Building AI Infrastructure and Boston's Startup Advantage with Jack O'Brien

Everyone is talking about AI applications. Fewer people are talking about the infrastructure making the next generation of AI possible.

On this episode of Cents Check, Startup Boston's podcast, host Shriya Jonnalagadda sat down with Jack O'Brien, founder and CEO of Subconscious, to discuss why agentic AI requires an entirely different approach to infrastructure, what makes infrastructure more defensible than applications, and why Boston remains one of the best places in the world to build deep tech startups.

AI Agents Need Different Infrastructure

While chatbots answer individual prompts, AI agents are designed to complete complex, multi-step tasks over extended periods of time. That creates an entirely different technical challenge.

Jack explains that agentic workloads accumulate enormous amounts of context - sometimes the equivalent of multiple books worth of information - which makes them significantly more computationally expensive than traditional chatbot interactions. Rather than simply building another AI application, Subconscious focuses on making these workloads faster, more efficient, and more scalable through specialized inference infrastructure.

Why the Infrastructure Layer Matters

As AI tools become increasingly accessible, Jack believes competitive advantages are becoming harder to build at the application layer.

Instead, he argues that long-term defensibility comes from solving foundational infrastructure problems. By improving how AI models process, compress, and retain context, infrastructure companies can create technology that benefits every application built on top of it - not just a single use case.

Boston Doesn't Need to Be Silicon Valley

The conversation also explores a question many founders ask: Can you build a world-class AI company in Boston?

Jack's answer is an emphatic yes.

While Silicon Valley offers unmatched startup density and access to capital, Boston brings something different to the table: exceptional technical talent, world-renowned research institutions, and founders who are willing to tackle difficult, highly technical problems. Rather than trying to replicate Silicon Valley, Jack believes Boston's strength lies in leaning into what already makes the region unique.

Advice for Founders Building the Next Big Thing

Beyond AI infrastructure, Jack shared practical advice for founders navigating their own entrepreneurial journeys.

One of his biggest lessons is that founders shouldn't expect to learn their core expertise while building a company. Whether it's engineering, product, or another discipline, your foundational skill should already be a strength before taking the leap into entrepreneurship.

He also encourages founders to be brutally honest about whether they're solving a truly meaningful problem. Conviction matters, but so does recognizing when an idea isn't differentiated enough to succeed.

Listen to the Full Conversation

From the future of agentic AI infrastructure to Boston's growing startup ecosystem and candid founder advice, this episode offers valuable insights for technical founders, operators, and anyone interested in where AI is heading next.

🎙️ Listen to the full Cents Check episode with Jack O'Brien to hear the complete conversation and learn why the future of AI may be built below the application layer.