How 1000+ customer calls shaped a breakout enterprise AI startup

David Park, the veteran founder who previously founded and exited Coverity, has centered customer input in the development of Narada. The enterprise AI startup uses large action models to automate complex multistep workflows across enterprise systems. Park and his co-founders, experienced researchers and operators from Stanford and Berkeley, made the choice deliberately when they applied for TechCrunch Startup Battlefield in 2024. The team conducted more than 1,000 customer calls in the early days rather than focusing on venture capital outreach. Park said the approach followed a key lesson from his Coverity experience. Founders should talk to customers before taking other steps to identify real pain points. Those conversations showed that enterprise teams wanted an AI product they could speak to like a person and trust to handle multiple steps at once, Park said. Some of the early customers from the bootstrapped period later became multimillion-dollar deals. Park noted that viewing initial talks as more than sales calls helped build trust that supported further business. Park said that when a company has too much money in the bank before reaching product-market fit, it risks spending on efforts that do not advance the business correctly. He added that no matter how the product is received by the industry, it will not succeed unless customers will pay for it.