In this SLUSH 2025 special, Zivile sits down with Aru nas Vismantas (Callsy.ai) to deliver a radical founder reality check:
Why ego kills more businesses than failure, and why you must SELL BEFORE YOU BUILD to survive. Arunas, a three-time founder, reveals the principles that move companies forward, including aggressive validation and his experience scaling rapidly through 500 Global.
You’ll also hear his sharp, essential takes on:
Co-founder red flags nobody talks about.
Why Baltic founders are wired differently (and why perfection doesn't win).
How accelerators like FirstPick and 500 Global shaped his approach.
The math behind AI voice agents recovering abandoned e-commerce carts.
Why nothing works unless you first bet on yourself.
If you’re building, fundraising, or figuring out your next move—this episode is the reality check you need.
Connect with Arunas:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/arunas-vismantas/
Hosted by: Zivile (Zivi) Einikyte:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zivileeinikyte/
Chapters:
00:00 Trailer
00:21 About the Guest: Arūnas Vismantas (Callsy.ai)
01:22 Life at SLUSH & Founder Energy
03:50 The Reality of Building a Startup
05:37 Solving Real Problems in E-commerce
07:03 Why Online Buying Behaviour Has Shifted
09:22 AI in Customer Service (Callsy.ai)
10:47 Performance Marketing in 2025
12:54 Lessons From Previous Ventures
15:13 The Baltic Founder Advantage
17:17 Validating a Startup From Zero
19:40 Finding Co-founders & Red Flags
20:33 Funding: Accelerators vs. Bootstrapping
22:33 Experiments, Systems & Structure
24:37 The Role of Ego in Entrepreneurship
26:05 Final Thoughts: Betting on Yourself