Santiago Gallo Restrepo is 25 years old and has a history of resilience that is unusual in the Latin American startup ecosystem. He has started since he was 17 years old. At 20 he co-founded a Proptech with sales, growth and even a $750,000 pre-seed round with funding from Silicon Valley.
However, in 2022, after a series of decisions as a manager, he had to close that startup. While the rest of the 22-year-olds are just building their careers, Gallo already had the responsibility of investors and employees in his hands, and in that same year he would face what it means to live bankrupt.
However, that left him clear about what type of businesses he wanted to build and which ones he didn’t. He learned to build with awareness, ambition, patience and discipline. This is how he was able to found Vuun with Pablo Sánchez, the largest project he has mounted so far.
Vuun: from living the problem to building the solution
Santiago Gallo and Pablo Sánchez lived selling off-plan housing in Nuhome, their previous venture. Thousands of digital leads came in, half never answered and updating the CRM was chaos. In the end, the sales team was losing up to 85% of its time on these operational tasks.
With the advent of generative AI, they built the solution they themselves needed. They quickly learned that this problem was not exclusively theirs, but that of all new home sellers in developing countries.
Previous experience was reflected in how they built Vuun, with a focus on solving a real problem that they knew deeply, without chasing technological fads and always prioritizing quality over speed.
Leadership based on trust, not schedules
As co-founder and CTO of Vuun, Gallo defines his leadership style with three pillars: focus, ambition and obsession with quality, but with complete trust in his team. He is flexible with people and prioritizes their well-being.
Its philosophy is clear and challenges the traditional model; it prefers not to create schedules and be guided by results. If the team puts their time, talent and energy into growing the startup, he has to reciprocate and support them in their own personal dreams and goals.
The three essential skills of a founder
For Gallo, the essential skills for a founder in a fast-growing startup are three. Have real ambition, aim as high as you can, create your own “utopia” and challenge it every time you can.
Work at a natural pace and take care of yourself. If his lesson taught him anything at the age of 22, it is that the one who executes the dreams is the founder; Without energy and mental clarity, there is nothing. Lastly, prioritize quality and attention to detail.
Innovate from the user, not from fashion
Something that Gallo has made clear with Vuun is that they innovate from the user, that is, they are only interested in building what solves real problems of their clients and the end users who interact with AI. Innovation does not come from pursuing “the new” for fashion, but from solving better.
The stability of the platform comes from the same thing. With more than 100,000 monthly conversations processed, they are technologically prepared to scale to millions, but their main challenge today is operational, so they seek to enable the team to do more with the same resources.
For young entrepreneurs who want to create solutions with AI, Gallo is direct “It’s not about creating solutions with AI, but about creating solutions, period. If AI is the best path, perfect; if not, it doesn’t matter.”
From Colombia to the world with purpose
Vuun has increased sales up to 70% in the first month of use in real estate projects, especially in subsidized housing aimed at low and middle economic segments. Ultimately, they are helping more people fulfill the dream of owning their own home and accessing decent housing.
Gallo is a founder who learned the hard way that building a sustainable startup requires more than Silicon Valley capital and accelerated growth. It requires a genuine commitment to solving real problems. At 25 years old, after failures and successes, he represents a new generation of Latin American founders who build with heart.
“Your startup will grow as much as the weakest link allows. And if you are a good founder and recruit a good team, you will probably be the weakest link. That is why you need to commit to your own personal and professional improvement day after day.”
