#2284 Why is Morning Brew's founder selling "AI Transformation"? - Startup Stories - Mixergy Recap

Podcast: Startup Stories - Mixergy

Published: 2025-11-05

Duration: 0 min

Guests: Alex Lieberman, Arman Hezarkhani

Summary

Alex Lieberman and Arman Hezarkhani of 10X discuss how their company leverages AI to transform businesses and why they see AI as the future of productivity and innovation.

What Happened

Andrew Warner introduces Alex Lieberman and Arman Hezarkhani, co-founders of 10X, a company that specializes in AI transformation and outsourced development work. They discuss the concept of 'AI transformation' and how it differs from traditional tech implementation, emphasizing that it's not just about adopting AI tools, but involves a holistic change in people, processes, and technology. Lieberman shares an example of how 10X helped a client, Snap Exports, by rapidly prototyping features using AI, thus speeding up the development process and reducing costs significantly.

The episode delves into the sustainability of AI transformation as a business model. Warner expresses skepticism about whether AI transformation can provide ongoing work, akin to how management consulting firms operate. Lieberman argues that AI's rapid pace of change ensures a continuous demand for AI transformation services as companies need to adapt to new technologies and update their processes continuously.

Lieberman and Hezarkhani explain their 'engineering as a service' model, which focuses on output-based pricing. They believe this model aligns incentives better than traditional hourly billing, allowing them to attract top engineering talent by paying based on productivity and output. They share that their best engineer could earn up to a million dollars in cash next year due to this model.

The conversation shifts to discussing the potential of building intellectual property (IP) within 10X. Lieberman highlights that their approach allows them to develop proprietary tools and products that can enhance their service offerings and create additional revenue streams. They see this as a path to becoming a major player in the AI consultancy space, akin to a modern-day McKinsey or Accenture.

Warner questions the long-term viability of focusing solely on AI transformation, suggesting that it might need to converge with traditional engineering services. Lieberman and Hezarkhani acknowledge this possibility but argue that the rapid evolution of AI ensures there will always be new opportunities for transformation work.

The episode concludes with a discussion about the broader implications of AI in the workplace. Lieberman and Hezarkhani express optimism about AI as a tool that can augment human capabilities rather than replace jobs, seeing it as a junior employee that can handle repetitive tasks, allowing humans to focus on more complex, creative work.

Key Insights