Elnaz Sarraf – Wild Business Growth Podcast #158: Smart Toy Maker, Founder of ROYBI Robot

Imagine if you grew up learning from a robot. Seriously! That’s the creation of this week’s Wild Business Growth Podcast guest, Elnaz Sarraf. Elnaz is the Founder and CEO of ROYBI Robot. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and your other favorite podcast platforms.

• Episode Summary & Player
• Show Notes
• Wild Business Growth Podcast Summary

Episode 158: Elnaz Sarraf – Smart Toy Maker, Founder of ROYBI Robot

Elnaz Sarraf, the Serial Entrepreneur and Founder of ROYBI Robot, joins the show to share her journey relocating from Iran to the US to pursue entrepreneurship and inventing the world’s first Ai-powered robot to teach children language and STEM skills. Hear how to create traction before launching your product or service, pitch major media outlets, get into every Apple Store, how ROYBI Robot thrives on artificial intelligence and machine learning, and the iconic characters ROYBI reminds people of. This episode covers everything from artificial intelligence to the cover of TIME magazine. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:

• How did Elnaz get iBaby into every Apple store
• What is ROYBI Robot
• How did Elnaz switch from baby monitors to robots for kids
• What were some of the biggest wins in the first rollout
• How do kids react when they interact with ROYBI Robot
• What types of YouTube videos inspire Elnaz
• How do you create traction and momentum before launching your product
• What was Elnaz’s reaction to seeing her product on the cover of TIME

Connect with Elnaz at ROYBIRobot.com and on LinkedIn.

Enjoy the shoooooow! Check out the show notes below for much more detail.

Show Notes

• Intro & iBaby
  • [0:30] Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool
  • [0:42] Connect with Elnaz at ROYBIRobot.com and on LinkedIn
  • [1:52] CEO (Chief Executive Officer)
  • [2:42] I’ve never been so corny
  • [2:50] What made Elnaz launch iBaby
  • [3:31] Technology (Tech)
  • [3:56] Bluetooth
  • [5:21] What were the biggest challenges making iBaby work with smartphones and iPads
  • [6:03] P2P (Peer to Peer), Cloud
  • [6:20] Apple Stores
  • [6:42] Apple, iPhones
  • [7:32] NOT
  • [7:42] How did Elnaz get iBaby into every Apple store
  • [8:11] iOS
  • [8:54] How did Elnaz connect with Apple in the first place
  • [9:02] Networking
  • [9:18] Target, Walmart
  • [9:28] Trade Shows
  • [9:54] Bazinga!
• The ROYBI Robot Story
  • [10:15] TIME Magazine
  • [10:21] How did Elnaz switch from baby monitors to robots for kids
  • [11:26] Customer
  • [11:42] Ron Cheng
  • [12:00] Artificial Intelligence (Ai), Machine Learning
  • [12:37] What is ROYBI Robot
  • [12:47] STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics)
  • [13:51] Chemistry, Biology
  • [14:11] Alexa, Google Home, Siri
  • [14:22] Silly Wabbit!
  • [14:35] Compliant Data
  • [15:00] Pig Latin
  • [15:17] How does ROYBI train and do research
  • [15:34] COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act)
  • [16:04] KidSense.Ai
  • [16:08] NLP (Natural Language Processing)
  • [16:51] How do kids react when they interact with ROYBI Robot
  • [18:22] What does a ROYBI Robot lesson look like
  • [20:25] What are some of the biggest drivers to their growth
  • [21:23] Online Sales, Advertisements (Ads), Press
  • [21:42] What were some of the biggest wins in that first rollout
  • [23:02] Forbes, VOA, BBC
  • [23:44] How do you create traction and momentum before launching your product
  • [24:24] Crowdfunding, Leads, Social Media
  • [24:53] Database
  • [25:07] How do you pitch media outlets before you launch
  • [26:22] Save time with your high-quality podcast. Email me at to bring your podcast to life and use it as a business-building tool

• Inspiration & Creativity: People, Hobbies, and Resources
  • [27:19] Gotcha!
  • [27:30] What can you do to be and stay creative
  • [28:12] Surveys, Mentors
  • [28:46] YouTube Videos
  • [29:02] How does Elnaz like to unplug
  • [29:13] What is her favorite type of music
  • [29:36] Spotify
  • [29:54] Search Engine
  • [30:03] What types of YouTube videos inspire Elnaz
  • [30:51] Finance, Fundraising
  • [31:32] Who inspires Elnaz
  • [31:46] Elon Musk, Tesla, SpaceX
  • [32:04] Steve Jobs
  • [32:44] Product Development, User Experience (UX)
• Wild Business Shoutout of the Week
  • [33:04] Creative Marketing
  • [33:19] How has Apple influenced Elnaz’s leadership style
  • [34:58] Apple-Style
  • [35:18] How do you keep your focus on continuous improvement
  • [35:59] Product
  • [36:32] Focus Groups
  • [37:54] IT (Information Technology), Product Design

• The Unusual: Pet Peeves, Quirks, and Weird Talents
  • [38:28] What is a quirk Elnaz has
  • [38:51] Extrovert, Introvert
  • [39:22] What is a weird talent Elnaz has
  • [40:17] Oh man
  • [40:31] What is Elnaz’s biggest pet peeve
• Rapid-Fire Q&A
  • [41:31] What has surprised Elnaz about moving from Iran to the US
  • [42:08] Podcast
  • [42:21] Entrepreneurship
  • [42:30] What is Elnaz’s favorite and least favorite part of living in the San Francisco Bay Area
  • [43:07] San Jose, CA
  • [43:22] “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too” Black Mirror Episode with Miley Cyrus
  • [44:42] What was Elnaz’s reaction to seeing her product on the cover of TIME
  • [46:10] WALL-E, Shrek, Minions, Monsters, Inc., Mike Wazowski
  • [46:42] Walley World
  • [46:56] Connect with Elnaz at ROYBIRobot.com and on LinkedIn
  • [47:29] What are Elnaz’s Final Thoughts
  • [47:47] “Go Go Gadget Flow” by Lupe Fiasco
  • [47:59] Follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about the podcast
  • [48:12] Check out the Wild Business Growth Podcast on GoodPods, where you can see what your favorite people are listening to
  • [48:14] Connect with me on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn at @MaxBranstetter
  • [48:16] Save time with your high-quality podcast. Email me at to bring your podcast to life and use it as a business-building tool
  • Theme music: Freestyle Percussion Magik – “Jungle Tribe” – provided by Jamendo

What is the Wild Business Growth Podcast?

Wild ideas. Wild growth. Every Wednesday morning a new entrepreneur or innovator joins the Wild Business Growth Podcast to share the crazy creative and unusual ways they grew their business, and provides tips for you to do it, too. Hear the woman who became the voice of Siri, the man who’s reinventing the sandcastle, how GaryVee’s partners are turning the wine world upside down, and more wild stories. Hosted by Max Branstetter (that’s me), Founder and Podcast Producer at MaxPodcasting.

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Interested in starting a professional-sounding podcast for your brand, but don’t want to deal with the time commitment? I’ve got you covered. Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool.

Thanks for listening to Elnaz Sarraf on the Wild Business Growth Podcast. To hear more Wild stories like this one every Wednesday morning, follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about it. Until next time, Let your business Run Wild…and Bring on the Bongos!!