In our new founder interview series, we take you behind the pitch decks and prototypes – into the stories of the people shaping the future. We explore the sparks, doubts, and turning points that define early-stage building. First up: Cornelis van Lith, founder of Buhdi.
Cornelis is a neurodiverse digital alchemist. He brings together over a decade of agile leadership with a sharp eye for marketing, system architecture, and product strategy. At the heart of it all: Buhdi. A mobile app that offers accessible, AI-powered emotional support for people with ADHD symptoms.
What drew you to ADHD as a space to build in?
I think it’s more a realization that I’ve already always been in the ADHD field. When I started creating the app and doing user interviews, in the same moments, my mother got diagnosed. I did a lot of reading about the topic. I realized, all customers or all users that I interview are somewhere on the spectrum.
I did a lot of tech mentoring at that time. And there, slowly, I also realized in my old tech jobs I was also trying to manage the chaos of what ADHD brings to the table.
So tell us more about the motivation to create Buhdi?
My motivation in life has always been to empower people to do what they feel like doing. And I think having ADHD means that there are a lot of things you would like to do, and having a lot of amazing ideas but not being capable of actually doing them, being stuck in just one thing. I think everything I’ve done in my life so far is enabling people to do these things. So Buhdi is just a way to expand the reach of helping people. To empower them to do what they like to do in the world, to create, and to have fun.
Biggest “oh sh*t” moment?
There are a lot of “oh sh*t” moments when things don’t go according to plan. However, since I’m so used to that in my day to day life and in my previous projects, those “oh sh*t” moments are more like a moment of, okay, there’s a new problem that needs to be solved.
What would you give other founders?
If I think of the classic first time mistake – you have an idea. You start developing because you have this clear vision. And then it takes a while before you trust yourself. Before you feel like it’s something I can have people look at; I feel comfortable with. And then you find out that some parts are just in your mind good. And then people are like, “Yeah, I don’t care about it.
User interviews are the most valuable thing you can do, else you just stay in your own mind. And sometimes it works, but most of the time, there’s way more value in getting more data points to see, okay, this is working, this is not working.
What about advice you would have loved to receive earlier?
So – do user testing. Don’t overengineer stuff. Take care of yourself! They are not secrets, and everyone knows them. So I think it’s just that you have to go through it yourself to truly understand it.
Small moments that keep you going?
The small moments that really keep me going are sometimes in user interviews, but especially people reaching out without me asking.People randomly writing me on Reddit: “Hey, I found your app. It sounds amazing!”
From there, all these super interesting conversations happen. I think that it really keeps you going because sometimes you launch something and there are just crickets chirping. And you wonder if you’re doing the correct thing and doubting yourself. You wonder if you’re doing the correct thing and start doubting yourself. And then, when something like this happens, you think, okay, I’m on the right path. Also seeing that users actually use it daily.
These small things really keep you going, like, these little points of growth. These little reach-outs.
What’s one startup myth you want to debunk?
That you need something to do something. Getting stuck on, “Okay, I need a cofounder,” or “Okay, I need investments.” I think those are the things you can get stuck on.
What’s the most overused startup buzzword?
I think it varies depending on the era you’re in. So now it’s AI, for sure. Five years ago, it was blockchain.
What’s your superpower as a founder?
I tend to always want to understand everything. I think that’s the superpower that keeps me going. This curiosity of how does everything work, what is behind it, how can I use it? If I didn’t have this curiosity, I wouldn’t enjoy what I’m doing.
Any interesting places you worked from?
Oh, maybe I shouldn’t tell this because then it will be overrun 🙂 However, there’s this church in Schillerkiez where you can go to the top and it’s completely redesigned now. Really beautiful space!
Any funding advice?
Be really clear on why you need funding. Not every startup needs funding. Software development isn’t as capital-intensive anymore as it used to be. So especially at the start, try to get your product out, try to get traction, try to see if people are willing to pay for it. And if you have a clear direction and way of scaling that requires money, then go for funding.