I built YUFAN & CO. for UK businesses tired of being sold AI tools they couldn't use.
I'm Yufan. An AI builder based in London. I've run an AI startup as CEO, shipped agent-driven platforms, and covered AI as a creator since the week ChatGPT launched. This is what I built when I realised how wide the gap was between AI tools and AI actually working in a real business.
Why I started this
I've spent the last four years inside the gap between AI hype and AI reality. Earlier in my career I designed AI education products at ByteDance, and before that built Python tools that saved a 20-person research team over ten days of manual work per project. Since ChatGPT launched I've been a full-time AI creator — roughly 250,000 followers across platforms, one video at 8 million views — covering every major model, agent, and tool as it shipped.
In November 2024 I took investment and ran JobExpress.ai as CEO — an agent-driven job platform in London. I stepped away in June 2025 when the product direction diverged from what I believed it needed to be. Since then I've built an agent-driven migration platform that generates seven-country plans from a few minutes of profile input. Across all of this, I kept seeing the same thing.
Owners watched ChatGPT demos and wanted to use AI. But 'using AI' in their day-to-day meant pasting text into ChatGPT and reading the output. Vendors raced to ship general-purpose SaaS — high learning curves, constant updates, built for investor multiples, not for the 20-person agency in Clapham. Consultancies delivered PDFs and left. So I built YUFAN & CO. to do the thing nobody else was doing: walk into a business, understand how it really runs, and build AI systems that fit it — not the other way round.
How I work
- Deep diagnosis
- I spend 1-2 weeks inside your operation before quoting a build. I watch the workflows, sit with the teams, and find the places where AI creates real value — and the places where it shouldn't touch anything.
- Hands-on engineering
- I build the systems myself. Not juniors, not offshored contractors. When I design something, I can also ship it — fewer translation errors between what's promised and what arrives.
- Operator mindset
- I've been on the other side — running ops, running a startup as CEO, shipping features real users complain about. I care what your team sees on a Tuesday morning, not what looks good in a pitch deck.
Who you work with
I lead every engagement personally — diagnosis, design, and build. You always deal with me directly, never a rotating cast of juniors. On specific parts of the work I collaborate with people I trust.
- Yufan ZhengFounder
MSc Environmental Science & Engineering, Peking University. BEng Thermal Energy & Power Engineering, Chongqing University. Previously at ByteDance designing AI education products; earlier built Python tooling that saved a 20-person research team over ten days of manual work per project. Since ChatGPT launched I've been a full-time AI content creator — ~250,000 followers across platforms, one video at 8 million views, 100,000 followers added in a single fortnight. Ran JobExpress.ai as CEO in London from November 2024 to June 2025 with investor backing, then built an agent-driven migration platform that outputs seven-country plans from a few minutes of profile input.
On your engagement I run the Diagnostic myself, design every system, write the build code, and remain your direct point of contact through handover and the 90-day warranty.
- VanessaGrowth & content partner
Ten years in brand marketing and PR. Previously Head of Global Marketing at Soul App (led Soul × Disney; cross-platform distribution with Google, Apple, Huawei, Xiaomi), Brand PR Manager at OPPO (ran INNO DAY across seven overseas branches with 77 international media), Brand Marketing Manager at JD.com (delivered the JD Finance → JD Technology rebrand; ranked #2 on KPMG's Global Fintech 100), and PR & Events at Huawei in London (product global launches, MWC, Seeds for the Future). Built a UK branch from scratch as General Manager at ZUNG LEON — Sponsor Licence, corporate banking, recruitment, operations. Led IP licensing projects with The British Library and The National Gallery at Artistory London. MSc, University of East Anglia. PMP certified.
When your build includes content production, short-form video for TikTok or social, or brand positioning, Vanessa leads that work — from script to shoot to distribution.
- YasmineTechnical advisor
Staff ML Engineer, currently focused full-time on agent development. Spent several years at ByteDance building production ML systems across recommendation, content understanding, and LLM-powered agents. Holds ML patents and published research.
On YUFAN & CO. builds Yasmine reviews critical algorithm and architecture choices — model selection, agent orchestration, inference-cost trade-offs, and evaluation design. Her day job is live production agent work, so her reviews reflect current state-of-the-art practice.
Who I work with
UK businesses — small to mid-size. Usually owner-operators or leadership teams who've already tried AI tools and got tired of being the unpaid administrator. You work with me directly — not a rotating cast of juniors.
- Businesses ready to solve real problems, not just experiment
- Teams tired of "automation" tools that still need manual work
- Leaders who want to own their AI infrastructure, not rent it
- Organisations that value getting it right over getting a demo fast
Want to know where AI actually belongs in your business?
Start with a free 30-minute call. We'll ask about your business and whether our approach fits. No cost, no obligation.
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