U.S. small businesses are both intrigued and overwhelmed in the rapidly evolving AI era. According to a June 2025 survey from PayPal, 82% of small businesses in the United States consider AI essential to remaining competitive in their industries. Yet, despite this strong belief in its importance, nearly 28% have paused or slowed their adoption of AI tools due to concerns over complexity, cost, and compatibility with their day-to-day operations. While enterprise-scale platforms may offer powerful solutions, many small business owners feel left behind—either priced out or locked out of the functionality they need.
It’s in this context that Dragonchat, a startup born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, proposes a compelling alternative. Founded by entrepreneur and sales educator Teo Tinivelli, Dragonchat offers a voice-centered, WhatsApp-native AI platform that automates communication while keeping it deeply personal. Instead of aiming to replace human interaction, Dragonchat is designed to enhance it—especially for small business owners who value one-to-one customer engagement but don’t have time to scale it manually.
The tool’s most distinctive feature is what Tinivelli calls “Audio Magic.” Users record a single voice message—for example, “Hi Jamie, I just wanted to remind you about this weekend’s 2-for-1 special”—and the platform automatically replaces the name in the audio for each recipient. The end result is hundreds of clients receiving messages that sound as if they were recorded specifically for them. It’s still the user’s voice, still authentic in tone and cadence, but powered by intelligent automation that personalizes the message at scale.
This type of feature is perfectly aligned with current messaging trends. WhatsApp, although underutilized by U.S. small businesses, is experiencing a steady rise in usage. It currently boasts over 100 million users in the United States and more than 2 billion globally. A growing number of Americans—especially younger consumers and Latino communities—are turning to WhatsApp as their preferred messaging platform. Industry research shows that WhatsApp messages enjoy a staggering 98% open rate, far surpassing email and even SMS. Meanwhile, 83% of consumers say they feel closer to businesses when they engage with them through messaging, and 75% have reported making purchases after chatting with a business directly.
Dragonchat taps directly into this behavior, bringing conversational commerce into the AI age—without requiring users to adopt new platforms or learn complicated software. There’s no coding needed, no need to connect CRM tools, and no templates to script. Tinivelli’s product is as plug-and-play as it gets: install the WhatsApp Business API, record a voice note, and let the system do the rest.
The simplicity is intentional. Tinivelli himself comes from a sales and education background, having trained thousands of individuals in digital closing techniques before pivoting into software development. He noticed that while his students could master the psychology and technique of selling, they consistently struggled with consistency—especially when it came to follow-ups. Dragonchat was born out of a need he saw firsthand: to allow entrepreneurs to stay in touch with their leads and customers without sacrificing their time or authenticity.
With more than 25,000 users already on board, primarily across Latin America, Dragonchat is now turning its focus to the U.S. market. Its most natural early adopters are Latino-owned businesses, many of which already operate through WhatsApp and rely heavily on relationship-based sales. Dragonchat’s bilingual interface and cultural fluency lower the barrier for these entrepreneurs, who often lack the resources for dedicated marketing departments but have strong client bases and community trust.
What sets Dragonchat apart isn’t just its voice-first approach, but its attention to real-world use. Whether it’s a barbershop sending appointment reminders, a bakery announcing daily specials, or a freelance coach following up with prospective clients, the platform fits into everyday business in a way that larger AI solutions rarely do. It offers automation without alienation—and perhaps more importantly, personalization without burnout.
Looking ahead, Tinivelli aims to scale Dragonchat to one million users, starting with markets where WhatsApp is a core communication tool. With a roadmap that includes integrations, case studies, and community partnerships, the platform is positioning itself not as a disruptor, but as a practical ally for small businesses ready to embrace AI on their own terms.
In a landscape crowded with tech products promising to revolutionize how we work, Dragonchat’s value proposition is refreshingly grounded. It doesn’t aim to automate people out of business—it empowers them to stay connected, sound like themselves, and grow with a tool that works at their scale. For many American small businesses on the fence about adopting AI, it might just be the right first step.
