Helply
helply.com
AI-native customer support platform built around human and AI agents.
Alex Turnbull
Founder who sold BantamLive for $15M, bootstrapped Groove to $5M ARR, now Helply
@iamAlexTurnbull Newport, United States23K followersSaaS FoundersAI BuildersEducators & Course Creators
About Alex Turnbull
Alex Turnbull has spent more than 20 years building B2B software companies. He founded BantamLive and sold it for $15M, then founded Groove, a help desk he bootstrapped with a small team to $5M ARR and became known for documenting in a transparent startup blog.
He is now building Helply (Groove's old domain now points to it), an AI-native customer support platform that rebuilds the traditional help desk around teams of human and AI agents that investigate, resolve and act on tickets. He writes about product, go-to-market, pricing and hiring for a newsletter of more than 125,000 founders, and runs a paid peer group for B2B founders. He is based in Newport, Rhode Island.
Products by Alex Turnbull
Help desk software for small businesses; its domain now points to Helply.
$5M ARR
B2B software company he founded and sold for $15M.
Videos with Alex Turnbull
I sold my SaaS for $15M and walked away with $500k (full story)
Own channelAlex Turnbull· 2026
How I Built a $5M/yr SaaS With 5 Employees
Own channelAlex Turnbull· 2026
Alex Turnbull of Groove at the October 2013 Providence Geeks
TalkBrian Jepson· 2013
Interviews & press
- This serial founder solved an everyday problem to create a $10M SaaS success
Remote Work Life · Podcast · 2025
- Elizabeth Connects With Alex Turnbull (Founder Connect ep. 12)
Founder Connect with Elizabeth O'Neill · Podcast · 2025
- How a Non-Technical Founder Grew GrooveHQ to $10M
Starter Story · Case study · 2024
How Alex builds
- Share the real numbers and mistakes.
- Bootstrapping with a small team can build a large business.
- Rebuild core software around AI rather than bolting it on.
Learn from Alex Turnbull
[newsletter]
Alex Turnbull's newsletter
Writing on B2B product, GTM, pricing and hiring for 125K+ founders.
Alex Turnbull FAQ
What is Alex Turnbull known for?
He founded Groove, a help desk he bootstrapped to $5M ARR, sold BantamLive for $15M and is now building Helply.
What is Helply?
Helply is an AI-native customer support platform that rebuilds the help desk around human and AI agents.
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