From Scale AI to Startup: How AI-Native Teams Are Built

In this episode of Tech Teams Today, we sit down with Hongbo Tian and James O’Brien, co-founders of Ducky.ai, to explore what it really means to build and lead an AI-native startup in 2025.

Hong brings deep experience from Scale AI, while James draws from years as a founder and operator across early-stage startups. Together, they share practical insights and contrarian takes on team structure, hiring, product development, and the new mental models required to ship AI products at scale.

They get real about what makes an engineer exceptional in this new era, the messy reality of LLM infrastructure, and why old-school management just doesn’t cut it anymore.

⏱ Chapters:
00:00 Introduction and Personal Philosophy
00:20 Welcome to Tech Teams Today
00:38 Meet the Guests: James O'Brien and Hongbo Tian
01:16 James' Journey into AI
03:01 Startup Culture: Momentum and Humility
07:56 Hongbo Tian's Experience at Scale AI
16:59 The Evolution of AI and Engineering Roles
21:55 Balancing Product Intuition with Customer Signals
24:52 Hiring Engineers in the Age of AI
29:23 Coaching and Attitude in Engineering Teams
30:40 Hiring Across Different Departments
34:24 Leadership Style in the AI Context
36:57 Balancing Technical and Managerial Roles
42:41 Production-Ready LLM Usage
47:46 Future of LLM Infrastructure
51:52 Rapid Fire Questions and Predictions

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