Startup Spotlight #73: Fluent

Fluent is a chrome extension that helps people learn languages while browsing the web.

Jan 15, 2021

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I got the chance to speak with Gavin Dove, co-founder and CEO of Fluent, about what he’s working on at his startup, and any advice he has for emerging entrepreneurs.

Dove is the CEO and co-founder of Fluent. He's a mechanical engineer by training, with a love for building things - technology, products, teams. He has previously co-founded a transit optimization startup, and worked in aerospace as a software engineer, designing control systems for aircraft engines. As a 2nd generation immigrant to Canada with a Hong Kongese, Ghanaian and British background, breaking down language barriers has always been personal to him. Dove aspires to remove those same barriers for people finding new opportunities, becoming closer to loved ones, or just trying to feel at home in a new city.

Startup Spotlight: Fluent

Fluent cofounder and CEO Gavin Dove.

Problem: Learning new vocab and grammar is only the first step to learning a language - what you've learned needs to become second nature if you want to have a conversation or read a novel. The practice for this takes years and is where language apps fail users - after the initial lessons, they are left on their own to gain fluency - all while trying to stay engaged with language practice for the many months needed to even see progress.

Market: Language learning is an unsolved problem, and there are thousands of competing tools trying to tackle a $192 billion total addressable market (TAM) and a $9.6 billion serviceable addressable market (SAM). Almost everyone has a friend or family member who has struggled to find work, or to feel at home in a new country due to the language barrier; with globalization and the proliferation of remote work, we will only see this problem get bigger with time.

Solution: We make the language you're learning second nature by having you "live in it" through your web browsing. Fluent swaps out words and phrases in the web content you read for those of the language you're learning - you see translations, in context, over and over again, until you know the translation like you know your native language - it fits seamlessly into your life while building your language skills, like an audiobook, or a standing desk.

Team: We're a team of four co-founders - Yaniv Siberman is a former software engineer for Samsung, Ara Ghougassian is a former outbound salesman for the spending management and procurement startup Procurify, Olga Sanchis is a former designer for the car company Seat, and Gavin Dove formerly designed software for aircraft engine computers. We've all been close friends for ages (I've been friends with Yaniv since high school!) and have worked on startups together, won hackathons together, and even live together right now.

Recent Success:

Dove: We've had a few successful launches that have really driven growth, the best one being our Product Hunt launch where we got #2 Product of the Month. For an early-stage B2C company, these launches have been very important as they are clear signals that people care about the problems we're solving. One reason we've found launch success is our company's product-focus - we've spent a ridiculous number of hours talking to users, and dissecting the problems Fluent solves for them - writing marketing copy that speaks to language learners become much easier when you deeply understand their needs. Consumer launches also need that creative spark, the "je ne sais quoi" that captures attention with delight, or a good laugh, and Yaniv and Ara excel here; their background in filmmaking means that we easily weave compelling narratives and creativity into all of our outreach efforts.

Recent Struggle:

Dove: One thing we've come to realize as a team is the importance of focus - every initiative that is misaligned with Fluent's core value proposition is of mortal danger to our company and our path to product-market fit. We're a small team with limited resources, and entrepreneurs at heart; the ideas don't stop, and their potential is extremely exciting. We couldn't possibly execute on all of them, so we need to constantly kill our babies. I don't think it will ever be easy, but knowing that our abilities to execute at lightning speed and execute on our long-term vision are on the line helps quite a bit.

Founder Advice:

Dove: It's cliché, but having the right founding team around you is everything. Your team is a support system for when things are at their darkest, a gut check when you're frantic and considering something risky, and a source of accountability to your company's mission. More than that, it's a signal to the outside world that you can align brilliant people around your vision. So much of your job as a founder is going to be getting buy-in from users, potential employees, and investors - you need to start as early as possible and get buy-in from the people you want on your founding team.

Three Cool Founders You Should Know About:

Dove: Here are three founders you should check out next!

Alex Caza & Vithu Namasivayam, Founders of firstbloom: firstbloom makes the home-brewing of great coffee more accessible.
Garret Scott, Founder of Pipedream: Pipedream designs underground transportation systems for goods traveling up to 200+ mph.
Justin Mitchell, Co-founder of Yac: Yac brings async voice messaging to the remote workplace.

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