TEMPE, AZ — A group of Arizona’s most successful business leaders are now helping the next generation of entrepreneurs get their start. Tim and Eric Crown started Insight Enterprises in 1988, eventually getting it listed on the New York Stock Exchange and becoming a Fortune 500 company.
Tim Crown says he and his brother still don't forget what it was like at the very beginning.
"We took a cash advance of $2,000 on a credit card, and that's how Insight was born," Crown said.
When they moved their headquarters to Chandler, the Crown brothers converted one of their buildings in Tempe into "The Crown Room." It was created with a single mission in mind — to support entrepreneurs and help them thrive.
“We want to help entrepreneurs any way we can," Crown said.
The space offers everything a start-up could need, from free cold brew coffee to dedicated Zoom rooms for virtual meetings. Jake Crown, Tim's son, also helps run the Crown Room.
"Really what it's all about is being flexible and offering these companies anything they need as they start their journey," Jake Crown said.
Jake Crown says by working in a common space, small businesses can help each other solve their problems.
“It’s about taking the time to get to know their businesses and help them navigate some of those stormy waters,” he said.
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One of the businesses inside the Crown Room is TruthKeep AI. Will Xander founded the company during his time in school at Arizona State University. He graduated in 2024 and has been focused on growing his AI start-up since then.
"The goal for TruthKeep is to be the go-to AI partner for large enterprises," Xander said.
TruthKeep AI offers AI assistants that can handle massive amounts of calls for businesses. Xander says his company currently handles about 30,000 phone calls a month, using AI trained on company products to answer customer questions.
Xander says coming to the Crown Room felt like a breath of fresh air. As remote work has become the norm for many, he said having a physical location to run his business has made a significant difference in his success.
"I wanted to be in a place where entrepreneurship was the focus. I knew it would increase the speed of my growth,” Xander said.
Jake Crown believes that the Crown Room can help businesses like Xander’s grow and thrive. They're now open to more founders who want to make their mark.
“We’d love to get tons of young students in, who are starting entrepreneurial ventures,” he said. “If you’re starting a business alone, it can be very isolating, what it creates is this sense of camaraderie. That if you figured it out, I can stick through it, and I can figure it out too."
If you're interested in learning more about The Crown Room, you can visit their website here.
