DataLever builds custom AI for new owners — capturing the previous owner's knowledge, automating the back-office, and getting the operation running so you can do the actual job of an acquirer: growing the business you just paid for.
Built by a founder who acquired a business too. I know exactly what you're carrying right now.
The whole reason you acquired this business was to grow it — not to spend a year learning every quirk in the previous owner's head. DataLever exists so you can step into the CEO chair on day one, with the operation running underneath you, while you focus on the hundred things only an owner can do: growth, banking, hiring, vision.
"I bought a small business thinking I'd scored a great deal. What I actually bought was a hard education in everything an owner has to carry. Every vendor I tried to hire to help made it worse — generic SaaS that didn't fit, consultants who didn't understand my business. I built DataLever because owners deserve a better partner."
I started in analytics — building predictive models at American Airlines before "AI" was the marketing term it is today. Then I led large-scale operations at Amazon, where I learned what it really takes to run a business at scale.
Later I bought a small business, where there was no huge enterprise behind me. Everything fell onto my plate, and everything was manual.
I worked tirelessly to build automations and systems so I could free up some of my time to focus on all of the other fires burning in the business.
Everything was on paper, so I was starting from scratch. I tried hiring vendors. Disappointing does not begin to describe how poorly most vendors treat small business owners. Promises that lacked delivery, or required huge process and cultural changes.
Fortunately for me I had spent my previous career building and refining data for decisioning, so I rolled up my sleeves and got to work. As I did this I realized that I was probably not the only owner in the world who had this problem — but I was one of few who could solve it.
First, I want to hear about what your biggest headache or time suck is. That's where we want to start. It's probably solved by one of the products below — but if it's not, let's have a chat. There's a good chance we can build a new solution for you.
Capture every bit of the previous owner's institutional knowledge into a private AI you can query forever. Customer quirks, vendor relationships, pricing logic, hard-won lessons — preserved, searchable, and yours.
The previous owner's bidding methodology — even if it was tribal — captured and turned into a tool. Get accurate quotes out the door fast, without learning everything from scratch.
Replace SaaS the previous owner was forced into. Build small focused tools around how the business actually runs — no subscriptions, no vendor lock-in, no surprise renewals you have to navigate.
Stop losing leads while you're trying to onboard yourself. AI answers customer questions in your business voice, schedules appointments, and texts you a summary by morning.
Walk in on day one knowing the inventory will keep itself stocked. Model consumption, supplier lead times, seasonal patterns — POs trigger automatically against the smart minimum.
Inherit a stack of unpaid invoices? AI handles polite reminders that escalate appropriately. Get the receivables under control without becoming the bad guy in your first month.
If the previous owner ran routes in their head, you don't have to learn it. We model how the business actually flows and build a routing engine around those rules — automated from day one.
Inherit a stack of customer files? We pull it all into a searchable AI brain. When a customer calls, you instantly know every job done, every conversation, every preference — like you've been there for 20 years.
Don't become the help desk while you're trying to run the business. Train a bot on the previous owner's equipment library and senior tech notes. Junior staff ask it. They learn. You're free to operate.
Did the previous owner know they were underpricing? Probably. Our models analyze historical jobs and demand to recommend the prices that maximize total profit — not just margin per job.
The list above is just a starting point. Bring us whatever's pulling you out of the CEO chair and back into the operator chair — we'll build the AI that handles it.
Every engagement includes working sessions at the cadence that fits your transition. You test, you steer, we adjust. Especially valuable when you're still learning the business.
As an owner who bought a small business, I was underwhelmed by every vendor I tried to hire. Generic SaaS that didn't fit. Consultants who didn't understand operations. AI agencies selling templates. DataLever is what I wish I'd had — built on the conviction that owners deserve a real partner, not another vendor on a subscription.
Every tool we deliver is yours. The code, the data, the model. No monthly subscription. No vendor lock-in. No "you stop paying, your business stops working."
SaaS makes you change your workflow to fit their software. We do the opposite — we observe how you actually work, then build tools that snap into that. Your business stays your business.
You'll meet with us at the intervals that make sense for you and your business — weekly, biweekly, monthly, whatever fits. You'll test, push back, and steer the product. By launch, it's already shaped to you.
I was doing automation using data before AI was a buzzword — at some of the world's most recognizable companies, including American Airlines, Amazon, and the world's largest utilities. And I've run a business myself. I bring with me a team of individual contributors who have even more impressive builds under their belt. We're not prompt engineers who just discovered ChatGPT. We've shipped production systems, and we've owned the business.
No giant upfront commitments. You set a budget you're comfortable with, we bill hourly against it, and you see every hour of progress along the way. If you don't like what you're seeing, cancel any time.
A 30-minute conversation about your business, your situation, and what you actually need. We're not salesmen, we're solution builders. If we're not the right fit, we'll tell you.
No giant fixed quotes. You set a budget you're comfortable with. We bill hourly against it, you see every hour of progress, and you can cancel any time. Maximum bang for your buck.
We build alongside you. Working sessions at the cadence that fits your business — weekly, biweekly, monthly. By the time it ships, it already fits your business because you helped shape it.
We deploy, train your team, and hand you the keys. The code is yours. The data is yours. Optional ongoing support, but never required to keep things running.
If you spend 30 minutes with me to save yourself hours every week navigating your transition, that's a pretty good return on your time. Book a free discovery call. We'll talk through where you are in the transition, what's currently in the previous owner's head that needs to come out, and what AI can do to get you operational. Owner-to-owner, no sales script.