Thais Castello Branco left the AI search company Exa, raised $18.5M, and built Taste Labs -- the "taste layer for AI" -- solo, with one mission: end AI slop. She and Julian go deep on what taste actually is (and why it isn't personalization), why everything AI makes is starting to look the same, how you turn something as subjective as "great design" into data a model can learn, and the honest case for going solo.
Topics covered:
- Why taste is a measurable bar for quality, not just personal preference
- The real cause of "AI slop" — volume, not bad models
- How to turn a subjective domain into something a model can learn
- Why you're probably bad at "commissioning" AI
- Building a ~800-person community of tastemakers
- The bear and bull case for being a solo founder
Guest: Thais Castello Branco, founder & CEO of Taste Labs, the "taste layer for AI" (ex-Exa).
What is Solo Founders?
The Solo Founder's Podcast features in-depth interviews with solo founders building remarkable companies. Each week, host Julian Weisser sits down with solo founders who are either operating at serious scale or doing something right now that you need to know about. From Series B and beyond to founders breaking out in real-time, these are the conversations that define what it means to build solo. New episodes every week.