Story — Dr. Tali Režun

The story in brief

I started my first company at 18 and have been building companies for thirty years. The ventures ran in parallel, not one after another, and each began with a bet on a technology before it was obvious.

Since 2024 I build production software with AI coding agents, without being a developer by training, and I teach leaders and developers to do the same.

See the five bets Work with me

Dr. Tali Režun explaining an MCP server architecture on stage — tr_MCP server architecture, on stage

Five bets and the ventures they led to

Bet = the technology wagerVenture = a company or role it led toMilestone

The five betsTechnology wagers

Media, brand and digital

Tourism

People (HR)

Investment

Web3

Academia

Teaching

Bet = the technology wagerVenture = a company or role it led toMilestone

1997–2005 · Sound and search

2006–2015 · Content, people, a doctorate

2016–2023 · On-chain

2024–now · Agents

The bet · 2024

AI and the Centaur model

Bet 5 of 5

My current bet: experts in their domain, augmented by AI, become superhuman. The human brings judgement and taste, the agents bring speed.

Led to

The interactive multitrack needs JavaScript. The five bets, then every milestone in order:

Bet · Digital production1997I bet on digital technology when it was unprecedented in professional audio recording. A session could be saved, reopened and edited with precision.
Bet · Search, before it was a channel2003I bet on Google and search engine optimisation. Tourism was the business, but the guests came from our websites, which ranked first on Google for everything that mattered.
Bet · Content that adds value2006I bet on high-quality, value-adding content. A company that invests in content its readers value earns trust, and people buy where the trust is.
Bet · Frontier technology: blockchain2016I bet on blockchain and on-chain communication: infrastructure, research and education for a decentralised web.
Bet · AI and the Centaur model2024My current bet: experts in their domain, augmented by AI, become superhuman. The human brings judgement and taste, the agents bring speed.

Produkcija97 → Hipersound Recording StudioMedia, brand and digital · 1997–1999 · Co-founderStarted as Produkcija97 and later renamed Hipersound Recording Studio: one of the first working digital recording studios in Slovenia, recording multi-track and editing precisely while the industry still worked on tape.
Hipersound RecordsMedia, brand and digital · 1999–now · Co-founderThe studio grew into a record company that made its name with the hit albums Srebrna Krila and Novi Fosili. It no longer releases new records, but still holds the rights to its catalogue.
TDS GroupTourism · 2003–2012 · Co-founder and co-ownerTourism was the business; our own websites, which I optimised to rank first on Google, brought most of the guests.
Hiša na kolesihTourism · 2004–2011 · Co-founderCampers as a branded, organised operation, before Booking.com. The name became the everyday word for a camper in Slovenia and Croatia.
Online GuerrillaMedia, brand and digital · 2006–now · FounderWebsites, applications, TV and radio commercials and video content: the studio years continued, built around brand awareness online.
OTCM plc · PlaceSpotter.comMedia, brand and digital · 2009–2010 · Co-founderA social network where members got to know each other, wrote about the regions they live in and invited others to visit. A valuable lesson in building a platform.
Executive MBAAcademia · 2010–2012 · COTRUGLI Business SchoolExecutive MBA at COTRUGLI Business School.
Naton HRPeople (HR) · 2011–2019 · Executive Manager 2011–2016 · Supervisory Board 2016–2019An HR agency for executive search, recruitment and temporary employment. From 2012 we expanded out of Slovenia to serve South-East Europe. At the end of 2015 Work Service bought the majority share, followed by my phased exit over the next four years.
Lighthouse GroupInvestment · 2013–now · Founder · Skupina Svetilnik d.o.o.The holding company behind the ventures and investments that followed.
HR GlobalPeople (HR) · 2014–2019 · Co-owner and board memberThe holding company of the HR business: five companies in five countries.
Doctorate (DBA)Academia · 2014–2018 · Doctor of Business AdministrationDefended in Paris on my 40th birthday, under Prof. Dr. Joseph C. Santora, on content-driven online brand equity.
4thTechWeb3 · 2017–now · Co-founderOn-chain communication infrastructure, and the ecosystem AgentLink now grows out of.
Vault HotelTourism · 2018–now · InvestorA boutique hotel in Ljubljana, the Slovenian capital.
Beyond 4.0 AwardAcademia · 2018 · Adriatic CouncilRecognition from the Adriatic Council.
UN/CEFACT expert, UNECEWeb3 · 2020 · Expert, CHAIN projectExpert status at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
Block LabsWeb3 · 2020–now · Block Labs s.a.r.l. · LuxembourgAI and Web3 research and development company.
Blockchain RecordedWeb3 · 2021–now · Co-founder · podcastA Web3 education podcast, founded in early 2021. Nine seasons and more than 90 episodes.
PollinationXWeb3 · 2022–now · Co-founderDecentralised storage infrastructure and service layer.
Vice Dean of Frontier TechnologiesTeaching · 2023–now · COTRUGLI Business SchoolLeading frontier technology in the curriculum, and the AI innovation work of the school.
Tolar HashNETWeb3 · 2023–now · Researcher · part-timeResearch on a decentralised identity (dID) project, focused on blockchain implementation models for dID.
ProfessorTeaching · 2024–now · COTRUGLI Business SchoolTeaching on the Vanguard MBA.
Lumina and Moj AIAI · 2025–now · FounderThe first AI products built end to end with coding agents.
Chasing Jarvis and SIQTeaching · 2025–now · Program leadHands-on programs where leaders and developers build with AI agents themselves.
The Curator, ØØT and AgentLinkAI · 2026–now · BuilderOpen-source infrastructure for working with agents.

Education and recognition

Dr. Tali Režun speaking at the Adriatic Council — tr_Adriatic Council · Beyond 4.0 Award, 2018

2012Executive MBA, COTRUGLI Business School

2018Doctor of Business Administration, defended in Paris on my 40th birthday, under Prof. Dr. Joseph C. Santora

2018Beyond 4.0 Award, Adriatic Council

2020UN/CEFACT expert, UNECE (CHAIN project)

2023Vice Dean of Frontier Technologies, COTRUGLI Business School

2024Professor, COTRUGLI Business School

Thanks

To my parents; to Dražen Kapusta; to Prof. Dr. Joseph C. Santora; and to Nataša.

Next steps

Work with me Read the library

Five bets.Thirty years.

The story in brief

Five bets and the ventures they led to

AI and the Centaur model

Education and recognition

Next steps

Five bets.
Thirty years.