Beyond the AI demo: Turning prototypes into real businesses

Life on Mars - A podcast from MarsBased

Turn your AI demo into a real business.
In this episode of Life on Mars, real founders share their experiences, strategies, lessons, and mistakes behind building scalable AI startups and growing products beyond the demo phase.

Join Àlex Rodríguez Bacardit (CEO of MarsBased) as he sits down with Ricardo Ghekiere (Founder of BetterPic) and Tanya Van Gastel (from Multiverse AI) to discuss the hard truths about scaling AI products, how to build a sustainable business, and what it takes to move from prototype to profit.

🧠 What you'll learn:

• How to turn a prototype into a profitable AI business.
• Marketing tactics that still work for AI companies (SEO, affiliates, etc.).
• The difference between side projects and scalable startups.
• Why one-time payments are a funding trap for AI companies.
• Subscription models, team culture, transparency, and avoiding common startup mistakes.

💥 Whether you're launching your own AI product or seeking to avoid common traps, this episode is packed with real-world advice that will help you build something that lasts.

🔔 Subscribe for more episodes on AI startups, SaaS growth, tech entrepreneurship, and product development.

📺 Watch more episodes here:
[Link a la playlist de YouTube]

Episode Highlights:

• 00:00 – Intro: Why most AI tools don’t scale.
• 01:42 – Meet the guests: Ricardo Ghekiere & Tanya Van Gastel.
• 03:10 – The AI demo trap: Why cool tools often die early.
• 06:45 – Going from product to company: The real transition.
• 09:30 – Challenges scaling a one-time payment product.
• 12:00 – Subscription vs. one-off pricing in AI startups.
• 14:35 – The importance of marketing early (SEO, affiliates, and more).
• 18:20 – How BetterPic grew without paid ads.
• 21:50 – Why many AI founders avoid the hard stuff (distribution, customer support...).
• 25:10 – Culture and transparency in remote teams.
• 28:05 – Fundraising as a solo founder: Lessons from Ricardo.
• 32:40 – Turning an AI project into a real business: Final thoughts.
• 35:00 – Outro and where to find the guests.

👥 Guests:
👉 Ricardo Ghekiere – Founder of BetterPic
👉 Tanya Van Gastel – From AI Sheets, Multiverse AI

🧑‍🚀 Hosted by: Àlex Rodríguez Bacardit – CEO of MarsBased

Support the show

🎬 You can watch the video of this episode on the Life on Mars podcast website: https://podcast.marsbased.com/

פרקים

1. Episode Introduction (00:00:00)

2. Cultural Differences in Business (00:06:07)

3. BetterPic's Success Story (00:13:42)

4. Marketing Agency to Product Company (00:24:31)

5. Personal Branding and Growth Strategies (00:35:05)

6. One-Time Purchase vs Subscription Models (00:48:09)

7. Remote Work and Investment Challenges (00:56:25)

8. Biggest Business Failures and Lessons (00:59:42)