#36 He Wrote a Book at 13… Now He’s Building a $1B AI Startup | Andrew Hsu’s Story #speak
Description
What happens when a child prodigy grows up?
Speak is an AI-powered language learning app that helps people build real speaking confidence through interactive voice practice and instant feedback.
Andrew Hsu (徐安廬), co-founder of Speak, has lived a life that reads like a movie script.
In this episode, the hosts (Jonathan & Tim) revisit Andrew’s own book, written as a teenager, to uncover the experiences that shaped his vision long before Speak existed. From being homeschooled in Seattle to publishing children’s books for global education at just 10 years old, Andrew’s early years reveal surprising connections to the company he leads today.
We talk about:
✨ Skipping grades, homeschooling, and what happens when curiosity outpaces the system. Steve Jobs also made a cameo.
🏊 Training like a top athlete and breaking records like a champ.
📚 Founding a global children’s education nonprofit with his brothers.
🚀 The leap from Stanford PhD Program to Inaugural Thiel Fellowship to a serial entrepreneur.
Andrew’s story isn’t just about milestones.
It’s about resilience, vision, and staying true to a mission for over two decades.
🔗 If you missed our full interview with Andrew, go check it EP #34.
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