Gökhan Yücel on "Çıtayı Yükseltenler"

RNV.ai CEO and Co-founder Gökhan Yücel was the guest of the 69th episode of the "Çıtayı Yükseltenler" podcast. Hosted and moderated by Erdem Mümtaz Hacıpaşaoğlu and Hüseyin Oğuz, Çıtayı Yükseltenler brings listeners the growth journeys of scaling startups in a conversational and engaging format.

In this episode, the conversation spans from Gökhan Yücel's career beginnings as a white-collar professional, to his years in management consulting, and finally to building a company that develops AI-powered retail solutions through a SaaS product. The discussion explores how RNV.ai was founded, where artificial intelligence truly makes an impact in retail, what happened during the investment process, and the operational realities of entrepreneurship beyond its romanticized image.

From Management Consulting to AI-Powered Retail

After many years working in corporate roles and leadership positions, Gökhan Yücel shifts his path toward entrepreneurship.

During a significant portion of his career, he took part in company acquisitions, mergers, and valuation processes; later, he provided retail management and board advisory services. Through these years of experience, he observed a major bottleneck in retail: the lack of a truly satisfying solution for inventory management. The starting point of Klibre was precisely this problem.

What Does RNV.ai Do?

RNV.ai is a tech startup that optimizes the most critical processes of retail companies using AI-powered algorithms. Its web-based SaaS product, Klibre, delivers comprehensive solutions that touch many aspects of retail operations, including:

• Inventory optimization
• Pricing and promotion planning
• Improving e-commerce processes
• Store-to-store transfer and replenishment decisions
• Demand forecasting and commercial planning

With Klibre, brands can leave behind manual workflows and endless Excel sheets, gaining valuable time to focus on more strategic initiatives. Today, RNV.ai manages over 1 million SKUs and optimizes inventory processes for more than 200 brands.

Why Artificial Intelligence? Recalculating 1 Million SKUs in 15 Minutes

Retail's core problem is all too familiar: There is stock, but not in the right place, at the right time, or at the right price. Especially in an inflationary environment, capital tied up in inventory—and the inability to convert it quickly into cash—may not cause shrinkage, but it certainly results in a major loss of potential.

RNV.ai's algorithms analyze data of a scale that humans could never review in weeks—processing it every night in just 15–20 minutes. They evaluate all scenarios and calculate which product should be in which store, in which size breakdown, in what quantity, and at what price. These decisions are then automatically converted into work orders.

One of the most striking success stories shared in the podcast is a case where store-to-store transfers resulted in up to 15x sales uplift.

How Do They Stand Out in the Noise of Artificial Intelligence?

Artificial intelligence has become one of the most talked-about, most intriguing, and at times even intimidating topics of recent years. Many products now carry an "AI" label. Gökhan Yücel describes this environment as "noisy," and highlights what differentiates RNV.ai from the crowd:

• A structure emerging from İTÜ Çekirdek and academically audited
• Operating as an R&D company within EnterTech Technopark
• Numerous projects reviewed by TÜBİTAK
• A technical infrastructure validated by İş Bank's AI Factory

This allows RNV.ai to go beyond the "AI" label—offering a verified, field-proven, and most importantly, scalable artificial intelligence solution.

Investment Journey: Scaling, Ghosting, and the Power of the Right Guidance

In its early years, RNV.ai grew by essentially sustaining itself. The need for investment became more prominent during the scaling phase.

In the podcast, Gökhan Yücel notes that some investors still approach startups with a "corporate KPI mindset," and he underlines the importance of startups receiving professional support during investment processes. A memorable anecdote shared in the episode: despite a seemingly advanced investment discussion, an investor suddenly ghosted them—adding a humorous moment to the conversation.

Entrepreneurship: Falling, Rising, and Intention

Gökhan Yücel describes entrepreneurship as "a balancing act that progresses on a knife's edge." According to him, the three key components of success in this game are: a good idea, a good team, and a good model. But beyond all of these, the true determining factor is intention.

Throughout the conversation, he frequently references several books that have shaped his thinking:

• The Alchemy of Happiness — Imam Ghazali
• Meditations — Marcus Aurelius
• Grit — Angela Duckworth

This article is only a brief summary of the episode. Listen to the full conversation—from retail optimization and the real impact of artificial intelligence to the ups and downs of the entrepreneurial journey.