Lessons on building a unicorn used by 84% of the Fortune 100 | Emil Eifrem (Neo4j)

In this episode of The Eric Ries Show, I’m joined by Emil Eifrem, Co-Founder and CEO of Neo4j, an open-source graph database. Neo4j enables organizations to unlock the business value of connections, influences, and relationships in data.  In our conversation today, we talk about the following topics:  • The origin story of Neo4j and why they chose open source • Open source as a means of production vs. distribution • How open source fosters trust and transparency • The pros and cons of doing business in the US  • Why Neo4j updated their values and changed their stance on military contracts  • What a Leader’s Guide is and how it keeps companies tied to their mission  • The challenges of implementing AI  • An explanation of RAG information retrieval and how it relates to LLMs  • And more!  — Brought to you by: Vanta – Automate compliance, manage risk, and prove trust—continuously. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Get $1,000 off⁠⁠⁠⁠. • Gusto – Gusto is an easy payroll and benefits software built for small businesses. Get 3 months free. Runway – The finance platform you don’t hate. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Learn more⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. — Where to find Emil Eifrem: • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emileifrem/ • X: https://x.com/emileifrem — Where to find Eric: • Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ericries.carrd.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  • Podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ericriesshow.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  • YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@theericriesshow⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  — In This Episode We Cover: (00:00) Intro (01:42) How Eric and Emil got connected  (07:35) The origin story of Neo4j (13:38) Why Emil went with an open-source model (20:25) The benefits of being open source as a means of distribution  (25:07) Why Emil has no regrets about going open-source  (26:50) How open source builds trust (30:33) The difference in doing business in the US vs. Sweden  (35:34) How Neo4j got to product market fit and early struggles (38:30) Why Neo4j declined the GSA schedule and why it was a mistake  (46:22) Emil’s thoughts on changing his position, reworking values, and recommitting  (51:40) Eric’s advice to avoid mission drift: A leader’s guide, and a two-way review (1:00:04) The challenge of implementing AI—and the possibility of massive opportunity  (1:09:20) How Neo4j successfully implemented AI  (1:11:55) An explanation of IR (information retrieval) and how it’s relevant to AI  (1:22:44) What gives us trust in the AI system — You can find the transcript and references at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.ericriesshow.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ — Production and marketing by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://penname.co/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Eric may be an investor in the companies discussed.