Fixify: Scaling Human-level IT Care with AI

At Fixify, a revolutionary approach to the IT helpdesk is transforming how businesses support their employees. By seamlessly blending human empathy with cutting-edge AI technology, Fixify aims to empower both support teams and end-users. At Fixify, the founders are not just reimagining the IT helpdesk—they're humanizing it. By fostering an environment where technology and empathy coexist, they're setting a new standard for what support can and should be.

We sat down with the founders—Matt Peters, Pete Silberman, and Mase Issa—to delve into their unique backgrounds, how they came together, and their vision for the future of IT support.

Where did you grow up, and how were you first introduced to tech?

Matt: I was born in Washington, D.C., but I grew up all over the world due to my parents work in the Foreign Service – specifically in refugee affairs. We lived in places like Pakistan, Thailand, and Sierra Leone. This gave me a front-row seat to some really amazing cultural moments. Seeing the vast differences in how groups of people lived gave me an early sense of how big the world really was. I was introduced to the world of tech through my first computer, a TRS-80 Model III. I took a summer class on programming with a BASIC interpreter, and I was hooked.

Pete: I was born and raised in Maryland. My dad was a labor lawyer, and my Mom a social worker. School was a struggle, but struggling helped me seek out other outlets, and I became fascinated by computers. I bought my first computer (Compaq) after working as a summer counselor, and spent a lot of time exploring the internet. I also worked part-time in high school finding software vulnerabilities and selling them to companies like iDefense, where I got my first job. That’s how I eventually got into cybersecurity and IT.

Mase: I was born in Germany to Afghan refugee parents. We moved to the U.S. when I was five, spending a short time in New York and Pennsylvania before settling in Northern Virginia.

My father, a tinkerer, always built rather than bought, which sparked my curiosity. Growing up, I became fascinated with computers and spent hours setting up networks at home. My interest deepened when I discovered Visual Basic 5.0 and the digital playground created by AOL. By high school, I was selling custom CDs to build my own PC, and I joined the county’s first system engineer course. After our teacher left for a higher-paying job, with not replacement insight we converting a room full of brand new equipment into a fully operating network - spending the second half of the year playing half-life =).

How did the three of you meet?

Pete: Matt and I crossed paths while we were at Mandiant. Matt was working on system architecture, while I was focused on reverse engineering and quick-reaction capabilities to improve our endpoint solution. At that time Mandiant wasn’t quite yet the $6B company that it is today but rather the earliest chapters of its story. It was an exciting time. Kevin Mandia, founder of Mandiant, was so dedicated that at one point he was funding Mandiant out of his personal bank account, and our first office was below a Thai restaurant. Things changed, and then really changed when we released the now well known APT1 report that Mandiant was put on the map and began to grow into what it is today.

After the acquisition of Mandiant by FireEye for $1 billion, our CTO Dave Merkel (“Merk”) decided it was time for him to start his own company and Expel was born. Merk saw several persistent gaps in the Managed Detection and Response (MDR) market. First, there were too many complex security products generating endless alerts without providing actionable answers. Second, there was a shortage of skilled security talent to prioritize and manage these alerts. Lastly, existing MSSPs and security platforms often failed to deliver on their promises to mitigate these risks effectively. With Expel, we aimed to solve these challenges and provide a better, more transparent managed security experience. Both Matt and I immediately joined Expel as employees four and five behind co-founders Justin Bajko and Yanek Korff and stayed there from the beginning incubating the first prototype in Merk’s red barn in Herndon, Virginia to $100M in ARR, serving as Chief Product Officer and CTO.

Mase: I met Matt and Pete at Expel, where I joined to help build out their operations and customer success teams. I was lucky enough to hear about the Expel concept before they closed their seed round. Justin Bajko, one of the co-founders and I actually met while working in a SOC supporting Symantec’s managed services offering (formerly Riptech - founded by Amit Yoran). So naturally when he, Merk and Yanek Korff shared their vision it piqued my interest.  “Wait, someone is actually going to build the thing customers have been asking for?” and I was able to trick them into hiring me.

Why did you decide to focus on the IT helpdesk with Fixify?

Matt: At Expel, where I served as CTO, we tackled the challenge of providing scalable, high-quality managed security services—a gap in the market at the time. The idea for Fixify emerged from recognizing similar gaps in the IT helpdesk space. Traditional support models often lacked scalability and a human touch. We wanted to create a solution that combined the efficiency of technology with genuine human empathy.

Mase: We saw an opportunity to scale an organization that delivers not just technical solutions but also a human-centered experience. By blending people and technology, we believed we could revolutionize the IT helpdesk industry.

What makes Fixify unique in the IT space?

Mase: Many products focus solely on efficiency and cost reduction, often neglecting the quality of the customer experience. At Fixify, we're equally focused on the "texture" and quality of every interaction. Our approach keeps people at the center, amplifying their capabilities rather than replacing them. Too often, systems disempower employees with rigid protocols—ever heard, "Sorry, the system won't let me do that"? We want to eliminate that frustration. By empowering our team members, we enable them to provide genuine care. Technology should enhance human creativity and empathy, not stifle it. We're transforming support into a creative force that improves work lives.

We recognize that IT teams are frequently overwhelmed, inundated with tickets that lead to delays and frustration for both the team and the employees they serve. In fact, our IT Help Desk Benchmark Report highlighted that over 50% of employees avoid using IT help desks due to inefficiencies and poor service. To address this, we've developed AI-powered solutions that tackle the most common IT problems and guide our human analysts to resolve them with a personal touch.

What is your long-term vision for Fixify?

Matt: We think that our human-centric, texture-first approach can impact the entire enterprise. Imagine an onboarding experience where employees have all the tools and support they need to be happy and successful from day one. Empowerment is at the heart of our vision—for both our employees and our customers. By blending technology with creativity and empathy, we aspire to make work life better for everyone involved. Ultimately, we want to scale care using AI. By keeping humans at the core and leveraging technology to amplify their abilities, we believe we can make a significant positive impact on the way support and IT services are delivered globally.

We plan to continue refining our AI capabilities, particularly in areas like root-cause analysis and real-time sentiment monitoring, to provide even more proactive and tailored support. By utilizing detailed metrics and insights, we help IT teams gain visibility into their organization's top issues, anticipate problems before they escalate, and proactively resolve them. This not only improves the employee experience but also empowers IT teams to focus on strategic initiatives rather than getting bogged down by repetitive tasks.