Avoca
AI-powered communications platform for SMBs
We’re equipping every SMB with our intelligent 24/7 customer communications platform so business owners can get back to focusing on their core business. We handle both inbound interest in the form of calls, texts, and emails as well as outbound communications in the form of booking reminders, review requests, and future follow-ups.
Jobs at Avoca
Active Founders
Apurva Shrivastava
Apurva is a 2nd time founder who studied CS at MIT and has worked on AI products at Apple, Sunshine, and was most recently at Retool where I did engineering. Growing up in Michigan, he helped his parents handle tiresome communications while establishing their own small business.
Tyson Chen
Cofounder of Avoca. Previously I was an early PM at Nuro for 3 years trying to make self-driving goods delivery a reality. Before that, I worked as a consultant at BCG in NY for 2 years, helping bring AI to multiple F500 companies. I studied CS at MIT where I focused on ML research, specifically using generative AI for drug discovery. As a kid, I helped manage communications for my mom's acupuncturist business in Pennsylvania.
Company Launches
TLDR;
SMBs lack the tools, people, and time to effectively capture customer intent, convert customer interest, and build customer loyalty. That’s where we come in. Avoca handles all customer inbound interest as well as outbound communications.
We’re two good friends from college that love building AI-first products:
Apurva is a 2nd time founder who studied CS at MIT and has worked on AI products at Apple and Sunshine. He most recently was an engineer at Retool where he worked with some of their largest customers. Growing up in Michigan, he helped his parents handle communications with their own small business.
Tyson studied CS at MIT where he worked on generative AI for drug discovery. Since then he’s worked on AI projects for F500 companies at BCG and as a PM at Nuro. He’s seen the problem first hand at home with his mom’s local acupuncture business.
❌ The Problem
SMBs lack the resources to properly manage their customer communications.
- They miss over half their phone calls
- 85% of the time when a call is missed, the customers don’t leave voicemails or call back; they often choose a competitor
- They have delayed responses to texts / emails
- They lack organized ways to activate customer loyalty and create repeat business
Existing alternatives are either expensive or inefficient.
- Receptionists (both virtual & non-virtual) are costly, not 24/7, require days of onboarding time, and have high variance in terms of performance
- Call centers are costly (few dollars / minute), inconsistent, don’t integrate with business systems (e.g., CRMs), and can only handle calls
- Existing tech solutions are expensive and limited
✨ Our Solution
Avoca automates all inbound and outbound needs for every SMB.
Inbound
- 24/7 phone assistance so no calls are missed again - answer questions, book appointments, collect information
- Personalized text and email handling - ensure existing and potential customers get fast responses
Outbound
- Booking confirmations to minimize cancellations / no-shows
- Review sequences that boost a business’s Google and Yelp reviews after job completion
- Follow-ups & promotions to previous customers to build loyalty
🙏 Asks
- 📣 Sharing: Please share this announcement with your network and follow us on LinkedIn!
- 👥 Referrals: If you know of anyone who owns a local business and could benefit from Avoca, please connect us (founders@avoca.ai). Especially if they are in one of the following verticals: home services, property management, real estate, family medical practice (e.g., dentist, massage therapist), law.