Founder Story:  
Diego Pinzon
, Co-Founder & CEO, DAWn Audio
Tulane ’21, BS, Engineering Physics and a Minor in Music Science and Technology  
 

Transforming the Music Industry: An Interview with Diego Pinzon
 

Bolstered by the mentoring at the Tulane Innovation Institute, DAWn Audio has transformed from a Senior Design project, in Tulane’s 2021 Engineering capstone class to a company that champions the belief that artists deserve the creative freedom to make music on their own terms.

Their app solves the issue of incompatibility between Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), enabling artists to co-create live from anywhere in the world. Their use of technology facilitates a digital home where music heads can focus on doing what they love: Making Music.

Diego Pinzon is a drummer turned producer and now a music-tech CEO. He is a Tulane alum with a B.S. in Computational Engineering and a community organizer with the People's Institute for Survival and Beyond. His background guides his work within DAWn Audio, a startup driven toward facilitating creative freedom through its network of tools and artists, and his work within Keep It In The Culture Co-op, a co-op-based support outlet for the cultural arts community of New Orleans. He’s originally from Colombia, was raised in New Jersey, and has now fallen in love with New Orleans.  
 

Q: Tell us more about DAWn Audio?

A: DAWn Audio is working to bring cloud collaboration to the music industry. Music artists are stuck emailing audio files when collaborating because the tools they use, called Digital Audio Workstations, are incompatible. We've built an app that bridges that compatibility, allowing artists to collaborate live, online, across these different DAWs.

Q: When was DAWn founded, and what sparked your big idea?

A: DAWn began as a Senior Engineering Capstone project in August of 2020, and became formally incorporated as an LLC in August of 2021. I'm a lifelong drummer who fell in love with music production while at Tulane and quickly realized digital collaboration for musicians was not easy or efficient. DAWn was born from living the frustration of sitting 5 feet away from my friends and being unable to collaborate because we used different software. My Engineering Physics (ENGP) and Music Science and Technology (MST) studies at Tulane gave me the technical foundation to develop the initial idea.

Q: How did you find your co-founders?

A: Our team has gone through numerous changes. Our capstone project originally had 5 classmates (Diego Pinzon, Leo Simanonok, Sam Matluck, Jake Gus, and Kaitlyn Miller), all from the ENGP major. Kaitlyn left the team after graduation, Jake left the company by mutual agreement to pursue AI/ML in December 2022, and Sam passed away in September 2022. Our newest co-founder, Mandy Ortiz, left her full-time role at Ogilvy to join DAWn in February of 2023. 

Q: How has the Tulane Innovation Institute helped you develop DAWn Audio?

 A: The TUII mentorship program has been an incredible help thus far. While we've had experience in the past with similar types of mentor connections, having a set of experienced mentors who aren't actually financially vested in the company allows for a different level of honesty and vulnerability. We've developed similar relationships over time with other advisors, but we've been able to have candid conversations with our TUII mentors, which is necessary when building a startup.


 Q: What is your big dream for DAWn Audio?  What do you hope to accomplish in the next 3-5 years?

 A: Our technology is just the first step in building a larger communal platform that centers music creation. I played a lot of Xbox while growing up and found video games as a way to connect with friends in my free time. Our vision for DAWn is a home for the music heads, where artists can choose to stay home on a Friday night, connect with a new or existing collaborator, and just make music! From a business perspective, we aim to create a collaborator marketplace where we facilitate paid transactions for those collaborations.

Q: What has been your biggest challenge as a startup?

A: Navigating the passing of a co-founder is, without a doubt, the hardest challenge we've faced. Building a team and network of the right supporters was key in getting us through that process. That said, learning to deal with the constant "whiplash" of wins followed by setbacks followed by wins, etc., has been a key skill we're continuing to develop.

Q: Who are some of your favorite New Orleans musicians?

A: I am a huge fan of Lil Wayne, Trombone Shorty, and the long list of Jazz and other musicians that have gone on to influence music globally, but honestly, my favorite part about New Orleans music is that the musician who's performing on a Tuesday evening at some random bar is levels above the Friday night headliner at other major cities. Our city has a long way to go in terms of music infrastructure, but quality music has always been here.

 

Q: You just started a new student ambassador program at Tulane and Loyola. Can you tell us more about the SAm fellowship?

A: Last March we launched the first cohort of our student ambassador program at Tulane. Through this program, we recruit undergrad students interested in music, tech, or entrepreneurship and provide them with paid internship experience while growing our brand presence at the campuses. This past September, we renamed the program our "SAm Fellowship" (Student Ambassador Fellowship), paying homage to our late co-founder Sam Matluck and reflecting his values as a leader.

We understand the music industry isn't seen as a viable career path by many, but this fellowship challenges that notion by serving as a bridge between different fields of study and the world of music technology. We hope to create a long-lasting network of SAm Fellows who will prioritize passion and community while moving and growing through the world.  The fellowship currently runs in the Fall and Spring semesters at Tulane and Loyola Universities in New Orleans.

Diego currently participates in the Tulane Innovation Institute Startup Team Mentoring program with our Green Wave Innovation Network mentors.  Learn more about DAWn Audio here.