20 coaches said yes. Here’s what happened next.
The story of how CoachNova started, the coaches who built it with us, and what we are doing next.
Where it started
I started the discovery calls on my own. More than 50 of them over the summer, across eight markets. Not pitching. Listening. Every conversation shaped what eventually got built.
In October, I spent a week at Columbia University in New York in a room full of researchers, practitioners, and sceptics debating what AI can and cannot do in coaching. One thing became clear: the coaches who will thrive are the ones who understand this technology well enough to stay in control of it.
That autumn, Nick Ponomar joined as co-founder and CTO. In November, we started designing and co-creating the platform together with coaches. In January, we had the first version ready. Eight coaches joined the beta immediately.
Two months later, twenty coaches are running real sessions on CoachNova. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive and, honestly, beyond what we hoped for at this stage.
We also launched our new website this week. It reflects everything we have learned.
The coaches who made this
None of this exists without the coaches who trusted us before the product was finished. Every feature that works has their fingerprints on it.
They coach in the UK, the Netherlands, Italy, Latvia, the US, Barbados, and beyond. CoachNova is already available in eight languages, and that is in no small part because the coaches who helped us build it work across cultures, contexts, and continents.
They gave us their sessions, their honest criticism, and their time. We are deeply grateful to every one of them.
“When I set up the recording for the second session and clicked on Prep, I was blown away with what it came back with. I’m sold.”
Chris Perkins, Midlife Transformation Coach, Scotland
“I can now trust the AI and be fully present during the session. I get a concise summary and key themes that help me prepare for the next sessions. I think the coachees would give it a 9 out of 10.”
Adger de Boer, ICF PCC Leadership Coach, Amsterdam
Twenty coaches said yes. Chris was sold after his second session. Adger’s clients gave it a 9 out of 10.
See what it does for yours.
Where the profession is heading
Our premise is simple: AI should augment human coaches. More clients. Less admin. More revenue. Less time on marketing. More depth in every engagement.
And the most serious people in coaching are starting to act on it.
On 12 May, I will be co-running a live workshop at the annual EMCC conference in Zagreb, Croatia, together with Ozlem Sarioglu, Global AI Lead at EMCC. The profession is setting standards for how this technology belongs in coaching. We are proud to be part of that conversation.
In the next issue we will share more about the partnerships we have been building in the background, including our work with ICF MCC assessors.
AI literacy for leadership coaches
Join us in May for two practical sessions built specifically for leadership and executive coaches. A clear picture of what AI can do in your practice, built on our conversations with senior coaching practitioners and researchers.
Two sessions. Sixty minutes each. Whether you are ready to start or still making up your mind, this is worth your time.
Talk soon,
Louise & Nick
Co-founders, CoachNova
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