This time in SheVenture we are excited to share the story of Mozhgan Tavakolifard, a pioneering entrepreneur in the technology sector. She has a rich background in AI, making her journey from academia to industry both inspiring and insightful. We’ll dive into her story and learn about her experiences, challenges, and advice for women entrepreneurs.
Mozhgan’s AI journey began over 21 years ago before her doctoral studies, focusing on data for behavioral modeling. The strong foundation she has developed in AI and data analytics has been instrumental throughout her career, which comprises technical, executive, and consulting roles. Having built 2 startups previously, she founded her 3. venture, AI Alchemy Hub, in 2023 after leaving her corporate career.
Mozhgan’s passion for creating stuff led her from academia to the tech industry. After becoming a data scientist as early as 2013, she became involved in all phases of the data lifecycle, which fueled her entrepreneurial spirit. Her first venture, Dharmic Data, offered B2B software as a service based on personalization. Through this experience, she learned the importance of technical skills as well as soft skills, such as empathy and teamwork.
Her second venture focused on creating a B2B2C marketplace for the personal data economy. The timing of the project was ahead of its time, but she learned profound lessons that helped shape the approach to AI Alchemy Hub.
Mozhgan’s journey has been marked by unexpected decisions and opportunities. One of the biggest turns was moving to Norway for her PhD, a decision she made while visiting NTNU in Trondheim. One of the best decisions of her life came out of this spontaneous choice. Embracing intuition alongside data-driven insights, Mozhgan has learned to navigate uncertainty with a balanced approach. She’ll be teaching and writing about this philosophy in her upcoming book.
AI Alchemy Hub started as a boutique consulting business, aiming to help small and medium-sized companies leverage AI for growth. With time, it’s evolved to offer end-to-end services, from strategic planning to implementation, governance, and adoption. The mission of Mozhgan is to create a community that empowers conscious business leaders by utilizing data and AI.
In addition to her consulting career, Mozhgan is an author and educator, developing online courses, bootcamps, and leadership retreats focused on AI strategy for companies. She is also working on a new and secretive deep-tech product startup and plans to become an angel investor to support other tech startups with her knowledge and experience.
Pioneering AI profession
and AI startups:
“My entrepreneurial experience has been a continuous pursuit of creation and innovation. It’s about turning ideas into reality, learning from every challenge, and positively impacting the business world and beyond. This journey has been immensely fulfilling, and I’m excited about the future possibilities.”
Mozhgan encourages women to consider technology entrepreneurship even without a technical background..
She emphasizes the importance of passion and vision over technical expertise that can be outsourced or automated. Focusing on core activities while delegating other tasks has been crucial for her to build a strong network. Women have unique qualities, such as empathy and multitasking abilities, that make them well suited for leadership positions. In order to succeed in tech entrepreneurship, Mozhgan advises embracing individuality and leveraging these strengths.
Valuable lessons.
Every challenge in Mozhgan’s entrepreneurial projects provided new learnings. She faced significant setbacks when balancing consulting and product development, building a marketplace, and trying to maintain enough focus to pårogress projects. These experiences taught her the importance of strategic focus, market readiness and delegation of tasks. Also, Mozhgan told us that there are many gender biases and stereotypes in the tech industry. Mozhgan advocates embracing diversity and inclusion, creating environments that value diverse perspectives.
Mozhgan is convinced that the tech sector will benefit from women’s unique strengths and supportive cultures, as it is crucial for any organization to be inclusive and diverse. She believes that diversity and inclusion promote learning and growth. Offering flexible modes of working, integrating diversity into core values, and focusing on mindset over skill set are key strategies for creating supportive work environments.
Mozhgan’s best advice:
In her entrepreneurial journey, Mozhgan has learned the importance of building strong teams, hiring for mindset, setting a clear purpose, and embracing complementary skills. It is also essential to maintain resilience, continuously learn, and leverage technology in order to succeed. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is crucial for long-term motivation and energy.