What Every Founder Needs (That No One Talks About)
- Jun 30
- 3 min read
Guest editorial written by Nick Myers
When I co-founded RedFox AI alongside my best friend of 13 years, Brett Brooks, I knew the journey would be challenging. Every new startup faces the same set of hurdles—launching a novel product, in a new market, with no idea of where your first customers might come from. Now, toss in launching a startup at the start of a once in a 100 year pandemic, and you have a true cocktail of uncertainty that would test even the most hardened of startup founders. What I didn’t expect was just how pivotal a local startup community would be in shaping our trajectory. That community was StartingBlock Madison.
So, why StartingBlock? To put it bluntly, working at home each day during the pandemic nearly destroyed me mentally and in less than a year, I was questioning if I wanted to keep RedFox going. Then, I remembered StartingBlock. The co-working space/startup hub that I had toured three years earlier, telling myself that I would one day have office space at. After scheduling a tour, we decided to become members, and it is that decision that set the stage for everything that followed.
StartingBlock offers something truly unique: a vibrant, supportive ecosystem right here in Madison that blends access to resources with authentic human connection. During COVID’s isolation, StartingBlock became more than a workspace—it became a lifeline. The serendipitous encounters, informal chats, and purposeful collaborations created the kind of energy that you simply cannot replicate in a home office.
StartingBlock provided RedFox AI with more than just a desk. It was a place to test ideas, connect with mentors, and engage with fellow entrepreneurs who could understand the highs and lows of startup life. The community challenged us, celebrated our wins, and helped us navigate the complex world of fundraising and product-market fit. The StartingBlock ecosystem accelerated our growth in ways that directly contributed to our acquisition by Recovery.com.
The Recovery.com acquisition of RedFox AI isn’t just a milestone, it’s a testament to the power of Wisconsin and Madison’s entrepreneurial community when the right collisions happen. After meeting Recovery.com’s co-founders Ben Camp and Jeremiah Calvino in 2021, who also shared office space at StartingBlock, we hit it off, and over the past 5 years began to work in the same circles and would often ask for advice from Ben and others we’d met on the team. As the team at Recovery.com grew, Brett would often joke with me, “Don’t worry, Nick, if RedFox doesn’t work out, we can always go work with Recovery.com.” Little did we know that joke would eventually become a reality. As both our respective companies matured, we began to speak candidly with each other about technology, goals, and most importantly, values. Over time, it became clear that 1+1=3, and that we would be stronger together working towards the same vision.
Had we not crossed paths at StartingBlock, the butterfly effect that led to our acquisition would never have been set in motion.
But this journey wasn’t one-sided. As RedFox AI grew, we also invested back into StartingBlock, sharing our learnings, mentoring new startups, and helping nurture the next generation of Wisconsin innovators. It’s this reciprocal spirit that makes this community so special.
To entrepreneurs and supporters across
Wisconsin: continue championing local startups. Attend events, invest in ideas, offer mentorship, and create spaces where innovation thrives.
Political landscapes may shift, but a strong, collaborative entrepreneurial ecosystem is something we build and maintain together—StaringBlock is a catalyst for this.
StartingBlock Madison showed us what’s possible when passion meets community. For RedFox AI, it was the launching pad that helped turn a bold idea into using AI to make healthcare more accessible into an acquisition by a company dedicated to making a real difference. That’s the embodiment of our state motto, and I’m proud to be a part of it. FORWARD!
