Pomo: $4.5 Million Raised by Former Google Employees for AI

A Defining Meeting at Google

Joe Cheuk and Praneet Dutta, now co-founders of Pomo, met by chance at Google, an event that would change their professional trajectory. Their startup, focused on AI-driven marketing, recently raised $4.5 million in seed funding. Cheuk, based in Seattle as CTO, and Dutta, CEO in Palo Alto, shared their journey with Business Insider, emphasizing the importance of "grind mode" in the fast-paced world of startups and AI.

Praneet Dutta recalls their first meeting: "I met Joe on my first day at Google. We were in the same Uber Share ride after orientation. Although we weren't in the same team—me in machine learning and him in cloud infrastructure—we quickly realized we shared similar professional aspirations."

Diverse Backgrounds Before Launching

Joe Cheuk recounts: "It was about eight or nine years ago. I spent two years at Google before joining Meta, where I worked on advertising infrastructure. More recently, I was at Databricks, focusing on trust and security." Dutta, on the other hand, worked in machine learning at Google Cloud before moving to Google DeepMind, where he stayed until August 2025. Despite their distinct paths, they always kept in touch, nurturing the idea of starting a business together.

The Opportunity in AI and the Right Moment

Cheuk and Dutta often discussed their desire to leave large tech companies for an environment that offered more decision-making freedom. "We realized that a startup environment might suit us better," Cheuk explains. Their experience in the advertising and marketing ecosystem reinforced this belief. Dutta adds: "Last year was a turning point. We saw our chance to use AI to help businesses make marketing decisions faster."

In 2024, a paradigm shift occurred with the evolution of AI models. "We started interviewing marketing specialists, and those interviews confirmed that the technology was ready and the opportunities were present," Dutta recalls. Obtaining their green cards also provided the stability needed to take the plunge.

Transitioning from Big Tech to Startup

The transition from large companies like Google and Meta to a startup was marked by a significant cultural shift. "The speed of decision-making is crucial," Dutta emphasizes. "In a startup, the cost of indecision is much higher." Cheuk adds: "The processes and solutions we saw in Big Tech help us act quickly without overthinking."

Grind Mode: An Essential Skill

Cheuk stresses the importance of "grind mode": "The willingness to work hard is crucial in the age of AI. Anyone can build something with the right AI tool, but standing out depends on the speed of execution." Pomo, with a team of six, focuses on using AI coding agents to maximize efficiency. "I'm the CEO, so I don't have much time to code. But our team, made up of five engineers, built the end-to-end system using these tools," Dutta concludes.

A Shared Vision and Common Ambitions

Even though they worked in different teams at Google, Cheuk and Dutta found ways to collaborate on various side projects. Cheuk was very interested in machine learning, while Dutta was focused on infrastructure. They often discussed the idea that the environment of large tech companies might not be the best for them, as they wanted more freedom to make decisions and act quickly. They both realized that a startup environment might suit them better.

When Joe moved to Seattle, he continued to visit Dutta, and they stayed in touch. Their exposure to the advertising and marketing ecosystem through their previous roles reinforced their conviction. Last year was a turning point, as that was when the timing aligned, and they saw their opportunity to use AI to help businesses make marketing decisions faster.

The Timing Was Finally Right, and AI Made Their Ideas Possible

Early 2024 marked a paradigm shift with what Cheuk and Dutta saw these AI models could do. They also began interviewing marketing specialists, and those interviews made them realize: the technology is now here, opportunities exist, and the funding cycle in Silicon Valley has always been there, but now it's much faster.

They both also obtained their green cards, which provided the migratory stability they needed. All these factors combined made them feel that, okay, it was time to do it. Dutta's last day at Google was bittersweet, and he remains friends with some of his former colleagues. They often miss the large tech companies, but they know that to achieve great things, one must sometimes be uncomfortable, and they understand the risks they are taking.