Lanai Software is an AI observability platform that helps enterprises detect hidden AI use and recommend which AI tools will benefit them in cost savings. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Lanai Software co-founder and CEO Lexi Reese to gain a deeper understanding of the company.
Lexi Reese’s Background
Could you tell me more about your background? Reese said:
“I’ve built infrastructure through every major tech shift for 30 years—internet, mobile, cloud, now AI. At Google, I ran the ML ads platform handling billions of daily AI decisions. At Gusto, I scaled the payroll and compliance company as COO. Here’s what’s different about AI: enterprises are spending $500-2,000 per employee on AI tools,the biggest tech spending spree since cloud adoption while being completely blind to what’s actually happening. Our data shows 89% of AI usage is invisible to IT teams. That’s a $120 billion blind spot.”
Formation Of The Company
How did the idea for the company come together? Reese shared:
“We kept hearing the same story from every CISO and CIO: ‘My people are using AI everywhere, and I’m flying completely blind.” One guy told me, “I can see them going to ChatGPT.com, but I have no clue if they’re leaking our IP or just asking for grammar help.’”
“It’s not just ChatGPT, it’s Cursor for coding, AI in SaaS apps like Salesforce and Notion. Traditional security tools see web traffic, not actual prompts where the real risk – and opportunity – lives.”
“Steve Herrod, VMware’s former CTO, immediately got the structural problem: ‘It’s like managing cloud infrastructure without seeing inside the virtual machines.’”
“That’s when we realized prompt-level visibility isn’t just a product, it’s foundational infrastructure for the AI era.”
