Athena Sternklar

Inquirer
DISC Type : cd

Founder & CEO at Really?

Washington DC-Baltimore Area, United States

Overview

Athena Sternklar is an entrepreneurial founder and operations leader with a focus on tech for social good. As the Founder & CEO of the AI safeguarding startup "Really? ", she leverages her expertise in business development, go-to-market strategy, and project management. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University and is a Y Combinator Startup School alumna.

Outside of her primary ventures, Athena has experience running her own e-commerce business on Etsy, where she managed the full lifecycle from product design to customer engagement. She is a proponent of continuous learning, having completed certifications in Generative AI and Corporate Social Responsibility.

She secured a contingent pre-seed funding offer of $500K for her startup, which addresses the $5. 13B market for deepfake detection.

Personality Overview

Hard To Convince

Upfront

ROI Conscious

They don’t always try to control the conversation but neither do they like yielding it fully.  They care equally about the product and its potential impact. They respond well to confident salespeople.

Topics They Care About

AI Safeguarding
Her current startup, "Really? ", is focused on building technology for AI-generated content and deepfake detection, addressing a significant and growing market need for consumer protection.
Tech for Good
Her professional headline explicitly lists "Tech for Social Good" as a core interest, reflected in her work to combat the negative impacts of AI.
Go-to-Market Strategy
She has proven experience in authoring fundraising materials and articulating the go-to-market (GTM) strategy for her startup.

Media Appearances

Athena has no verified media appearances

Work History

8-2025
Founder & CEO at Really?
2-2025 - 5-2025
Business Development Operations Associate (SMB lending) at NerdWallet
4-2024 - 2-2025
Small Business Owner (E-commerce) at Etsy Shop
3-2023 - 4-2024
Development Administrator at Middle East Institute
5-2021 - 5-2022
Operations Assistant and Senior Website Assistant at Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

Education

Bachelor of Arts - BA from Columbia University
6-2025 - 8-2025
Startup School from Y Combinator

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 3 Location : Washington DC-Baltimore Area, United States Job Level : Leadership Designation : Founder & CEO at Really?
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Insights For Selling To Athena

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Make sure that you you respond to any queries from them quickly
  • Ask them questions confidently while doing discovery, don’t be apologetic
  • Get to the point quickly instead of spending too much time on pleasantries

DONT's

  • Don't try too hard to get friendly, let it happen with time
  • Avoid long winding pitches, stay objective
  • Don’t expect them to change their mind quickly if they say no once

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Athena is

  • Belief in the product plays an important role, followed by objective proof and testimonials.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Athena

  • They may hesitate slightly, but if they are not convinced, they will say no.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Athena move?

  • They are neither the fastest decision makers nor the slowest.
  • Can Athena take some risk or not?

  • They can take risks only after they have analyzed the advantages and disadvantages.

You And Athena

Personality Compatibility


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