In this episode of Empowered by AI, host Michelle Muncy-Silva talks with Noemi Reyes — founder of Magister and creator of the “courage first, then AI” framework — about building an AI-powered business as a woman entrepreneur while holding down a full-time government IT job.
Noemi shares the unconventional routine that keeps her grounded in a fast-moving AI landscape: isolation first, then community. Rather than chasing every new model release, she unsubscribed from feeds and alerts, quieted the noise, and only then found her people in communities like the AI Salon and She Leads AI.
The conversation covers real ground for any woman building with AI without a tech background: how Noemi used Perplexity to solve her fear of pricing her product, what her unlikely path from pre-med to business school to government databases taught her about structuring a product, and why she believes “this idea that we’re falling behind” is the actual source of AI overwhelm — not a personal failing.
Her advice for the woman convinced her idea has already been done? Build anyway.
Timestamps 00:35 — Meet Noemi Reyes, founder of Magister 01:23 — Noemi’s background and the “courage first, then AI” framework 02:04 — Her nine-to-five reality in government IT 03:13 — What her corporate/database background gave her as a founder 04:14 — The real surprise of building Magister with purpose 06:07 — The fear she avoided: pricing and monetization 07:45 — Partnering with Perplexity to solve pricing paralysis 10:50 — Overthinking vs. the level playing field 12:40 — Her stabilizing practice: isolation first, then community 19:59 — Her advice to hesitant founders — “Build anyway” 21:13 — What’s next for Magister: revenue attribution 22:47 — Where to find and connect with Noemi
Connect with Noemi Reyes
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noemireyesbscmsm/
Connect with Michelle
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-muncy-silva-70388914a/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EmpoweredbyAISLAI