I’m launching a free live series called Startup Data Guide.

Think of it like Office Hours with Ahmed for early-stage companies navigating Data and AI.

The goal is simple: help Seed and Series A teams make better data decisions, avoid wasting money, and build systems that can actually scale.

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Why I’m Creating This

Early-stage companies are making data and AI decisions earlier than ever.

But most teams are still trying to answer the same questions:

• How should we structure our data?
• What should we automate?
• What is the cheapest way to set up data that will still scale?
• What data should we capture now so we do not regret it later?
• Where does AI actually help?
• What should we build, buy, or avoid?
• When should AI use the warehouse, and when should it use production systems directly?
• How do we build internal tools, workflows, and customer-facing features on top of our data?
• What metrics should we track for e-commerce, marketplaces, SaaS, or consumer apps?

These are not abstract questions.

They are the decisions that shape how fast a company can move, how much money it wastes, and whether it can actually use AI in a meaningful way.

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The Problem

A lot of startups get stuck in one of two places.

Some underinvest in data until it becomes painful. They move fast early, but eventually every metric is debated, every workflow is manual, and every AI project is blocked by messy data.

Others overbuild too early. They buy too many tools, hire too soon, create dashboards nobody uses, and spend money on systems that do not fit the stage of the company.

The hard part is knowing what matters now, what can wait, and what will create problems later if you ignore it.

That is what this series is about.

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What We’ll Cover

Startup Data Guide will focus on practical questions like:

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Data Structure

How should your company structure its data from the beginning?

What data should you capture now so future reporting, automation, AI, and product features are easier to build?

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Automation

What should be automated now?

What should stay manual until the process is better understood?

How do you avoid turning a messy process into a messy automated process?

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AI

Where does AI actually help?

When should AI use the warehouse?

When should it connect directly to production systems?

What should you build, buy, or avoid?

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Internal Tools and Workflows

How do you build useful internal tools on top of your data?

How do you create workflows that help teams move faster without creating operational chaos?

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Metrics

What metrics should you track for e-commerce, marketplaces, SaaS, consumer apps, and other startup models?

How do you make sure everyone is looking at the same version of the truth?

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Why I Can Help

I’ve spent many years investing in, advising, and working directly with startups.

I’ve seen thousands of companies and worked hand in hand with many of them across different stages, business models, and data problems.

At WeWork, I helped build and scale the data team during a period of massive growth.

At Narrator, I worked with companies trying to make their data actually usable across analytics, operations, and product.

Now at Polyform, I work with companies building data systems, AI workflows, internal tools, reporting, automation, and customer-facing data products.

Across all of that, I’ve seen the same pattern:

Companies that make good data decisions early can move faster later.

Companies that do not often spend years cleaning up messy foundations.

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Who This Is For

Startup Data Guide is for:

• Founders
• Operators
• Product leaders
• Engineers
• Data leaders
• Anyone trying to figure out how to use data and AI without turning it into a huge expensive mess

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What to Expect

This will be free, live, and focused on real questions from real companies.

We’ll talk about practical data architecture, metrics, automation, AI agents, warehouses, production systems, workflows, internal tools, and the tradeoffs that actually matter for early-stage teams.

The goal is not to make data complicated.

The goal is to make the right decisions earlier, so your company can move faster with less waste.

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Join the Startup Data Guide

If you’re building a Seed or Series A company and trying to figure out how to make better data and AI decisions, this is for you.

More details coming soon.

Want to be added on the weekly calendar invite

1. Just DM me on linkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elsamadisi/