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Waitr founder Chris Meaux and Business Report founder and columnist Rolfe McCollister have officially launched the Solomon platform, the flagship product of their new tech venture QiMana.
The duo celebrated the platform’s public rollout with a launch event at the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry’s office in downtown Baton Rouge on Tuesday.
Solomon first entered beta in late February, though that was an invite-only beta. Meaux tells Daily Report that the platform is now in “public general beta,” meaning the product is stable, secure and open to all users, though the occasional bug may still pop up.
For those unfamiliar, Solomon combines AI technology with human mentorship to offer entrepreneurs access to personalized guidance from experienced business leaders. It’s essentially an AI-driven business accelerator.
Unlike traditional AI chatbots or large language models, Solomon integrates the expertise of seasoned business leaders, referred to as “luminaries.” Luminaries contribute their knowledge to Solomon by feeding the platform their expertise in various formats—direct dictation, videos, written content and the like. A personalized AI “brain” is then built within Solomon for each luminary.
Meaux says that while AI tools like ChatGPT often provide generic, paint-by-number responses, Solomon delivers personalized insights based on the real-world experiences of its luminaries. For example, if a user asks how to turn a startup idea into a successful business, Solomon won’t just provide a simple checklist. Instead, it might offer anecdotes and actionable guidance from a successful entrepreneur who has gone through the same process in the same industry.
Read more about the platform here.
According to Meaux, more than 20 luminaries have committed to the platform as of this week. Around 10 to 12 are already live, with the remainder expected to be verified and fully launched soon.
Meaux says the goal for the first six months after launch is to reach 100-plus users and about 50 verified luminaries. QiMana is working with Louisiana Economic Development to develop a plan to bring the platform to rural businesses across the state, offering them access to coaching and connections that otherwise might be out of reach. And while Louisiana is the initial focus, users from anywhere can sign up and start interacting with luminaries.
Meaux serves as QiMana’s CEO, while McCollister is a board member and investor.
