships, and finding the beginnings of a business.
Putting AI to work
A look inside an AI startup, where the technology shapes both the product and the team’s daily work. Bo will share his perspective on building with AI while navigating a field that keeps moving.
About Bo Lei
Bo Lei is the Co-founder & CTO of Fleak and holds a master’s degree in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University.
Before founding Fleak, he helped build Netflix’s Data Mesh platform and worked on user behavior analytics at Splunk. Across those experiences, he saw talented engineers spending substantial time preparing and maintaining data—a recurring challenge that helped inspire Fleak.
In 2024, he built Fleak’s first prototype in his garage. Today, Fleak provides AI-powered data pipelines that help security and data teams turn messy logs and machine data into structured, usable inputs for security platforms, data lakes, and AI applications.
Who should join
If you’re an engineer or researcher considering entrepreneurship, a founder navigating the early stages, or a builder working on AI products, join us to hear a firsthand account from someone making that journey.
Bring your curiosity and your own questions. We’ll close with audience Q&A.
Hosted by heelo
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