Category Visionaries

Yingjun Wu, CEO and Co-Founder of RisingWave Labs: $40 Million Raised to Make Stream Processing Simple, Affordable, and Accessible

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Yingjun Wu, CEO and Co-Founder of RisingWave Labs, a SQL stream processing platform that's raised $40 Million in funding, about why it’s time for a better way to leverage the potential of their data. Offering real-time insights, simplified with advanced SQL processing, RisingWave Labs helps their clients make actionable decisions based on the most up-to-date information available.
We also speak about Yingjun’s background as a software engineer working at big-name brands like Amazon and IBM, the significance of SQL as a tool for data analysis and a way to garner attention for their product, the challenges RisingWave Labs have experienced in their business growth journey, and why they prioritize education and user-friendly experiences.
Topics Discussed:
Yingjun’s background as a software engineer, and the lessons he brought from some of the sector’s biggest names as RisingWave Labs’ CEO
RisingWave Labs product offering of SQL stream processing for real-time data, and what it means for their clients
How using the ‘trendy’ programming language ‘Rust’ helped RisingWave Labs generate growth even before they deployed a real marketing campaign
The challenge of dealing with a wide variety of potential customer priorities, and how to allocate resources in response
Why RisingWave Labs maintains a focus on education and user-friendly experiences to drive sustained adoption
 
Favorite book: 
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Martin Einemo, CEO and Co-Founder of Insurely: €22 Million Raised to Power the Future of Open Insurance

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Martin Einemo, CEO and Co-Founder of Insurely, an open insurance platform that's raised €22 Million in funding, about why so many of us lack true understanding of how the insurance industry operates, and why that’s a problem for both providers and their customers. By empowering insurance customers to access their data from the companies who cover them, Insurely helps people find the policies which really work for them, and ultimately provide a win-win solution for everyone involved.
We also speak about Martin’s long career in the insurance industry, and how that made him aware of both technological shortcomings and customer frustration, what ‘open insurance’ really means, how angel investors provided the real impetus to find a marketable offering, and why, for Insurely, that ultimately turned out to be in the B2B space.
Topics Discussed:
Martin’s long career in the insurance industry across multiple European markets, and the insights it gave him into how it could be improved
Why the information gap between customers and their insurance providers is such a major problem for the sector, and what can be done about it
‘Open insurance’ as the defining concept for Insurely, and how they are empowering customers through access to data
Rise and fall in the insuretech space, and how Insurely manages to rise above the background noise
 How transitioning from a B2C app to a B2B platform helped Insurely overcome scalability and revenue generation challenges
 
Favorite book: 
The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesse

Michael Konialian, Co-Founder and CEO of Modern Life: $15 Million Raised to Build the Tech-Enabled Insurance Brokerage of the Future

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Michael Konialian, Co-Founder and CEO of Modern Life, a tech-enabled insurance brokerage that’s raised over $15 Million in funding, about how a lack of clarity and access to information in the life insurance space can leave people at a loss, and how Modern Life is hoping to bring a better model of insurance brokerage to the sector. By partnering with leading carriers, putting advisors first, and deploying strategic data analytics to help guide clients to the right choices, Modern Life helps everyone make complex financial decisions with care.
We also speak about Michael’s background and journey to becoming a CEO and Co-Founder, the challenges of the insurance sector and the potential for technology to radically improve things, why advisors will always remain key to the business model, and how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed everyone’s attitude to integrating new technologies.
 
Topics Discussed:
Michael’s career background in the brokerage and technology space, consulting, sales and startups
The personal experience with life insurance that helped Michael identify the need for change in the sector
The power of data in the insurance brokerage space, and why more information is helping us make better decisions than ever before
How the pandemic drove the digital transformation of the insurance industry, and what it means for brokers and customers alike
The regulatory challenges confronting startups across multiple sectors, and why getting ahead of the red tape really matters
Why Modern Life envisions building a long-term community between the advisors at the center of the insurance industry
 
Favorite book: 
The Lean Startup

Taylor Lint, CEO and Founder of Swantide: $7 Million Raised to Revolutionize How Companies Design and Build Their GTM Infrastructure

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Taylor Lint, CEO and Founder of Swantide, a go to market technology platform that's raised $7 Million in funding, about why so many companies find managing their CRM such a headache, and how Swantide plans to make every aspect of the process simpler and more straightforward. With processes designed with engineering and sales operations best practices already in mind, rigorously testing performed before they reach potential clients, Swantide brings the expertise of an in-house salesforce engineer at a fraction of the cost.
We also talk about Talyor's background in software engineering and her experiences working at LinkedIn and Alphabet, her passion for improving vital processes through the power of data, the importance of the ‘go-to-market stack,’ why Swantide felt the need to build upon what salesforce is capable of delivering, and why they decided to focus on problem-solving over building a brand new market category.
Topics Discussed:
Taylor’s software engineering background, and the lessons she brought to Swantide from some of the biggest names in tech
Why Taylor is so passionate about the power of data to drive change and innovation in some of the most important aspects of modern life
Swantide’s decision to focus on the ‘go-to-market stack,’ building upon salesforce to provide better experiences for their clients
Overcoming potential feelings of competition with existing consultants, and how Swantide helps them to work more efficiently
The lack of a clearly defined ‘category’ for what Swantide offers to clients, and why they’ve chosen to focus purely on problem-solving
 
Favorite book: 
The Design of Everyday Things

Andreas Cleve, CEO and Co-Founder of Corti: $32 Million Raised to Power the Future of Patient Consultations

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Andreas Cleve, CEO and Co-Founder of Corti, a patient consultations platform that's raised $32 Million in funding, about why so much important information from patient consultations is underutilized and ultimately wasted, and how Corti plans to change all that. By activating the data produced by every patient-provider interaction via a bleeding-edge ai platform, Corti’s mission is to give healthcare professionals a set of supportive tools that transcend today's time-consuming technologies.
We also speak about the personal experiences which helped draw Andreas into the healthcare space, transitioning from the technology sector, his first forays with AI and chatbot technologies, and how being an industry thought-leader means dealing with regulation as you move to build a new market modality.
 
Topics Discussed:
Andreas’ very personal experience which led him to take an interest in healthcare, and why he believes many people have similar stories
Transitioning from the technology sector to establish himself as a healthcare entrepreneur, and how it feels to be a founder
Andreas’ first forays into the AI space with Obvio, a chatbot for healthcare facilities
Why timing is critical to startup success, and how it influences market alignment for new businesses
The reality of working with regulators as a thought leader in any industry, and the differences between the European and US market

Andrew Scheuermann, CEO of Arch Systems: $25 Million Raised to Help Organizations Unlock Factory Data to Drive Factory Improvements

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Andrew Scheuermann, CEO of Arch Systems, a machine data and analytics company that's raised $25 Million in funding, about the struggles people all over the world face with accessing the tools and resources necessary to build truly smart solutions. Powered by rich machine data, the Arch Systems FX Platform has been developed to automatically surface actionable insights for manufacturing operations, driving better decisions at every level of an organization, whatever they’re trying to achieve.
We also talk about Andrew's background in engineering, machine building, and entrepreneurship, what it was like striking out on his own to found and lead a tech startup, what manufacturing optimization really means in practice, and how a late-stage pivot from horizontal developer to vertical analytics helped Arch Systems secure their elusive product-market fit.
Topics Discussed:
Andrew's background in engineering, machine building, and entrepreneurship, and what it means for his current business
Making the transition to being a founder and CEO, and the business leaders which inspired his journey
What manufacturing optimization and machine data analytics means for those pursuing innovative solutions all over the world
Why Arch Systems initially struggled to secure a product-market fit, and the strategic pivot which turned everything around for them
The future of where Andrew sees the company, from new materials to expanding into new markets
 
Favorite book: 
Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies

Robert Kozikowski, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer of Tensorflight: $7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Commercial Property Inspections

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Robert Kozikowski, Chief Product Officer of Tensorflight, a property intelligence platform that's raised nearly $7 Million in funding, about why having eyes in the sky is providing critical value insights for people working in the property sector. Having honed their offering from drone analytics for agriculture to a more focused offering deploying satellite imagery and machine intelligence to inspect properties at scale for their clients, Tensorflight is helping people across the world get a better understanding of what their portfolio is really worth.
We also speak about Robert’s background in software engineering for some of the biggest names in tech, why data is so important for the financial sector, how scaling up brings exponential benefits when it comes to knowledge, and how Tensorflight differentiates itself from potential competitors to carve out a niche in a fairly crowded market.
Topics Discussed:
Robert’s software engineering past and what it was like working at Google
The inspiration for Tensorflight and how the company evolved through several different iterations
 Why satellites came to replace drones as the technology at the heart of Tensorflight’s offering
How data came to be one of the most important decision-making tools across the insurance sector
How Tensorflight differentiates itself from competitors in the property assessment space with a more comprehensive technology offering
 
Favorite book: 
Underwriting Commercial Property

Reed Switzer, CEO of Hopscotch: $10M to Build the Future of B2B Payments For SMBs

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we chat with Reed Switzer, CEO of Hopscotch, an all-in-one B2B payments platform. Reed talks about his unconventional start in the B2B payments space, and how Hopscotch enables customers to achieve a frictionless payment experience by streamlining invoicing, bill pay, and cash flow management.
Reed also shares his thoughts on the growth and traction the company has experienced since its launch and how they’ve been able to "rise above the noise" in a competitive market. Reed believes that building trust with customers is crucial for success. And having a high level of conviction in what you're building, and maintaining transparency are key to building a successful brand. Hopscotch achieves this through a strong brand identity, storytelling, and providing valuable content beyond their core offering.
 
Topics Discussed:
How Reed came up with the idea for Hopscotch after seeing the challenges faced by most B2B companies using antiquated payments platforms and systems that came up short
How Hopscotch works to eliminate friction in the payment process by automating invoicing, streamlining communication between clients and vendors, and making it easy to manage cash flow
Reed’s experience in starting a business venture at a young age and how this helped him develop resilience and adaptability.
Reed’s thoughts on maintaining a balance between vision and adaptability - the importance of staying true to your vision while being open to evolving and adapting to changes in the market.
How Hopscotch aims to create its own market category by focusing on business profiles and innovative features that cater to the specific needs of their target audience.
Reed’s vision for Hopscotch on becoming the control tower for small business finances, simplifying the entire finance stack, and fostering a strong community among its users.
 
Favorite book: 
Rise and Kill First: The Secret History of Israel's Targeted Assassinations

Mollie Breen, CEO and Co-Founder of Perygee: $6.4 Million Raised to Build the Future of IT/OT Security

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Mollie Breen, CEO and Co-Founder of Perygee, an IoT/OT security platform that's raised $6.4 Million in funding, about why so many security teams often find themselves making critical decisions about their IoT and OT device security using imperfect information, and the vulnerabilities that can ultimately cause for companies. With an innovative solution unifying reams of scattered, unstructured data into a single space compounded by custom workflows to supercharge productivity, Perygee is putting the power of decisions back in the hands of those who need it most.
We also speak about Molly’s background at the NSA and what it taught her about the vulnerabilities of IoT and operational technology devices, how that insight eventually led to her founding Perygee, and why they made a conscious decision not to follow the trend of selling based on fear.
Topics Discussed:
Molly’s background as a mathematician working at the NSA, and how the experience exposed her to the vulnerabilities of IoT devices
The risks posed by networked devices like security cameras, HVAC systems, and access controls, and why they need to be addressed
Perygee’s solution deploying contextual information about device operation, assisting in identifying and remediating key vulnerabilities
How engaging with CISOs involved directly in security operations helped Perygee establish credibility and trust in their market
The Perygee marketing approach, eschewing dark colors and the established model of selling ‘based on fear’

How B2B Market Categories Are Created with G2’s Godard Abel (Behind the Category)

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Godard Abel, Co-Founder and CEO of G2, the world's largest and most trusted software marketplace tracking over 2100 software categories.
Topics Discussed:
The founding story of G2
The problems with traditional analyst firms
How G2 has built a foundation on trust
How categories are created at G2
How G2 is leveraging AI and what’s coming next
Godards number one piece of advice for B2B founders looking to create a market category