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ID:
2025-11-19-gary-kevin-denman-agentgraph-meeting
Participants:

Meeting Summary: AgentGraph Marketplace Vision and Collaboration Opportunities

Overview​

Kevin Denman, founder of AgentGraph, met with Gary Sheng to discuss the AI agent marketplace platform he's building and explore potential collaboration opportunities. The conversation covered AgentGraph's business model, Kevin's vision for transforming how businesses implement AI agents, and Gary's potential role as either an AI engineer on the platform or in helping define the Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) position.

Key Topics Discussed​

AI Notetaking Tools and Workflow Integration​

  • Kevin's Evolution on Notetakers: "I used to be like, the notetakers are a little too much... Now I'm like, with AI workflows and follow ups and the ability to build a context and build a workflow off of high value conversations... the ROI has changed."
  • Currently Testing: Granola (recommended by Cursor team), Gong, Otter, and open-source alternatives
  • Key Insight: "Product teams that really understand how to build with AI features do things slightly differently than ones who are kind of just adding it onto their existing staff"

AgentGraph Business Model and Vision​

  • Core Thesis: "99% of business owners are not gonna figure it out on their own" when it comes to AI agent implementation
  • Market Focus: Custom agents rather than general "vibe coding" - "When it comes to building custom agents that are adding intelligence into the product... I don't think you can one shot"
  • Platform Philosophy: Building the marketplace to be "the best place to go work on a custom agent for your company or your startup"
  • Revenue Model:
    • Engineers set rates ($150-1000/hour range)
    • AgentGraph adds platform fee charged to buyer
    • Engineers receive 100% of their bid rate
    • Platform handles contracting, payments, and dispute resolution

Product Development Status​

  • Timeline: Started May 2025, currently in closed beta
  • Current State: Kevin is designing, building, and shipping daily while managing fundraising
  • Key Features in Development:
    • DocuSign API integration
    • Stripe API integration
    • Calendar booking integration
    • Automated time tracking and weekly billing
    • Structured project scoping workflow
    • Built-in eval framework for agent development
  • Demo Highlights:
    • Comprehensive requirement gathering system with schema-based approach
    • Emphasis on agent-specific evals as core requirement
    • Proposal comparison system for buyers
    • Platform participation agreements for dispute mediation

Fundraising and Growth Plans​

  • Current Round: Raising pre-seed of $1-2M
  • Revenue Targets:
    • End of 2025: $200K gross billed value
    • 2026: $1-5M gross billed value
    • Current pipeline: ~$500K (conversion rate TBD)
  • Hiring Plans: Looking for founding engineer, potentially founding AI architect
  • Q1 2026 Vision: "Million dollars in the bank... product very ready to exit closed beta... pipeline built up with teams ready to spend money... founding engineer on staff"

Gary's Background and Fit Assessment​

Gary provided comprehensive overview of his multidisciplinary experience:

  • Technical: Google Cloud frontend engineer (2015-2019), led small team
  • Social Media: Built page to 800K followers around activism
  • Events: Organized 2+ dozen parties/concerts in NYC and LA
  • Nonprofit: Co-founded Civic Innovation, trained 2,000 kids across 70 countries
  • Web3: Grants from Coinbase, Celo, Ethereum Foundation for youth education
  • Recent: Gauntlet AI (top stack ranking), Alpha School stint, Vatican AI strategy work

Kevin's response showed strong interest in the combination of technical and people skills, particularly for the FDE role.

The Human Element of AI Consulting​

  • Gary's Key Insight: "There is so much human stuff... I've been brought into environments where people assume that I'm here to fire them"
  • Kevin's Agreement: Referenced his Deloitte consulting experience with similar dynamics
  • Critical Success Factor: Need to address organizational resistance and job loss fears
  • Content Opportunity: Creating educational content on organizational transformation with AI

Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) Role Definition​

  • Current State: Kevin serving as his own FDE but looking to scale
  • Role Value: "$10-20K per client interaction" potential
  • Key Responsibilities:
    • Requirements gathering at client sites
    • Bridge between technical and business stakeholders
    • Quality control and buyer satisfaction
    • Support vetting process for engineers
    • Handle organizational transformation challenges
  • Gary's Fit: Strong match given combination of technical skills and people orientation

Competitive Landscape Analysis​

  • Direct Competitors:
    • Turing (recent large raise, high valuation)
    • Question about legitimacy: "4 million vetted AI and engineering talent profiles. Like, who's vetting these?"
  • Historical Comparables:
    • TopTal: Raised $1.5M from a16z in 2010, grew to $500M revenue
    • Upwork: Incumbent that "won't ship features as fast"
  • Market Assessment: "Blue ocean scenario" with significant opportunity
  • Key Differentiator: AI-native approach vs. bolt-on features

AI-Native Marketplace Features (R&D Focus)​

  • Multi-turn Scoping Assistant: Replace forms with conversational agent for requirements gathering
  • AI Proposal Analysis: Help buyers compare and evaluate multiple proposals
  • Matching Algorithm: Intelligent pairing of projects with engineers
  • Balance Challenge: "I got to strike that balance between educating them and using a familiar interface with incorporating AI"

Educational Content and Marketing Strategy​

  • Kevin's Approach: "Education centric marketing content is definitely my favorite approach because they get something out of the messaging already"
  • Gary's Suggestion: Content on organizational transformation and practical AI implementation
  • Timing: After ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) definition is complete
  • Opportunity: Position AgentGraph through thought leadership

Key Quotes​

On Market Dynamics​

  • Kevin: "The buyer is like, saying, where do I find these people? And then the engineer is saying, how do I become this? And both of those things are happening at once."
  • Kevin: "Software engineering will continue to be one of the most important roles into the future, but it's shifting"

On Product Philosophy​

  • Kevin: "Unlike Cursor and Granola and some of these other incredible AI products, I've got the CTO of a Series B company who hasn't really used AI that much... logging in"
  • Kevin: "My belief is that these agents never make it to production if you don't have evals baked into the first version"

On Timing and Opportunity​

  • Kevin: "AI is such a paradigm shift that... you're already seeing the CTO within the organization kind of go to all the places and be like, I'm not finding anyone"

On Organizational Change​

  • Gary: "My biggest advice to you... don't assume that what's in your head is obvious at all"

Action Items and Next Steps​

For Gary​

  • Consider joining closed beta as AI engineer (immediate, low commitment)
  • Evaluate potential for part-time flexible engagement
  • Explore bringing own projects to the platform
  • Follow up via Signal (Kevin shared phone number)

For Kevin​

  • Continue fundraising to close pre-seed round
  • Ship remaining critical features for full launch
  • Define ICP before investing in marketing content
  • Consider creating educational content on organizational transformation

Potential Collaboration Paths​

  1. Immediate: Gary joins as beta AI engineer, provides platform feedback
  2. Post-Funding: Gary helps define FDE role and processes
  3. Content Creation: Collaborate on educational materials about AI transformation
  4. Client Engagement: Gary travels to client sites for requirements gathering

Strategic Observations​

Platform Strengths​

  • Clear value proposition for both sides of marketplace
  • Strong emphasis on quality through vetting and evals
  • Thoughtful approach to reducing friction (contracting, payments, mediation)
  • AI-native vision while maintaining accessibility

Growth Challenges​

  • Currently limited deal flow in closed beta
  • Need to prove conversion rates and average contract values
  • Balancing product development with fundraising and sales
  • Building trust in new category (AI agent development)

Market Opportunity​

  • CTOs struggling to find qualified AI talent
  • Engineers seeking to upskill into AI development
  • Paradigm shift creating new role categories (FDE)
  • Educational gap in organizational AI transformation

Relationship Dynamics​

  • Strong mutual respect and interest in collaboration
  • Kevin appreciates Gary's multidisciplinary background
  • Gary resonates with marketplace vision and timing
  • Both understand human elements of consulting
  • Shared awareness of organizational transformation challenges

Follow-up Potential​

  • High likelihood of continued engagement
  • Multiple collaboration paths identified
  • Gary to maintain flexibility while evaluating options
  • Kevin eager to have Gary in ecosystem regardless of formal role
  • Natural alignment on vision for AI agent consulting space