The 3 big lessons from Phia by Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni

Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni, both 23, are turning heads with Phia, their AI fashion app that’s attracting investor interest and trendsetters.

Phia, an AI-powered sales assistant, launched in April and said it has since amassed more than 600,000 users. The free app and browser extension compares prices of fashion items across around 40,000 linked sites to help users find deals. This is the couple’s first business and is making waves with investors.

Gates and Kianni raised $8 million in seed funding in September. The round was led by venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins and included investors like Kris Jenner, Hailey Bieber and Michael Rubin.

Gates is the youngest daughter of billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates and philanthropist Melinda French Gates. Although her parents probably taught her a thing or two about running a business, Phia’s early success seems to be entirely her and Kianni’s doing. They didn’t turn to Gates’ parents to support the startup.

Instead, they presented investors with an app that they developed and tested. As giants like Amazon and OpenAI build AI-powered shopping assistants, Gates and Kianni have presented themselves as shopping-obsessed Gen Zers, perfect for launching an app like Phia.

“We are the two girls from college who are obsessed with shopping,” » Gates said. “We are the ones using this product.”

Gates and Kianni met as roommates at Stanford University, where they came up with the idea for Phia. Gates floated the idea of ​​dropping out of college to start Phia — like his father did with Microsoft — but his parents said no. Instead, Gates completed his degree remotely in 2024 before working on the app full-time.

Since then, Gates and Kianni said they’ve learned some leadership lessons that are helping them chart their own paths as co-founders. Here’s what they’ve learned so far as young entrepreneurs.

It’s OK to get fired

When they started Phia, Gates said they thought they should always do everything themselves. As she began building a team, which now has 13 employees, she learned that it’s okay to admit you’re not the right person for a job.

For example, Gates, who studied human biology, and Kianni, who studied science and technology, handled the startup’s accounting and taxes in its early days.

“At some point you have to let go of some things and have faith in your team,” Gates said.

Gates said some of the best business advice she’s received is that it all comes down to the team you build.

As co-founders, Gates and Kianni learned to divide and conquer based on each person’s strengths and passions. While Gates and Kianni studied science, Kianni has moved more into marketing, and Gates handles all the financial side of the business.

AI can supercharge your workflow

As the founder of an AI-powered app, Gates said Phia is also trying to use artificial intelligence as a tool to “supercharge” its workflow. Most companies these days are trying to get their employees to use AI in one way or another.

Gates said she and her team at Phia use AI to help write perfect emails, flavor code and pitches for co-founders. She likes that AI can “poke holes” in human logic to improve their work, Gates said.

In a June episode of Gates and Kianni’s podcast “The Burnouts” Kianni said they used ChatGPT to break down common characteristics of viral videos and use them to recreate them in their own content.

AI is “How are we going to succeed as a startup,” she told Business Insider.

Let the little fires burn

It may seem counterintuitive to let your business’ problems persist, but you can’t always worry about the little things, Kianni said.

In a time full of distractions, Kianni truly adheres to the advice of staying focused on the bigger picture, especially when it comes to leading others.

“The best skill you can really learn is being able to prioritize effectively,” Kianni said. “Just because there’s a small fire doesn’t mean it’s the most important thing you need to spend your time and energy on.”

Prioritizing work is a big part of his daily routine, as is drinking a Celsius energy drink in the morning. Kianni describes himself as a night owl, while Gates starts his mornings by reading customer reviews.

“I’m much more effective when I focus on one thing that’s a big problem and solve it in a day, rather than trying to fight microfires all at once,” Kianni said.