Stefanos Loukakos, Connectly.ai: From Google & Facebook to Powering IKEA & Santander with AI Agents

In the second episode of Outliers Season 7, we host Stefanos Loukakos, Co-founder and CEO of Connectly.ai—a leader driven by incredible dynamism and a rare, contagious positivity!

Stefanos walks us through his impressive journey, starting from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) all the way to top American institutions like Berkeley and Stanford. What stands out most is his uplifting outlook on life: whether studying, working in hubs like New York and Paris, or moving his family to Dublin for Facebook, he recalls every chapter with genuine warmth, emphasizing that he had a fantastic time everywhere and kept only the fondest memories.

He brought that same unwavering optimism to every professional challenge—from his tenure as General Manager of Google Greece to the inception of Connectly.ai. The startup initially raised $3.5 million in seed funding in just a few hours and has now scaled to a total of $40 million in investments! Despite facing numerous rejections along the way, his persistence paid off. Today, with projected revenues reaching $18 million this year and backing from tech giants like Alibaba, he is positioning Connectly.ai at the forefront of AI by creating autonomous digital assistants for major enterprises globally.

Now permanently based back in Greece, Stefanos wraps up the discussion by sharing his vision for the future. He offers a sharp analysis of:

• The European ecosystem: Highlighting the hurdles posed by market fragmentation.

• The Greek startup scene: Emphasizing the need for major local success stories to serve as "schools" for domestic talent.

He leaves us with a memorable takeaway: success demands daily consistency—much like sticking to a challenging diet—and 80% of it is simply showing up and claiming your opportunities.