INTERVIEW | Make Money by Making AI Work for Everyone with Rajeev Kapur
Rajeev Kapur is a three-time CEO with three exits, the CEO of 1105 Media, a former member of Dell's leadership team, and an AI advisor focused on making artificial intelligence accessible to everyone—not just the tech elite. During his time at Dell, Rajeev helped build a $1 billion-plus U.S. business and led operations across China and South Asia. He's also the bestselling author of AI Made Simple and Chase Greatness, a CNBC contributor, and an advisor to multiple AI companies and boards. In this episode, Rajeev shares lessons from his unconventional path from 100% commission sales to working directly with Michael Dell, along with his perspective on how businesses should actually approach AI.
On this episode we talk about:
Why taking a 100% commission sales job at 22 taught Rajeev self-discipline, sales, and the importance of betting on yourself
How Rajeev went from working in sales at Gateway to becoming one of Michael Dell's early executive assistants and eventually leading major international businesses
Why being aggressive and memorable can help you create opportunities that wouldn't otherwise exist, including the unconventional strategy that landed Rajeev an interview at Dell
The leadership lessons Rajeev learned from Michael Dell, including hiring great people, delegating effectively, and getting out of their way
Why companies need to establish a strong data foundation and get their people involved before investing heavily in AI agents and automation
Top 3 Takeaways
Bet on yourself when you're already at “no.” Rajeev's decision to FedEx his resume directly to Michael Dell came from a simple realization: he had nothing to lose. His advice is to be aggressive when pursuing an opportunity because rejection doesn't make your situation worse if you're already being overlooked.
Focus on activity before obsessing over results. Rajeev learned early in sales that revenue is a lag measure while calls, proposals, and other activities are lead measures. Focusing on the actions you can control creates more opportunities for the desired result to follow.
Don't automate a broken foundation. Rajeev argues that businesses need strong, secure, properly captured, and accessible data before building sophisticated AI agents. Just as importantly, employees need to understand how AI will help them rather than believing it's simply coming for their jobs.
Notable Quotes
"You've got to go to the job."
"What do you got to lose? You got nothing to lose. What are they gonna say? No. Well you're already at no."
"Most companies fail not because they do the wrong thing. They fail because they did the right thing for too long."
Connect with Rajeev Kapur:
Website: Rajeev.ai
Books: Visit Rajeev's website for information about his upcoming books- Intelligence as a Commodity; Liberated by Limits; Your New Health OS
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