Women Building With AI: Female Founders and Tech Startups (Live from Venture Week Miami)

**Gazal Vakili** (0:00)
And it's really what came down to it is, yes, you know, we can't build the universe, so let's build the door that gets users in. And so defining that door, like, what is that door? What is the simplest experience you can provide in order to still provide the value and the promise of the product? That's really how we start to think about it. Like, what is that core product loop that still provides that magic that I'm after?

**Brooke Gramer** (0:27)
Welcome to How I AI, the podcast featuring real people, real stories and real AI in action. I'm Brooke Gramer, your host and guide on this journey into the real world impact of artificial intelligence. For over 15 years, I've worked in creative marketing, events and business strategy, wearing all the hats. I know the struggle of trying to scale and manage all things without burning out. But here's the game changer, AI. This isn't just a podcast. How I AI is a community, a space where curious minds like you come together, share ideas because AI isn't just a trend, it's a shift. The sooner we embrace it, the more freedom, creativity, and opportunities we'll unlock. Welcome back to How I AI. This episode is a special one. It's the live recording of our one-year anniversary event Women Building With AI. It was recorded with a live audience during Miami Venture Week this past February. Over this last year, this podcast has reached a growing audience of engaged professionals, founders, and creatives discovering practical AI through real human stories. For its anniversary, I wanted to take those conversations into a room with real founders and open it up to a Q&A. You'll hear from three founders building in very different spaces, from AI-powered wellness to identity simulation technology and next-generation cybersecurity. Their perspectives spanned early MVP building, grassroots distribution, fundraising, and ethical AI development. This live event was in partnership with Lovable and Mindspace, and it brought together an incredible group of builders and leaders within the Miami Tech community. I'm already working on our next live event for New York Tech Week, the first week of June 2026 Be sure to follow my Instagram for more details as they come out. If you're listening and thinking about producing a conference, a Tech Week event, Founders Summit, or a corporate innovation series, conversations like this are something I love curating and moderating. Live panels and founder conversations are an area I really thrive in. So, if you're interested in collaborating or bringing something like this to your audience, feel free to reach out to me directly. All right, let's dive in. Gazal Vakili, she's the founder of FutureSelf, a neuroscience-backed identity stimulation platform powered by ElevenLabs. Does anybody use ElevenLabs? Yes. She brings her background in clinical research and digital therapeutics, along with a master's in health sciences. Thank you, Gazal. My next speaker is Marian Bacol. She's the founder and CEO of Somarae, an AI-powered somatic wellness platform and community for personalized real-time stress relief and nervous system support. Her platform is powered by Lovable. Does anybody use Lovable already in the room?
Great to hear it. Then last but not least, we have Rebecca Krauthamer. She's co-founder and CEO of QSecure. QSecure is a quantum-resistant cybersecurity company, protecting enterprises and governments against AI and quantum-driven threats in real-time without the costly infrastructure. Welcome, Rebecca. Thank you so much for being here.
So my opening question I want to give for this space and interview ladies, and we can go down the line here and start with Gazal. Please, each of you, give us your founder snapshot. Who are you and what are you creating and why does it matter right now?

**Gazal Vakili** (4:24)
Hi, everyone. Thank you so much, Brooke. Thank you for having me and putting together this incredible event.
So I'm Gazal Vakili. I am the founder of FutureSelf, which is an early stage startup. So my background is actually in clinical research. I spent the past 17, 18 years in the world of clinical trials, in pharma, biotech, developing medical interventions, in various different indications. And the last five years of my career, I was really focused in digital health. I was heading up the digital health unit for a pharma company. Or really, our mission was to go beyond the pill, which was a mission that I was very passionate about. And we got to build really creative interventions. So virtual reality was a medium that we focused in, and we built virtual reality programs for various different mental health disorders. And social anxiety was actually one of them. And so I did leave the corporate world late 2024 and sort of embarked on my own journey. 2025, it was sort of a year of figuring out who I wanted to be and the identity that I wanted to step into. And that led me to what I created, FutureSelf, which is really something that's mission aligned. It is really, it's an identity simulation app, neuroscience backed, where you get to interact with the future version of you that's already living and accomplish your greatest vision through various different experiences. So this is through future self coaching that are highly personalized, meditations that are customized, multi-sensory visualizations, where you get to, your brain actually encodes it as future memories, because our brain doesn't know the difference between what is happening in reality and what you're vividly envisioning using all senses, as well as cinematic videos, where you'll get to see yourself actually living your vision. So through this mechanism, we are, our goal is to change and shift identity of the person. So you start showing up as that future version of you, every day. And so why this is important today is that, with this whole revolution with AI, there's a lot of people that will be losing their careers, their sense of self, their identity. And really what we're focusing on initially is career, financial abundance and purpose. And so with the aim of helping people through that transition. Beautiful. Thank you.