AWS Podcasts – Aerobatic, Aire, Prairie Cloud, and Osper

After some experimentation, I am now somewhat proficient at recording podcasts remotely! In fact, three of the four podcasts below were recorded over Skype with the aid of Zencastr.

This time around, I spoke with representatives of Aerobatic, Aire, Prairie Cloud, and Osper. As usual, the “Episode” links go directly to the audio files.

Episode 123
For Episode 123, I spoke with David Von Lehman and Jason Gowans, cofounders of Seattle-based startup Aerobatic. Aerobatic is a static-hosting platform for Bitbucket that delivers easy git push deployment for static HTML websites. David and Jason share their best practices for using S3, Lambda, Activate, and other AWS services to run their company successfully. Finally, we chat about their expansion plans for the future and how they plan to scale in the years to come. The guys participated in the AWS Activate Startup Pitch Event and Networking Mixer in Seattle earlier this month – don’t miss their promo code at the end of the podcast for a free first month of usage!

Episode 124
For Episode 124, I interviewed Tim Kimball, the VP of Engineering at UK startup Aire. Aire’s mission is to bring more people into the financial system who would otherwise have a difficult time entering. Aire lowers the barrier to entry to financial services by enhancing credit scores and ensuring accuracy in credit modeling, thus helping to solve the financial inclusion problem. Tim talks about how he and his team got into the space, their experience with the FinTech accelerator, and how they hope to make significant change in the financial industry. After talking a bit about the business of being a financial services startup, we chat about the technical systems and processes that make Aire secure and successful.

Episode 125
For Episode 125, I interviewed Doug Parr, CRO of innovative payment startup company Prairie Cloudware. Prairie Cloudware enables banks and credit unions to utilize digital payments (i.e., mobile wallets), rather than rely on third-party partners like Apple Pay or Samsung Pay. Prairie Cloudware is designed to provide financial institutions with the ability to deliver secure customer-controlled digital payment services to customers. Doug and I talk about the appeal of mobile-driven services, entering the startup market, and how his team got started in the payment industry. We also discuss how AWS can deliver a more secure service to ensure customer satisfaction, and the various features that allow Prairie Cloudware to deliver on its security promise.

Episode 126
For Episode 126, I spoke with Nico Esteves, VP of Engineering of mobile banking startup Osper. Osper is mobile banking built just for families, with tools for young people to learn how to manage their finances. Parents can set up allowances for their kids, control online spending, and get notifications for failed transactions or insufficient funds. Children can check their balance, learn how to save responsibility, and transfer money to family and friends. Nico shares his insights on the future of mobile banking, how he got into the space, and the security services that allow Osper to grow and succeed.

Special Thanks
Once again, thanks are due to my awesome colleagues on the AWS Podcast team. These episodes were brought to you by:

• Melissa Higa – Program Management.
• Sarah Silverstein – Editing, content management, and show notes.
• Ashwin Rodrigues – Editing, Content management, and show notes.

— Jeff;