Client Stories: Co-Founder and CEO of Trieve AI Nick Khami

Can you introduce yourself and tell us a bit about what you do? 

My name is Nick, I am the co-founder and CEO of a venture backed Y-Combinator startup named Trieve. We provide a widget an API that content and e-commerce sites use to add ChatGPT style search functionality.

What motivated you to get a new headshot?  How old was your previous headshot?

We are going up for our Series A and I wanted everyone on the team to have cohesive headshots. None of us had taken professional ones before and it seemed due time.

How did you feel about your old headshot, and what were you looking for in your new one? 

We all were using AI generated headshots from some candid photos we had. They were all right, but disjointed and definitely somewhat unprofessional. We always felt a bit embarrassed when people some them.

In what ways do you think your new headshot has impacted your business, visibility or job search? 

It has been great for sales! We use it as our LinkedIn and email headshot icon and responsive rates have been up by over 20%. I'm not sure how much of that is directly due to the headshots, but it's certainly part of it. Also, we use it for our Github accounts and I think it makes people associate us more with "humans" when they look at our company profile.

Have you received any feedback or comments on your new headshot?

I updated my X and bsky accounts and had some friends reach out and say it looks great. Nothing else major.

How important do you think a professional headshot is for someone in your field? 

I would say medium importance. It's great to have, but not a must.

What advice would you give to someone considering getting a new headshot? 

Book with someone that has experience!

Were you nervous or uncomfortable with the idea of having your photos taken and if so how was the experience in the end? 

No, I was comfortable. The experience was great. Our photos were taken one at a time which was nice for comfort. It felt focused and private. Group photo was also handled well with an efficient process on posing.

How did you prepare for your headshot session, and do you have any tips for others on how to get ready for theirs?

I bought a new shirt and got a haircut and shave. I would advice others to do the same.

How was your experience working with S72 for your headshot session?

Great! Directions on finding the building, how long it would take, and what the process would be like was made abundantly clear ahead of time and proved accurate.