Builders Unscripted: Ep. 2 - Ashe Magalhaes, Founder of Hearth AI

Why It Matters

It shows how rapid, public‑first AI development can turn solo founders into market‑ready innovators, while positioning relational intelligence as the next frontier for CRM and personal productivity tools.

Key Takeaways

• Hearth AI pioneered the first agentic CRM using GPT‑3.5.
• Early AI work required rapid iteration and constant stack rebuilding.
• Founder’s frontier tech background fuels focus on human connection.
• Building in public with Codex accelerates product validation and feedback.
• Relational intelligence aims to make AI a “second brain” for users.

Summary

The episode spotlights Ashe Magalhaes, founder of Hearth AI, and his journey from building a solar‑powered race car to creating the first agentic CRM. Hearth AI launched in 2022, leveraging GPT‑3.5 to automate customer‑relationship workflows before the underlying AI infrastructure was stable, forcing the team to rebuild their stack every few weeks.

Magalhaes describes the early challenges of educating users about agentic bots, the need for structured JSON outputs, and the relentless pace of iteration. He emphasizes the importance of community—sharing tricks with fellow builders—and the shift to building in public using tools like Codex 5.4, Slack‑based observability, and rapid extraction of prototypes into standalone products such as aesthetic.video.

Memorable moments include his solar‑car race across the Australian outback and the philosophical insight that “the arc of human progress bends toward love and connection.” He frames AI as a “second brain,” a symbiotic partner that extends relational intelligence, allowing users to navigate their networks more meaningfully.

The conversation underscores how modern AI tooling enables solo founders to launch sophisticated, user‑centric products at unprecedented speed. By prioritizing relational intelligence and public feedback loops, Hearth AI exemplifies a new paradigm where AI augments human connection rather than merely automating tasks.

Original Description

Builders Unscripted spotlights the stories behind real projects and the mindset that makes them possible: you can just build things.

In this episode, Romain Huet, Head of Developer Experience, chats with Ashe Magalhaes, founder of Hearth AI. Ashe talks about moving fast with Codex, finding beauty in tools, and gives a keen look into her agentic personal operating systems that enable her to feel more present, connected, and intentional.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:10 Early agents and Hearth AI

05:43 AI and human connection

08:44 Build in public

12:17 Ashe’s agentic workflow