Ep11: She Was Fired. Then Built a Tech Company: The Dispute Buddy Story

What does it actually take to build a tech company - when you’re not technical?

In this episode of the AI Your Business Podcast, Kim Fernandez sits down with Jenny Rudd, founder of Dispute Buddy - a legal tech platform transforming messy, emotional communication into structured, lawyer-ready evidence.

But this isn’t a typical startup story.

Jenny didn’t come from tech. She was fired from a magazine role… then went on to buy the business, become an award-winning editor, sell it, and start again - this time in SaaS.

Together, they unpack:

• The unproven beginning of building a startup from scratch
• What it actually looks like before there’s an MVP, funding, or clarity
• How non-technical founders navigate product, engineers, and early decisions
• The role of lived experience in building meaningful tech
• What it takes to earn trust in AI and legal-tech
• The realities of being a solo female founder in tech

This is a grounded, honest look at building in uncertainty - and how founders actually get from idea to product.

 

In This Episode We Cover

• How Jenny Rudd went from being fired → to building and selling a business → to launching a SaaS startup
• The real story behind Dispute Buddy and the problem it solves
• What the “unproven beginning” of a startup actually looks like
• Why non-technical founders can successfully build tech companies
• How to approach MVPs, prototypes, and customer discovery
• The importance of staying in the problem space before building
• What founders get wrong about early-stage product development
• How to find (and attract) world-class technical talent
• The role of relationships, access, and community in startup growth
• What it takes to build a product in a trauma-informed, high-trust environment
• The realities of being a solo female founder in tech
• Why support systems (at home and in business) matter more than people admit

About Jenny Rudd:

Jenny Rudd is the founder and CEO of Dispute Buddy, a legal-tech platform designed to help individuals and lawyers transform complex, emotional communication into structured legal evidence.

Before entering the tech world, Jenny built and sold a magazine business she was once fired from, going on to become a finalist for Best Editor in New Zealand.

Now, she’s building a global SaaS company focused on improving access to justice through technology.

About the Podcast:

The AI Your Business Podcast, hosted by Kim Fernandez, helps established business owners, founders, and service providers understand how to adopt AI in a practical, human-centric way, and be inspired by ways AI is being used to solve real world problems - through real-world case studies, stories, and strategies.

Tools Mentioned

Dispute Buddy (App)

The Lean Product Playbook – Dan Olsen

Jobs to Be Done Framework

Jenny Rudd:

  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennyjanerudd

Kim Fernandez

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kim-fernandezz
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thekimfernandez

Website: https://ai-collab.com.au