The Tamil Creator Podcast (Ep.42): Kartik Bala - CEO & Co-Founder of SnapSmile, AI-Driven Oral Health Monitoring App
Kartik Bala is the Co-founder and CEO of SnapSmile (@snapsmile), a tech app, recently featured on Dragons' Den, that utilizes Artificial Intelligence to monitor your oral health from health while acting as your personal AI dental coach.
Ara Ehamparam
Business Owner
Toronto, Canada
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He joins Ara on this week’s episode of #TheTamilCreator to discuss his early entrepreneurial hustles, receiving CAD $25,000 in funding for his company through Next AI - A NEXT Canada Program (@next_canada), why he tries to take more risks now (spoiler: because we don’t live forever), and much more.

"The Tamil Creator" is a podcast started by me (Ara Ehamparam). As someone who is extremely inquisitive by nature, I created the podcast to chat with, spotlight, and learn about brilliance among creators in the Tamil community - and among creators in general from all over the world.

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Timestamps

00:19 - Ara introduces this week’s guest, Kartik Bala
02:59 - Kartik’s first hustles; drop shipping phone cases and clothing customization
05:33 - How did the entrepreneurial bug bite Kartik?
07:24 - How his parents feel about him leaving behind ‘more secure’ opportunities
09:00 - Kartik shows love to Ryerson University and its offerings
11:57 - SnapSmile’s admittance into Next AI - A NEXT Canada Program
13:42 - Why Kartik started SnapSmile
16:53 - Income generation strategy (at-home monitoring
20:05 - Who are SnapSmile’s competitors?
22:02 - Kartik’s vision for the company in the next 3-5 years
23:38 - How SnapSmile secured funding (bootstrapping vs. fundraising)
25:53 - The background of SnapSmile’s three co-founders
28:14 - SnapSmile’s biggest challenges and how they overcame them
30:05 - How Kartik balances the demands of a start-up and his personal interests
31:29 - How COVID affected Kartik from a professional and personal standpoint
32:47 - Books/podcasts that Kartik has learned from during the pandemic
35:04 - Kartik’s epiphany; realizing we don’t live forever
36:15 - The legacy Kartik wants to leave behind - how he wants friends/family to remember him
37:40 - How has the Toronto-Tamil community affected Kartik on a personal and professional level
39:11 - Who inspires Kartik?
41:52 - Advice Kartik has for other aspiring Tamil creators
48:06 - Would You Rather
52:46 - The Wrap Up

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Ara Ehamparam
Business Owner | TamilCulture.com
Toronto,  Canada
Podcast Host: @TheTamilCreator Co-founder: @ContinyouCare Community Builder: @TamilCu...
Podcast Host: @TheTamilCreator Co-founder: @ContinyouCare Community Builder: @TamilCu...
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