CTD Podcast with Bill West

Human Presence

Greenville's Evolution: A Culinary Hub

In the recent podcast episode on close the deal.com, Ewell Smith engaged in a interviewed Bill West from Greenville, South Carolina. The discussion traversed Bill's entrepreneurial journey, from the early days of timeshare computer services to his current endeavors in the realms of online security and predictive health.

A City's Transformation: From Timeshare to Technology

Greenville's metamorphosis into a vibrant city, particularly evident during the food and wine festival, set the stage for their conversation. Over 33 years, Bill has witnessed the remarkable transformation of Greenville, now a hub for food enthusiasts. He reminisced about the city's evolution, highlighting its allure and growth.

Casual Conversations in Coffee Shops

Bill's choice of meeting spots for business discussions is notably casual, with approximately 90% of meetings taking place in Starbucks or other coffee shops. He attributes the preference to the efficiency and informality these settings provide. This practice harks back to his earlier career, where New Jersey coffee shops served as venues for critical discussions during his timeshare computer services tenure.

Shaping Career Trajectory: Influencers and Turning Points

Reflecting on the influencers that shaped his career, Bill underscored the impact of obtaining an MBA in finance and a key hire at AT&T. The latter presented a turning point, propelling him toward entrepreneurship. The allure of controlling his destiny and building assets for financial success became apparent, steering his subsequent career trajectory.

Entrepreneurial Ventures: From Pagers to Prepaid Phones

Bill delved into the ventures that marked his entrepreneurial path, including a paging company that transitioned into a lucrative exit with Nextel. The journey continued with ventures in prepaid phones, innovative sales strategies, and impactful exits. Notably, he contrasted managing 16,000 people at AT&T with the more intimate scale of his subsequent entrepreneurial endeavors.

Innovating Online Security: Human Presence

A focal point of the conversation was Bill's latest innovation, "Human Presence." This technology disrupts CAPTCHA, offering advanced protection against bot attacks. By collecting behavioral data during website visits, the platform distinguishes humans based on their unique patterns, eliminating the friction caused by traditional CAPTCHA methods.

Beyond Security: Predictive Health and Human Presence

Expanding beyond online security, Bill discussed the integration of Human Presence into predictive health. Using the same data collection principles, the technology records users' movement characteristics, enabling the detection of deviations that may indicate cognitive issues, sports injuries, or aging-related concerns. Negotiations with potential partners in the medical analysis business are underway.

Entrepreneurial Wisdom: Focus and Goal-Driven Pursuits



In offering advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, Bill emphasized the importance of staying focused on a compelling goal. His journey, driven by a commitment to provide financial support for his children's education, culminates in Human Presence's current focus on expanding its app to various e-commerce channels and raising funds for marketing campaigns. Bill West's entrepreneurial trajectory is a testament to the relentless pursuit of innovation and problem-solving, exemplified by his groundbreaking work in online security and predictive health.