Tim Maliyil has spent over two decades building and scaling global cloud-based software companies, with his cybersecurity firm, AlertBoot, having protected over a million corporate users. But in 2022, after years at the forefront of data security, Maliyil set his sights on something new.
With AI redefining industries and businesses scrambling for new revenue models, Maliyil saw an opportunity. His next phase would lead him into two high-growth sectors — AI-driven pet wellness and e-commerce membership innovation — fields that, at first glance, seem unrelated. Yet both capitalize on what he knows best: building scalable, secure, and sustainable tech solutions.
AI Meets Pet Wellness
The pet industry has exploded in recent years, with the global market valued at around $160 billion in 2022 and projected to reach over $230 billion by 2030. This steady expansion is being driven by shifting consumer behaviors — Millennials and Gen Z now make up the majority of pet parents, and they increasingly expect high-tech, personalized solutions for their pets, just as they do for themselves.
While the pet care industry has been dominated by food and pharmaceuticals, AI-driven pet wellness is the next big thing. And while companies like Whistle and FitBark have pioneered pet wearables, PerkyPet is making waves with a broader approach — a lifestyle wellness app that uses AI to create customized care plans for pets and their human companions.
Maliyil, who co-founded PerkyPet, sees this as both a great business opportunity and a way to use AI to make meaningful connections between pets, their health, and their owners. “We’re not just tracking a dog’s steps, we’re helping pet parents understand their pet’s needs, from diet to behavior, using AI in a way that hasn’t been done before,” he says.
Moreover, by partnering with Dr. Dara Huang, a longtime Bronx Science friend and medical doctor, Maliyil is helping bridge the gap between AI and veterinary expertise. The result? A smarter, more personalized approach to pet and pet parent care, tapping into an industry that’s poised for long-term, sustainable growth.
Reinventing E-Commerce Survival
E-commerce is at a breaking point. Rising ad costs, supply chain disruptions, and new tariffs are making profitability harder than ever. Merchants are struggling to keep customers engaged as acquisition costs climb, forcing them to rethink their approach. Meanwhile, subscription commerce has reshaped nearly every industry, from streaming services to Apple’s bundled ecosystem, proving that repeat revenue is the key to long-term success.
Yet, most e-commerce brands lack the infrastructure to make memberships work. That’s where Phoenix Technologies comes in. Founded by CEO Kevin Zhang, the platform helps merchants turn one-time buyers into loyal, recurring customers, shifting them away from unpredictable, high-cost ad-driven sales. By offering AI-powered retention tools, exclusive perks, and seamless subscription management, Phoenix gives independent brands the same firepower that retail giants have long used to lock in customers.
The urgency behind this shift is clear. Giants like Amazon have built multi-billion-dollar ecosystems around membership-driven models, with Prime alone generating over $25 billion annually by keeping customers locked into repeat purchases. But for smaller merchants, building and managing a subscription-based business has been far more challenging. Phoenix steps in to bridge that gap, giving brands the infrastructure to compete, not just on acquisition, but on retention.
“The old e-commerce playbook is dead,” says Maliyil, who recently joined Phoenix and serves as its COO and CTO. “You can’t just throw up a Shopify store, run Facebook ads, and expect profitability. Phoenix helps merchants shift to a sustainable model where customers keep coming back.”
That shift is now more urgent than ever. Looming tariffs are raising costs, forcing retailers to rethink pricing strategies, making repeat revenue a necessity rather than a luxury. This is why Phoenix is on track to break eight figures in revenue in 2025 and is already attracting serious VC interest.
A Career Built on Anticipating What’s Next
Maliyil’s ability to navigate these high-growth sectors isn’t just luck, it’s the result of decades spent understanding how to scale software solutions in changing markets. Whether it’s cybersecurity, AI-powered pet wellness, or subscription-driven e-commerce, his career proves that the best opportunities aren’t in what’s trendy, but in solving the pain points that others haven’t yet figured out.
