From Plumbing Disaster to Tech Disruptor: The Story Behind CleverMoe
Every homeowner knows the feeling. A pipe bursts, a circuit trips, or a roof leaks, and you’re suddenly thrown into the chaotic world of finding a reliable contractor. You scroll through lead-generation sites, make endless calls, and hope the person you hire is trustworthy. For Frank El-Masry, a seasoned engineering leader with a background at Intel and Cisco, this wasn’t just an inconvenience it was a broken system he was determined to fix.
In a recent episode of the Tesoro AI Podcast, Frank sat down with host Darius Gant to share the personal story of the plumbing disaster that led him to create CleverMoe, an innovative platform built to restore trust and transparency to the home services industry.
The “Aha!” Moment in a Flooded Home
Frank’s journey from a corporate career to a startup founder began with a catastrophe. While on a family vacation, he received a call that a pipe had burst in his home, flooding the first floor. The disaster that followed was a masterclass in the failures of the modern contracting system.
“You’re calling people and you’re at their mercy,” Frank explained. “They tell you, ‘I’ll be there in three hours,’ and they don’t show up. It was a nightmare.”
He found himself dealing with contractors who were unreliable, and a system where he had no control or transparency. After a frustrating and expensive experience, a friend asked him a simple question: “You’re a problem solver. Why don’t you do something about this?”
That question sparked the idea for CleverMoe.
Fixing a Broken System
Frank realized that popular platforms like Angi, Yelp, and Thumbtack weren’t solving the core problem. They are primarily lead-generation tools, where contractors pay for leads, and homeowners are flooded with calls from unvetted strangers.
“The business model is broken,” Frank stated. “It’s a race to the bottom. The person who gets the lead is the fastest finger, not necessarily the best person for the job.”
This system creates a transactional, low-trust environment that fails both the homeowner and the skilled tradesperson. CleverMoe was designed to be the antidote.
The CleverMoe Difference: Quality Over Quantity
CleverMoe flips the script by focusing on trust, quality, and relationships.
| The Old Way (Lead-Gen Sites) | The CleverMoe Way |
|---|---|
| Contractors pay per lead. | Contractors pay a flat subscription fee. |
| Homeowners are spammed with calls. | Homeowners receive a curated list of vetted professionals. |
| Focus is on speed and volume. | Focus is on quality, licensing, and insurance. |
| Creates a transactional relationship. | Fosters a community of trusted “problem-solvers.” |
“We don’t call them contractors; we call them problem-solvers,” Frank emphasized. By thoroughly vetting every professional on the platform verifying licenses, insurance, and background checks CleverMoe ensures that homeowners are connected with people who are qualified to do the job right.
The Future is AI-Powered
As the name suggests, CleverMoe is built on intelligent technology. The platform already uses AI to match homeowners with the right professionals based on their specific needs. But Frank’s vision goes much further.
He plans to build a “digital twin” of a home, using AI to analyze photos and videos uploaded by the homeowner to provide accurate, upfront quotes. This would eliminate the guesswork and surprise costs that plague the industry.
“You take a picture of your problem… and we’ve trained our models to tell you, ‘Hey, that’s a five-inch crack. It’s going to cost you X,'” he explained.
The Loneliness of the Founder
Frank’s story is not just one of innovation, but also of resilience. He spoke candidly about the “lonely” journey of a founder and the importance of having a strong “why” to push through the challenges. For him, it’s the burning desire to solve a problem that affects millions of people every day.
Frank El-Masry’s journey with CleverMoe is a testament to how personal frustration can fuel groundbreaking innovation. It’s a story about challenging a broken system and rebuilding it with trust, technology, and a deep-seated desire to help people.
To hear Frank’s full story, his advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, and his vision for the future of home services, listen to the complete conversation on the Tesoro AI Podcast. Follow us for more inspiring stories from the founders and innovators building the future of technology.
