Honolulu startup brings AI solution to global auto repair industry

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A Waimanalo startup is using AI to help auto repair shops across the U.S. and Canada boost business, and its creative model is gaining global recognition.

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Miki Hardisty, CEO of Olelo Intelligence, joined HNN’s Sunrise to talk about the business she co-founded with her brother and the growing tech industry in Hawaii.

“Every day, customers call auto repair shops and other service businesses looking for help, and a huge number of them hang up without ever booking an appointment. That’s lost revenue walking out the door. Olelo uses AI to do three things: we analyze every call, we identify exactly what it would take to win that customer back and trigger the recovery of that lost sale, and then we coach the service advisor so the same thing doesn’t happen next time. We work with major national franchise networks like AAMCO, Midas, and Meineke, and we’re building it all right here from Waimanalo,” said Hardisty.

Hardisty was selected from hundreds of startups to represent Hawaii’s tech sector on the nationally televised pitch show “Meet the Drapers.”

She also won the Regional Startup World Cup at Blue Startup’s “East Meets West” event and will represent Hawaii at the global finals in November.

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“The Startup World Cup is one of the largest startup competitions in the world, with regional champions coming in from dozens of countries,” Hardisty said. “My brother and co-founder Ed and I grew up in Kailua, and we built this company on island. The fact that a Hawaii-born, Hawaii-based AI company is competing on that global stage proves that world-class technology can absolutely come out of these islands and we’re just getting started.”

With experience in nuclear design, aerospace engineering, and machine learning, Hardisty was also named 2026 Hawaii Venture Capital Association Tech Entrepreneur of the Year.

For more information on Olelo Intelligence, visit olelo-ai.com and to follow the Startup World Cup, visit startupworldcup.io.

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