The First Welcome in Silicon Valley: Tony Tom, Co-Founder, Orca AI

As part of The First Welcome in Silicon Valley series, I have been asking founder friends to share their stories of the first welcome they experienced in Silicon Valley. These are the people, the moments, and the gestures that stayed with them.

In this case, Tony Tom, Co-founder of Orca AI, shared the person who made all the difference when he first moved from India to San Francisco.

Tony is now building Orca AI, a context-aware AI platform for B2B support that unifies customer success, customer support, and product marketing into a single post-sales experience. Before Orca AI, he spent a decade in B2B, was the founding PM and 5th employee at Insent (acquired by ZoomInfo), and co-founded Refly, a smart editor for content marketers.

"For me, that person was Arjun Pillai. When I first moved to San Francisco from India, he was the one who helped me find my footing. He made critical introductions to the right founders and investors, but his welcome went far beyond that. He and his family opened their home to me, which made a huge difference for someone missing home and the food.

What truly stayed with me was seeing his genuine desire to make a difference in people's lives. It showed me that the most valuable welcome in Silicon Valley isn't just about business; it’s about human connection and building a community where everyone can thrive."

Tony’s story is a reminder that the first welcome often extends beyond professional help. Sometimes it is about being invited into someone’s home, sharing a meal, or simply being cared for in a new place. That spirit of generosity is what makes Silicon Valley more than just a hub of innovation. It makes it a community.