Alma co-founder had such a bad immigration experience she founded a legal AI startup to fix it
Alma co-founder had such a bad immigration experience she founded a legal AI startup to fix it
When Aizada Marat moved from New York to California in 2018 with her husband, KODIF co-founder and CEO Chyngyz Dzhumanazarov, she faced a grueling immigration experience that would ultimately inspire her to create Alma, an AI-powered legal tech startup. Marat's journey underscores the complexities of the immigration process and highlights the need for innovative solutions in legal services.
Aizada Marat's Journey
Born in Kyrgyzstan, Aizada Marat came to the United States at the age of 17 through the FLEX (Future Leaders Exchange) program sponsored by the U.S. State Department. After graduating from Harvard, she moved to London due to immigration issues. In 2018, Marat relocated to California when her husband was admitted to Stanford Business School, and she accepted a job offer at the prestigious law firm Cooley.
The Immigration Ordeal
Upon moving to California, Marat needed to sort out her immigration status. Through a Google search, she found an immigration lawyer in Palo Alto. Unfortunately, the lawyer provided incorrect advice on when she could file for work authorization, resulting in Marat being unable to work for over a year and unable to leave the country.
Impact on Career
The delay in work authorization had significant repercussions for Marat. Despite having a job offer from Cooley, she was unable to start working due to the visa complications. This experience was not only frustrating but also detrimental to her career progression.
Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spirit
Marat's ordeal with the immigration process ignited an entrepreneurial fire within her. After eventually working at Cooley for three years and then transitioning to McKinsey as a management consultant, she couldn't shake the memory of her immigration struggles. This led her to think about why immigration legal services were often of poorer quality and how they could be improved.
Understanding the Legal Market
Marat discovered that immigration law is highly fragmented, with 10% of the market dominated by a single law firm while the remaining 90% is shared among over 20,000 firms. This fragmentation often results in inconsistent and inadequate legal services for individuals navigating the immigration process.
The Birth of Alma
Determined to address these issues, Marat set out to create a company that would develop software to help immigration attorneys deliver better services. After four to five months of selling this software to five immigration law firms, she and her team decided to provide immigration services directly. In October 2023, Alma was launched, co-founded by Marat along with other immigrants, including former Uber engineering manager Shuo Chen and former Step product manager Assel Tuleubayeva.
When Aizada Marat moved from New York to California in 2018 with her husband, KODIF co-founder and CEO Chyngyz Dzhumanazarov, she faced a grueling immigration experience that would ultimately inspire her to create Alma, an AI-powered legal tech startup. Marat's journey underscores the complexities of the immigration process and highlights the need for innovative solutions in legal services.
Aizada Marat's Journey
Born in Kyrgyzstan, Aizada Marat came to the United States at the age of 17 through the FLEX (Future Leaders Exchange) program sponsored by the U.S. State Department. After graduating from Harvard, she moved to London due to immigration issues. In 2018, Marat relocated to California when her husband was admitted to Stanford Business School, and she accepted a job offer at the prestigious law firm Cooley.
The Immigration Ordeal
Upon moving to California, Marat needed to sort out her immigration status. Through a Google search, she found an immigration lawyer in Palo Alto. Unfortunately, the lawyer provided incorrect advice on when she could file for work authorization, resulting in Marat being unable to work for over a year and unable to leave the country.
Impact on Career
The delay in work authorization had significant repercussions for Marat. Despite having a job offer from Cooley, she was unable to start working due to the visa complications. This experience was not only frustrating but also detrimental to her career progression.
Igniting the Entrepreneurial Spirit
Marat's ordeal with the immigration process ignited an entrepreneurial fire within her. After eventually working at Cooley for three years and then transitioning to McKinsey as a management consultant, she couldn't shake the memory of her immigration struggles. This led her to think about why immigration legal services were often of poorer quality and how they could be improved.
Understanding the Legal Market
Marat discovered that immigration law is highly fragmented, with 10% of the market dominated by a single law firm while the remaining 90% is shared among over 20,000 firms. This fragmentation often results in inconsistent and inadequate legal services for individuals navigating the immigration process.
The Birth of Alma
Determined to address these issues, Marat set out to create a company that would develop software to help immigration attorneys deliver better services. After four to five months of selling this software to five immigration law firms, she and her team decided to provide immigration services directly. In October 2023, Alma was launched, co-founded by Marat along with other immigrants, including former Uber engineering manager Shuo Chen and former Step product manager Assel Tuleubayeva.