Shan Lu(Sunny)
Founding Growth Lead | AI-Native Products Storyteller, Workflow & GTM｜ IMC 2024 @NorthwesternMedill｜MKT 2023@ SCU
I’m Shan Lu(Sunny☀️), I build AI-native products, growth systems, and market narratives from 0 to 1. My work sits at the intersection of storytelling, product strategy, user research, and go-to-market execution.
More
I’m especially drawn to ambiguous, high-upside spaces where the challenge is not just building a product, but understanding people well enough to position it clearly, find the right wedge, and create a system that helps it grow. My background across CPG, EdTech, SaaS, nonprofit, UX, and AI-native service businesses has shaped how I think: start from the user, understand the behavior behind the problem, identify the market opening, and test quickly. I like figuring out how different audiences think, where the real pain lives, what messaging actually resonates, and how to translate that into positioning, landing pages, growth loops, and scalable go-to-market systems. A lot of the way I work is grounded in IMC — not as a buzzword, but as a way of connecting insight, message, channel, and experience into one coherent growth engine. Whether I’m researching a market, refining a niche entry point, building and deploying landing pages, designing experiments, creating content systems, or shaping multi-channel distribution, I care about clarity, speed, and signal. Lately, I’ve become especially interested in AI-native products and workflows: systems designed around how people actually research, decide, learn, and collaborate today. Not AI for hype, but AI as a way to improve speed, structure, context, and usability while keeping trust and human judgment where they matter most. What I bring is a mix of strategy and execution: market research, customer discovery, positioning, landing page experimentation, workflow design, founder-led content, short-form video, and multi-channel growth across community, social, and paid surfaces. In short, I like finding the right market, the right story, and the right system to help a product move.
GTM Index
- ACORN9JOB
- Founding Member, Growth &…5M
Founding Member, Growth & Strategy Lead
Acorn9
Founding team member working across growth, market development, workflow strategy, and go-to-market for an AI-native accounting and tax firm. - researching the accounting software landscape and firm operating models to understand how accounting teams collaborate and where the biggest workflow pain points exist across intake, review, handoff, routing, and client communication - shaping landing page and go-to-market strategy, and building multiple landing page versions to test positioning across different niche markets and customer segments - leading both B2B and B2C customer discovery through direct conversations with firms and end clients, developing a strong understanding of both internal…
- XATRIXJOB
- Founding Growth & GTM Lead2M
Founding Growth & GTM Lead
XATRIX
Leading XATRIX's go-to-market and brand growth across North America Building the full marketing engine from brand strategy to community to demand generation for an emerging AI-native luxury category. · Brand & GTM strategy — Defined XATRIX's brand positioning and go-to-market strategy from the ground up, shaping the story, audience, and channel mix that introduce AI-native fine jewelry to the market. · Experiential & event marketing — Curated pop-up experiences, summits, and brand activations, and represented XATRIX at trade shows and industry exhibitions — turning in-person moments into brand awareness and a qualified VIP pipeline. · Lifestyle brand collaborations — Built co-branded partn…
- PENGI.AIJOB
- Founding Product & Growth…1Y 5M
Founding Product & Growth Lead
Pengi.ai
·Led 0→1 product and growth strategy, defining positioning, core user experience, and go-to-market approach for an AI-powered K–8 learning platform ·Drove early-stage acquisition from 0 to 3K+ registered users, building a full-funnel growth system reaching 100K–150K+ parents, students, and educators across paid, organic, and community channels ·Synthesized insights from 150+ user interviews to refine product-market fit, shape product direction, and guide roadmap prioritization ·Led continuous product iteration and optimization, benchmarking against existing learning tools and improving key experiences including AI tutor interactions, gamification, and learning flows ·Designed and scaled a m…
- ACORNJOB
- Founding Product & Growth…5M
Founding Product & Growth Strategist
Acorn
·Led 0→1 product and growth strategy for Acorn (https://acornx.ai/), defining positioning, core user experience, and go-to-market approach for an AI-powered conversational learning platform ·Designed and iterated end-to-end user flows (onboarding, content discovery, deep dive learning), shaping how users move from quick content consumption into deeper, interactive learning experiences ·Built and scaled Acorn’s content system, including book summaries, deep dives, and audio formats, transforming complex knowledge into engaging, retention-driven content ·Developed multi-channel growth strategy across TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, Reddit, and RedNote (Xiaohongshu), combining short-form content,…
- MARSJOB
- Graduate Mktg Consultant2M
Graduate Marketing Consultant
Mars
Contributed to the growth strategy for a $50B global leader in Confectionery, Pet Care, and Food Products: -Developed three global "big idea" territories in experience innovation aimed at driving 20% growth for M&M’s by 2030. -Uncovered key consumer insights around brand experience, M&M’s identity, and snacking behaviors. -Conducted cross-industry and global market case studies to fuel strategic thinking. -Co-led the creation of a comprehensive marketing strategy with activation across multiple brand touchpoints. -Provided strategic recommendations to expand personalization within the brand experience. -Established a measurement framework to assess and optimize brand experiences.
- THE VOLUNTEER CENTERJOB
- Strategic Mktg Consultant4M
Strategic Marketing Consultant
The Volunteer Center
Enhance digital visibility to increase volunteer engagement and amplify organizational impact. Key Responsibilities and Achievements: SEO Strategy: -Developed a keyword pyramid utilizing Semrush to optimize both on-page and off-page SEO. Consultations: -Coordinated with web design agencies to improve the organization’s digital presence. Social Media & Email Marketing: -Created a comprehensive social media strategy and designed Instagram post templates to elevate engagement. -Developed a Mailchimp newsletter template to streamline the Volunteer Center’s email marketing campaigns. Google Analytics: -Delivered a detailed tutorial and toolkit to facilitate data-driven decision-making for web tr…
- THINK ACADEMY USJOB
- Mktg Growth Intern - TikTok4M
Marketing Growth Intern - TikTok
Think Academy US
- AB INBEVJOB
- Trade Mktg Specialist2M
Trade Marketing Specialist
AB InBev
- HANGZHOU KUNHENG TECHNOLOGY CO.,JOB
- Mktg Assistant3M
Marketing Assistant
Hangzhou Kunheng Technology Co., Ltd.
- ZHEJIANG HONGYUAN LAW FIRMJOB
- Assistant Lawyer5M
Assistant Lawyer
Zhejiang Hongyuan Law Firm
- Job: Acorn — Founding Product & Growth Strategist · 2025-01 – 2025-06 — ·Led 0→1 product and growth strategy for Acorn (https://acornx.ai/), defining positioning, core user experience, and go-to-market approach for an AI-powered conversational learning platform ·Designed and iterated end-to-end user flows (onboarding, content discovery, deep dive learning), shaping how users move from quick content consumption into deeper, interactive learning experiences ·Built and scaled Acorn’s content system, including book summaries, deep dives, and audio formats, transforming complex knowledge into engaging, retention-driven content ·Developed multi-channel growth strategy across TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, Reddit, and RedNote (Xiaohongshu), combining short-form content,…
- Job: Hangzhou Kunheng Technology Co., Ltd. — Marketing Assistant · 2020-12 – 2021-03
- Job: Acorn9 — Founding Member, Growth & Strategy Lead · 2026-03 – present — Founding team member working across growth, market development, workflow strategy, and go-to-market for an AI-native accounting and tax firm. - researching the accounting software landscape and firm operating models to understand how accounting teams collaborate and where the biggest workflow pain points exist across intake, review, handoff, routing, and client communication - shaping landing page and go-to-market strategy, and building multiple landing page versions to test positioning across different niche markets and customer segments - leading both B2B and B2C customer discovery through direct conversations with firms and end clients, developing a strong understanding of both internal…
- Job: Think Academy US — Marketing Growth Intern - TikTok · 2022-11 – 2023-03
- Job: XATRIX — Founding Growth & GTM Lead · 2026-06 – present — Leading XATRIX's go-to-market and brand growth across North America Building the full marketing engine from brand strategy to community to demand generation for an emerging AI-native luxury category. · Brand & GTM strategy — Defined XATRIX's brand positioning and go-to-market strategy from the ground up, shaping the story, audience, and channel mix that introduce AI-native fine jewelry to the market. · Experiential & event marketing — Curated pop-up experiences, summits, and brand activations, and represented XATRIX at trade shows and industry exhibitions — turning in-person moments into brand awareness and a qualified VIP pipeline. · Lifestyle brand collaborations — Built co-branded partn…
- Job: Mars — Graduate Marketing Consultant · 2024-06 – 2024-08 — Contributed to the growth strategy for a $50B global leader in Confectionery, Pet Care, and Food Products: -Developed three global "big idea" territories in experience innovation aimed at driving 20% growth for M&M’s by 2030. -Uncovered key consumer insights around brand experience, M&M’s identity, and snacking behaviors. -Conducted cross-industry and global market case studies to fuel strategic thinking. -Co-led the creation of a comprehensive marketing strategy with activation across multiple brand touchpoints. -Provided strategic recommendations to expand personalization within the brand experience. -Established a measurement framework to assess and optimize brand experiences.
- Job: Zhejiang Hongyuan Law Firm — Assistant Lawyer · 2019-03 – 2019-08
- Job: The Volunteer Center — Strategic Marketing Consultant · 2024-02 – 2024-06 — Enhance digital visibility to increase volunteer engagement and amplify organizational impact. Key Responsibilities and Achievements: SEO Strategy: -Developed a keyword pyramid utilizing Semrush to optimize both on-page and off-page SEO. Consultations: -Coordinated with web design agencies to improve the organization’s digital presence. Social Media & Email Marketing: -Created a comprehensive social media strategy and designed Instagram post templates to elevate engagement. -Developed a Mailchimp newsletter template to streamline the Volunteer Center’s email marketing campaigns. Google Analytics: -Delivered a detailed tutorial and toolkit to facilitate data-driven decision-making for web tr…
- Job: AB InBev — Trade Marketing Specialist · 2022-07 – 2022-09
- Job: Pengi.ai — Founding Product & Growth Lead · 2025-01 – 2026-06 — ·Led 0→1 product and growth strategy, defining positioning, core user experience, and go-to-market approach for an AI-powered K–8 learning platform ·Drove early-stage acquisition from 0 to 3K+ registered users, building a full-funnel growth system reaching 100K–150K+ parents, students, and educators across paid, organic, and community channels ·Synthesized insights from 150+ user interviews to refine product-market fit, shape product direction, and guide roadmap prioritization ·Led continuous product iteration and optimization, benchmarking against existing learning tools and improving key experiences including AI tutor interactions, gamification, and learning flows ·Designed and scaled a m…
- School: Northwestern University — Master's degree, integrated marketing communication
- School: Santa Clara University Leavey School of Business — Bachelor of Science - BS, Marketing
- School: Santa Clara University — Marketing
- School: Hangzhou High School — High School Diploma
- School: Northwestern University — Master of Science - MS, Integrated Marketing Communication
Skills
Playbooks
All playbooks →No playbooks indexed for this profile yet.
More GTM Engineers
Browse all →- Soumil KarAll things marketing & b2b
Locad
ex-AIESEC - Alexandra NikolaouSenior GTM Enablement Specialist | Revenue Enablement | Learning Strategy | Sales Excellence | Building scalable onboarding & enablement programs
Holistic Retreat
ex-Preply
- Andréa F.Revenue Operations | GTM Engineering | Remote-First, the rest later | AIFFractional GTM Engineering Projects
ex-BRITVIC EBBA
- Nisarg DaveSales & Sales Transformation | GTM strategy & Trade Marketing | Capability Building
Marico Limited
ex-Mars
