A dude in India sent this cold email to OpenAI

It’s been a minute since I emailed you. I heard this incredible story on our new AI podcast and had to tell you.

Anirudh Singla told me he sent this cold email to the co-founder of OpenAI and used what he got to build a $10 million business.

He was a writer, looking for work on Upwork, trying to make $1,250 per month.

But finding work was painful.

All the job sites sucked, so he created something different: Pepper, a marketplace that matches writers with companies that needed them.

It was a nice business.

But it was small.

Then in 2020, he heard what OpenAI was building. (That’s 2 years before ChatGPT launched.)

He got curious about what AI could do for his business.

He emailed OpenAI for access.

That changed everything.

Greg Brockman (OpenAI’s cofounder) gave him access.

He started using AI to produce draft articles for the writers on his platform. AI drafted. Humans edited/improved.

Pepper went from a basic freelancer marketplace…

…to an AI-powered content engine…

…to a company doing over $10 million a year.

I’m sure you’ve read their stuff, but didn’t know it. They produce content for ClickUp, Sprinklr, Instacart, Amazon and loads of other companies.

Now he’s curious about how he can use AI to create videos. He told me his current results are “AI slop,” but they’re still pulling in views and revenue. And it keeps improving.

He inspired me to send more cold emails.

I interviewed him. Nice guy.

You can hear it on YouTube, Spotify, Apple, and pretty much anywhere.

I’m looking for more AI success stories for the podcast. Got one? Hit reply and tell me.

-andrew