Founder of Paperclip shows how

Presented by Zapier: https://zapier.com/

👉 Dotta (X): https://x.com/dotta
👉 Paperclip: https://paperclip.ing/

He built a tool to run a zero-human company—and then launched an app store for entire AI businesses.

In this episode of The Next New Thing, Andrew Warner sits down with Dotta, the creator of Paperclip, to see how you can spin up a fully operational AI company in minutes—complete with a CEO, team, skills, and workflows.

Instead of managing prompts or juggling agents manually, Paperclip acts as a project management system for AI agents—tracking tasks, memory, costs, and decisions across an entire organization.

Dotta also introduces companies.sh, a new concept: one-command installs for complete AI companies. Instead of downloading tools, you install entire business systems—with predefined roles, workflows, and agent collaboration patterns.

This episode shows what happens when AI agents stop being tools—and start operating like structured teams.

⏱ Timestamps
00:00 Building a zero-human company
00:18 Why Paperclip exists
00:27 Managing an AI org chart (CEO, CTO, agents)
01:21 The problem: too many agents, no visibility
01:39 Paperclip as agent project management
02:06 Giving agents instructions and roles
02:42 Using skills to upgrade agents
03:18 Creating a video with an AI team
04:12 Hiring agents with specific skills
05:24 Managing skills across your company
06:09 Why too many skills break performance
06:27 Introducing companies.sh (AI company installs)
07:03 Turning playbooks into full companies
08:06 Installing Gary Tan’s “company” in one command
09:27 Running a game studio with AI agents
11:24 Installing Paperclip + companies via terminal
12:36 Using different AI models for agents
13:21 Accessing Paperclip remotely (Tailscale)
14:06 Creating a company live
15:09 Why Paperclip vs chatting with Claude
16:21 Delegating work across agents
17:06 Automating recurring workflows (routines)
17:51 Agents working while you sleep
18:27 AI evaluating business ideas
19:03 Exporting and sharing full companies
19:48 The future: marketplace for AI companies

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