Dharmesh Shah

Founder and CTO at HubSpot. Helping millions grow better.

Career startup guy.

Author of the book &quot;Inbound Marketing&quot; (http://InboundBook.com)

Specialties: Entrepreneurship, Software Development, internet marketing,SEO

Founder and CTO

Founder of HubSpot, a venture-backed software startup.  HubSpot offers the industry's first inbound marketing system for small businesses.  The software is available as a hosted service (SaaS).

Here's a quick tip on how to build an effective presence on LinkedIn.

Too many people on LinkedIn are "performing" for their current (and future) followers.

Instead of self-centered performing, focus on generous *sharing*.

We all have something to share that will be helpful/useful to others. Things we are experts in or passionate about. What's often even better is sharing mistakes we've made and lessons we've learned. 

Share, don't perform and you'll pull people in.

* I fall into this "performing vs. sharing" mode sometimes too.  

** "effective presence" is not just about the number of followers, likes or comments. It's about having genuine impact on somebody's thinking -- even if just for a moment.

Lots of people much smarter than me have been talking about this compelling new idea called the "Context Graph". I love the idea, but am a wee bit skeptical of far away we are from it being something businesses can use.

A concept is making the rounds in AI circles right now that has many people very excited: context graphs. Foundation Capital published a piece calling

Open article: Context Graphs: Capturing The "Why" In The Age of AI by Dharmesh Shah • 4 min read

Context Graphs: Capturing The "Why" In The Age of AI

I'm  a massive fan (and daily user) of agentic coding tools like Claude Code and Codex CLI.

One of the questions we'll need to ponder in 2026:

How do you make sure that the compounding value you are getting from the use of agentic coding exceeds the interest on the technical debt that AI creates along the way?

The hope is that we'll be able to use AI itself to pay off the technical debt as the models and tooling get better.

We've long known that the best people have IQ + EQ.

When it comes to AI agents and their effectiveness, there's a new element — and it's multiplicative.

Agent Success = IQ  x EQ x  CQ

IQ = How well does it reason?
EQ = How well does it collaborate?
CQ (Context Quotient) = How well does it know YOU?

And because it's multiplicative, if an agent has a zero context quotient, it has zero value. (Apologies for revisiting grade school math).

Here's a quick thought exercise:

You can choose between two agents.

Agent A: 200 IQ. Bonafide Genius. Knows nothing about you.
Agent B: 150 IQ. Brilliant. Knows your business cold.

You pick Agent B. Every time. Why?

Agent A can solve PhD math problems.
Agent B can help solve YOUR business problems.

Raw intelligence without context is just confident guessing. (Also known as "management consulting"). 😀 

AI models know a lot about the world, but you need agents that know about YOUR world.

The real game isn't How smart is your model? It's How are you increasing the agent's CQ?

Imagine if it had...
...your top rep's call recordings.
...your angriest detractor's NPS comment.
...your happiest promoter's renewal notes.
...and everything else swirling around in your company

The agents that help you win aren't the ones with the highest IQ. They'll be the ones who know you best.

This is what we're furiously working on at HubSpot, because nowhere does context matter more than in GTM and nowhere is there more unified context than the HubSpot platform.  (Disclosure: As founder/CTO, I'm biased). 

We're excited about the progress the AI companies are making on delivering smarter LLMs  (higher IQ). We need that to build great agents. Meanwhile, we're working on delivering agents with higher CQ. (And stay tuned for the EQ part -- have thoughts on that too).

Anyhoo...

Key takeaway: In the age of AI agents...

IQ gets attention.
CQ gets results.

Woo hoo! Shipping an early release of a new AI app I've been working on. (Look at me, shipping something in the middle of the day instead of 2am!)

If you're curious about premium website domains and their underlying prices and trends, I think you might enjoy playing with this app:

domainsales .ai (yes, I like simple domains).

You can  ask questions like:

 "what were the top .ai domains sold this year."  

"what was the average price for .org domains every year".

"what's the sales history for chat .com "

All feedback appreciated. Feedback is a gift.

Thanks.

-Dharmesh

NOTE: I'm using this (and other) AI apps to test out new Agent.ai platform features that allow you to use any vibe coding tool to build apps and integrate them into the marketplace. That way, you benefit from 2.5M+ users, shared context and a bunch of tools you can use in your agents.  More on al this next week.

Was recently on a podcast with Manny Medina from Paid.

Was a great conversation around business strategy, pricing and of course, AI.

I'm not used to being on podcasts (not my natural habitat), but I think it turned out pretty well. Hope you like it.

Dharmesh Shah helped write the SaaS playbook.
Now he’s explaining why parts of it are about to get ripped out.

In today’s episode of Get Paid, the HubSpot co-founder doesn’t sugarcoat it:

AI agents aren’t a feature.
They’re a platform shift.
Seats still matter. For now.
Credits are inevitable.

And most “AI strategies” are just SaaS habits in disguise.
They go deep on why reasoning models changed the game, why vibe coding won’t save you, and why pretending this is a normal upgrade cycle is how incumbents quietly die.

If you’re building AI and telling yourself “we’ll figure pricing out later,” this episode is a warning shot.

🎙 New episode is live. Link in comments.

Nice to see folks combining the flexibility of Agent.ai and its access to a rich set of AI capabilities and data with the power of HubSpot Workflows for automation.

Senior Software Engineer | HubSpot-Focused Integrations & CRM Automation

I've been having a blast combining Agent.ai workflows with HubSpot automation lately, and the results have been impressive.

Here's what I've been able to automate:

Buyer Intent Detection -> Agent.ai monitors signals across multiple channels and automatically scores leads based on engagement patterns, content consumption, and behavioral triggers. When intent spikes, HubSpot workflows kick in with personalized outreach.

Company Intelligence Gathering -> No more manual research. The system automatically enriches company records with technographics, funding data, org structure, and relevant news. Everything flows directly into HubSpot properties, keeping our CRM current without lifting a finger.

Lead Qualification & Routing -> AI agents assess fit based on ICP criteria, then route qualified leads to the right team members with full context. Sales reps get notifications with a complete brief, not just a name and email.

Follow-up Orchestration -> Based on engagement signals, the system determines optimal timing and messaging for follow-ups. It's like having a sales ops team working 24/7.

The real power is in the combination: Agent.ai handles the intelligence gathering and decision making, while HubSpot executes the workflows and maintains the source of truth.

For teams drowning in manual research and qualification work, this stack has been a game changer.

Huge thanks to Dharmesh Shah for making this technology accessible and for his visionary presentation on AI at INBOUND this year. The future he outlined is already here, and it's incredibly exciting to build with these tools.

Want to automate your workflows with AI? Whether you're looking to streamline sales processes, enhance lead management, or build custom integrations, I'd love to help. Drop me a DM or comment below with what you're trying to solve.

#AIAutomation #HubSpot #SalesAutomation #AgentAI #CRMIntegration #MarketingAutomation #SalesOps #AIAgents #WorkflowAutomation #B2BSales #RevOps #SalesTech #AITools #BusinessAutomation #LeadGeneration #INBOUND2025

APIANT

The iPaaS for SaaS, Enterprises, and System Integrators to build, deploy and support integration products.

Co-Founder & CEO

Lumiere Media, Inc.

Lumiere Media, Inc. is an award-winning independent production company based just outside Philadelphia, PA. Founded by French-Born, Emmy-nominated filmmaker Frederic Lumiere, Lumiere Media aims to illuminate the world with powerful stories that celebrate the triumph of the human spirit. Since its formation in 2001, Lumiere Media has developed and created compelling, immersive, and engaging programming for various television networks and theatrical releases around the world including Cinemax (Tomorrow is Today), National Geographic Channel (The Wereth Eleven), Discovery AHC (Raw War), TF1 (Sacrifice) and Someone You Love: The HPV Epidemic. Apart from heading the full-service production company, founder Frederic Lumiere has also collaborated on projects for History Channel (WWII in HD, 70's Fever - Producer/Director/Editor), and A&E Bio (Biography anthology - DP/Post Supervisor). Specializing in archive and reenactments, Lumiere Media produced an innovative nine screen installation comprised entirely of HD archival footage gathered from around the world, that wraps the entire theater of the Arromanches Museum in Normandy, immersing viewers in a full 360-degree, one-of-a-kind experience. 

Frederic also conceived of the industry disruptive RED DIGITAL CINEMA CAMERA with Jim Jannard (founder of Oakley sunglasses).

Chairman

The Global Film Fund

The Global Film Fund Inc. is a non-profit corporation established in 2015 with the purpose of education and promotion of the arts. More specifically, GFF supports the distribution of films that educate the public and raise awareness about important health, cultural, historic and social issues. GFF’s mission is to benefit mankind by having a positive and measurable impact around the world through these films and other communication vehicles.

GFF pursues this mission primarily by helping educational documentary films reach the public through activities including: (1) showing the films in educational venues such as schools, government health departments, medical forums, and as part of special events; (2) translating the films into a variety of foreign languages; and (3) providing funds for the development, production and distribution of films consistent with GFF’s educational and social mission.

Executive Board Member

Lumiere HD

Necessity is the mother of all invention. Lumiere HD was formed with the desire to help make high definition production accessible to independent filmmakers of all budgets, their first self-titled product offering, launched at NAB 2004, allows users to edit HDV in Final Cut Pro. Its introduction filled a conspicuous hole in the market and paved the way for increased adoption of the HDV format by Mac users.

Partners are Apple, Inc., Sony and JVC

President

Hooked on Phonics

Chief Web & Technical Officer

IT Project Manager

This was written by LinkedIn AI. Pretty cool:

Versatile Film Professional with extensive production experience on feature, digital and broadcast Editing series. Accomplished writer, producer and editor who thrives in a fast paced environment. Experience producing content across multiple platforms, from initial concept to final delivery of finished product. Skilled at managing staff and collaborating across teams. Ability to lead high-pressure projects and to deliver innovative solutions.

I would just say: Autodidact passionate about film, technology and the betterment of mankind.

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Dharmesh Shah

Frederic Lumiere

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The Battle

Dharmesh Shah

Frederic Lumiere

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Engagements

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Dharmesh Shah's LinkedIn Performance

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