Devan Leos always felt different. A Santa Clarita native, Leos saw mild stardom by age 10, appearing in The Middle, iCarly, and the Disney show Jessie.
By age 13, Leos found himself starring in the lead role in Disney XD’s Mighty Med. But by 18, life took a turn, and he found himself working long hours in the sun doing manual labor jobs.
Devan explains that working in day labor wasn’t easy: “I worked on construction sites doing drywalling, painting, and a lot of ladder climbing.”
He often smelled like chemicals, and his hair was stained white from residual paint. “I wasn’t built for that kind of work,” says Leos. “I wanted to do something I was actually good at that wouldn’t kill me as fast.”
Devan got serious about entrepreneurship in 2019, “I began watching Gary Vee a lot and started a couple of online businesses. One was a retail arbitrage reselling model; the other was a TikTok marketing agency.”
Initially, Devan only found small successes, but in 2021, he launched a PR agency and started racking up clients. “I read a lot of books, did a ton of market research, and probably the biggest thing was just trial and error—figuring out what worked and what didn’t.”
In 2023, Leos paused most of his agency operations to launch an AI software startup called Undetectable AI. The software can detect AI-generated text and then rewrite it to make it indistinguishable from human-written text. Leos was researching the process online and contacted another person who was doing the same thing, and the two went into business together.
“I met my co-founder Christian Perry on the internet, we hit it off, and we put in crazy hours to grow the company. I’m super thankful for him, and to this day, I feel like we’re constantly pushing each other to work harder.”
According to exploadingtopics.com, 90% of startups fail as of 2024. Devan and his co-founders were in the 10% that didn’t. In the first month, Undetectable AI had nearly twenty thousand users; by month twelve, it reportedly had over four million.
“The key to launching a startup successfully is a stubborn work ethic, never being satisfied or comfortable with current successes, and using data to drive growth.”
Leos says social media platforms like Reddit and TikTok allowed them to identify user needs, connect with people to learn about their problems and design their products around what people wanted and needed.
According to Devan, “Knowing your target market is key. More people are using social media than ever before, but it’s especially popular with Gen Z. Social platforms are great for learning about potential market opportunities and interests, which means they’re also a great place to get exposure for your brand.”
Regarding data, Leos says startup founders looking to launch successfully should have a “can’t get enough of it mindset.”
“There’s data everywhere. There will be trial and error, but the more data you have to base your decisions, the fewer errors you’ll likely make.”
Devan Leos advises local small businesses looking to sustain themselves and grow: “When thinking about your key audiences, remember that there’s more than just one. You have current customers, potential customers, current staff, and future hires. Always remember that these people have different communication needs, and breaking down the granular details and communicating them is important for your business to thrive.”
Devan’s last admission is this: “Starting and growing a business isn’t easy—but it’s far from impossible. Anyone with enough effort and drive can do it. Sometimes faster growth can happen with a dash of luck, but if you have a great product, a vision, and the work ethic to put behind that vision, you’ll find success.”
DISCLAIMER: No part of this article was written by The Signal editorial staff
