Standup routine strikes 'paw-fect' tone for entrepreneurs at Portland startup conference

Diana Tan with AI-generated image of herself as Julia child

Photo / Renee Cordes Entrepreneur Diana Tan channels her inner Julia Child during a talk at Maine Startup Week on using AI to cook up a dog-themed business from scratch in 60 seconds. More than 800 people attended the four-day conference in Portland.

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By Renee Cordes

Inspired by her love of pooches, tech entrepreneur Diana Tan offered a master class in startup strategy meets standup comedy Thursday afternoon in Portland.

"This is meant to be fun and satirical," she said in introducing her presentation on “Cooking with AI: Build a company in 60 minutes," as part of Startup Maine Week. Displaying an AI-generated image of herself in the likeness of Julia Child, Tan structured her talk as a recipe from appetizer to dessert.

"I am not a cook but I am very good at hacking things together," said Tan, co-founder and CEO of a startup called Brief that aims to help users "end document chaos." The Seattle resident, featured in a November 2024 Mainebiz cover story, is currently based in Portland for the Founder Residency program at Northeastern University's Roux Institute.

For the next hour in the Roux's open amphitheater area, Tan showed how she used various AI tools to create a detailed business plan, pitch deck, branding and website for Only Paws, a fictional platform for dog owners to share pet photos and videos and rack up “tail wags” from paid subscribers to earn monthly treat money for their good boys and girls.

Tan was one of 96 speakers at Startup Maine Week, a four-day conference for current and future entrepreneurs as well as individuals described by Startup Maine President Katie Shorey as "startup-curious."

More than 800 people from all over Maine, other states and even Canada registered for the conference, more than double last year's turnout.

"My observation is that people are gathering info, realizing that there are so many opportunities and resources for them should they want to start a company," Shorey told Mainebiz as the week was winding down. "I think it is planting the seed that if they want to be an entrepreneur or start something or work at a startup — they can do that here in Maine."

'Let's learn, let's connect'

Kicking things off at Monday's high-energy opening session, Shorey told a crowd of more than 300, "Let's learn, let's connect and let's keep building the Maine that we believe in."

Katie Shorey greets crowd at Startup Maine Week

Photo / Renee Cordes

Katie Shorey, president of Startup Maine, said that this year's conference attracted more than 800 registered attendees.

Theo Balcomb, a freelance audio journalist who grew up in Gorham, expanded on the Maine theme in her keynote speech, talking about how she moved back to Maine in March 2020 with her family "because I was scared to be anywhere else."

"Startups are all around us," she said. "Our state teams with great ideas and the wherewithal to see them through."

The rest of the week was packed with coffee meetups, panels and sessions, company showcases and evening events including a "Battledecks" pizza party with improvisational business pitching likened to “PowerPoint karaoke.”

Startup Maine also unveiled an online tool for entrepreneurs during the conference.

'Don't quit your day job'

The formal program included entrepreneurs of all stripes sharing their successes and missteps — and advice for others keen to start their own business or thinking about trading a job with an established employer for a role at a startup.

Some tips came from two medical clinicians who are also entrepreneurs participating in the Roux's Future of Healthcare Founder Residency.

“Don’t quit your day job," said Lola Omishore of TheraMotive, while Rahul Vanjani of Docs for Health urged fellow founders to "surround yourself with a team … who share your values."

Photo / Renee Cordes

From left, Lola Omishore of TheraMotive, Rahul Vanjani of Docs for Health and Allyson Goida of the Roux Institute at Startup Maine Week.

Tan also had plenty of practical advice — and a plethora of puns — in her presentation on Only Paws. She created the fictional tech disruptor in a matter of days without any coding experience.

While Tan wouldn't recommend relying solely on AI to start a business, she mentioned its usefulness as a tool to test out an idea and then take it to real developer.

Asked how she came up with the idea, Tan tipped her hat to her mini Goldendoodle.

"I have a dog, his name is Sherlock Bones, and I miss him a lot, and I always thought that he was very photogenic," she explained after wrapping up her talk. "And also when he was on Instagram, people were always asking me if they could send him clothes and if I would post it on Instagram."

She also said that after spending the week on Only Paws, she jokingly suggested to her fellow Brief co-founder and CTO that they make a pivot — er, PAW-vot — to the made-up business.