Elena K

Elena K

Founder 2 startups. Ex-TOP manager
#82100984 followers4 following
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Elena Kleft a comment
Hi Product Hunt! Helen here, co-founder of SpeakUp 👋 We built SpeakUp around one core problem: speaker booking is still far more fragmented than it should be. Organizers, podcasters, and media teams often search for speakers across agencies, spreadsheets, forms, inboxes, LinkedIn, and DMs. At the same time, many speakers struggle to get discovered, respond to the right opportunities, and manage...
SpeakUp
SpeakUpAI matching speakers and conference/podcasts/media
Elena KhuntedSpeakUp
Helps organizers, podcasters, and media teams find and book the right speakers faster. This relaunch brings a full redesign, AI matching, team collaboration, open and private requests, and built-in chats -making speaker sourcing, communication, and booking much smoother. Next week, we’re also launching posts and publishing features to help speakers build stronger professional visibility. 28 country, 9 languages, you can download the app in GooglePlay or AppStore. #booking_speakers #eventTech
SpeakUp
SpeakUpAI matching speakers and conference/podcasts/media
Elena Kleft a comment
This feels like exactly the right insight. “Sounds like me” and “feels like me” are completely different product thresholds. A lot of AI products can get surprisingly far on resemblance, but people notice very quickly when expression, emotional timing, and natural variation are missing. That’s where the uncanny feeling usually lives - not in the obvious errors, but in the absence of subtle...
Sourav Sanyal
We asked what felt off about AI voices, you told us. We’re fixing it.
Sourav SanyalJoin the discussion
Elena Kleft a comment
I don’t think the future is as simple as “AI will work for us” or “we will work for AI.” What’s happening is more subtle: humans are increasingly becoming the fallback layer for systems that appear autonomous. AI acts, predicts, recommends, and executes - but when it gets stuck, fails, misreads context, or faces ambiguity, a human steps in quietly behind the curtain. So the issue is not only...
Nika
Will we work for AI or will AI work for us?
NikaJoin the discussion
Elena Kleft a comment
Oof. This feels very real. A lot of us are tempted by “enterprise” because it sounds like maturity, scale, and validation. But often it’s just a very expensive way to avoid listening closely to the users already in front of us. What makes this post strong is that it doesn’t romanticize the lesson. You’re basically saying: we built for the buyer we wanted, not the buyer we had. We’re thinking...
Imed Radhouani
We spent 6 months building for enterprise. Nobody bought it.
Imed RadhouaniJoin the discussion
Elena Kleft a comment
I think the best approach is usually: build enough product to prove there’s something real, then build the founder brand in parallel. If you build the personal brand too early, people can become attached to the story more than the product. That may create attention, but not always truth. If you stay invisible for too long, growth can become harder because trust, distribution, and early...
Nika
Build your brand before your product, or launch first and reveal yourself later?
NikaJoin the discussion
Elena Kleft a comment
This is something we’ve been thinking through while building SpeakUp. Our framework is: free = understand the product and get the first value paid = get more speed, more reach, better workflow, and better outcomes If someone can’t feel the core benefit for free, conversion usually suffers. But if you give away the full workflow that drives business value, monetization becomes weak. For us, the...
Nika
How do you decide what features should be free and what should be paid?
NikaJoin the discussion
Elena Kstarted a discussion

How do journalists and media teams find expert sources fast?

A lot of journalists and media teams need credible experts quickly for interviews, commentary, quotes, and podcast episodes. But expert sourcing still often depends on: personal network PR agencies social media posts manual search across multiple platforms We’re building SpeakUp to make expert discovery easier for media teams, and I’d love to learn from others in this space. If you work in...

Elena Kstarted a discussion

What is the hardest part of finding the right speakers for events?

For event organizers, speaker sourcing often looks much harder than it should. You need to: find relevant speakers compare them quickly check fit for the audience manage outreach keep track of replies and decisions We’re building SpeakUp as an AI platform to help event organizers find speakers faster, but I’d love to understand where the biggest pain really is. If you organize conferences,...

Elena Kstarted a discussion

How do podcasters find great podcast guests at scale?

I’ve been thinking a lot about how hard podcast guest booking still is. Most podcasters either: search manually on LinkedIn ask their network rely on agencies or spend too much time on cold outreach We’re building SpeakUp to make podcast guest discovery and expert matching faster, but I’d love to learn from real workflows. If you run a podcast or book guests for one, how do you usually find...

Elena Kstarted a discussion

Would you trust AI to help you find speakers or podcast guests?

We’re working on SpeakUp - an AI matching app for speaker booking, podcast guest discovery, and expert sourcing for media and events. I’m curious how people think about this category. If you needed to find a conference speaker, podcast guest, or media expert, what would make you trust an AI-powered platform faster? Would it be: better filters stronger profiles social proof and reviews...

Elena Kstarted a discussion

Why is finding conference speakers still so manual in 2026?

We’re building SpeakUp – an AI speaker booking and speaker discovery platform for event organizers, podcasters, journalists, and media teams. One thing keeps surprising me: even in 2026, many teams still find conference speakers through spreadsheets, scattered LinkedIn messages, Google Forms, and agencies. If you’ve ever had to find speakers for events, what was the hardest part for you?...

Elena KhuntedSpeakUp
Need a top speaker for your event, article, or podcast? 🎙️ SpeakUp connects you with verified experts across industries—fast & hassle-free. From conferences to media interviews, find & book professionals without agency fees! 🚀 #PublicSpeaking
SpeakUp
SpeakUpFind speakers for forums, articles,podcasts—no agency fees