{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"AI Native Podcast","title":"Beyond Competitor Analysis: How AI is Transforming Dynamic Pricing","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2468,"description":"In this episode of The AI Native Podcast, we sit down with Alex Halkin, founder of Competera and pioneer in AI-powered pricing. Alex takes us through his remarkable journey—from growing up in Ukraine and experimenting with early neural networks, to consulting for global retailers, to bootstrapping his own AI startup.\nWe discuss:\nHow Alex’s first ventures (selling internet to neighbors and running an internet café) taught him entrepreneurial grit.\nWhy consulting shaped his perspective on automation and pricing inefficiencies.\nThe challenges of pitching AI-driven pricing inside a traditional consulting model.\nBootstrapping Competera with his own money, surviving early burn rates, and closing enterprise deals with just 300 products.\nHow AI is reshaping pricing strategy, junior roles, and the speed at which founders must now operate.\nThe future of AI in education, automation, and vertical solutions.\nAlex also shares candid insights about fundraising, navigating corporate politics, and why focus, speed, and honesty are the true superpowers for founders in the AI era.\nChapters:\n00:00 – Big ideas start simple\n03:00 – Early life in Ukraine & first businesses\n08:00 – Consulting, automation, and discovering pricing inefficiencies\n13:00 – Why big firms resisted subscriptions & Alex’s pivot\n16:00 – Bootstrapping Competera and landing first enterprise clients\n23:00 – Compute costs, margins, and survival under the radar\n28:00 – AI adoption in retail and beyond\n33:00 – The future of education in an AI-driven world\n36:00 – Advice for new founders in the post-LLM era\nConnect with Alex Halkin:\n🔗 LinkedIn\nBrought to you by:\n👉 AIorNot.com – Detect if content was created by AI or a human.","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/2mE-O6D1MTXZW0o6P3aqVV8ebbrPfNImANXDuw3NpVs/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS80NTcz/MmNjODU1ZWYxOTAy/YTUxYjNhYmJkMjhm/NGY5YS5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}