Category Visionaries

Funding the Future: Rak Garg, Principal at Bain Capital Ventures

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Rak Garg, Principal at Bain Capital Ventures, a $10 Billion venture capital firm, investing primarily in early-stage cybersecurity or artificial intelligence companies, about why investing in every stage of the developer cycle is building a more efficient software ecosystem for all of us. With verticals in everything from national security to climate change, Rak sees AI-enhanced software development as being crucial to a new generation of software solutions and the companies building them.
We also speak about Rak’s upbringing in the technology hotbed of the Bay Area, how his childhood passion led him to engineering education and a career across a wide range of software solutions, the current state of venture capital and the role it has in driving innovation, and why, for a venture capital firm, there are just never enough hours in the day.
 
Topics Discussed:
Growing up in the Bay area, surrounded by technology, and an earl fascination which led to engineering school
Rak’s career across a range of tech companies before finally arriving in the venture capital space
The current state of the venture space after a depressing year for capital, and why Rak is optimistic for the future
The ‘AI+Workflow’ systems create a whole new generation of software, and the startup companies leading the way forward.
Not all customers are deep in the technology world, and how technically-minded founders need to approach them in an accessible way
Why tech startups need a clear strategy for standing out from the competition and drawing the attention they need for early-stage growth

Funding the Future with Brett Calhoun, GP at Scale VC

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Brett Calhoun, Managing Director and General Partner at Scale VC, about why investing in extraordinary founders is front and center of their business model, and what they can bring to the table to give them a boost. With an industry-agnostic, idea-to-pre-seed stage funding focus, in everything across a broad spectrum of hardware and software innovations, Scale does what their name suggests, providing insights and guidance to get tomorrow’s business leaders where they need to be.
We also speak about Brett’s background in finance, valuation and venture capital, and the vision which would ultimately see him join Scale VC, the growing tech ecosystem in the American MidWest, the firms that Scale have already helped guide towards growth and success, and the criteria they look for in the partnerships of tomorrow
 
Topics Discussed:
Brett’s background across the world of finance, and the insights he brings to the table as the MD of Scale VC
What fascinated Brett about the venture capital space, and the portfolios he’s managed over the years
The importance of local partnerships and why Scale is building together with the University of Missouri
The MidWest’s growing tech ecosystem, spearheaded by a few companies and with more to surely follow
What Scale VC looks for in its ideal founder profile, and how to prepare a world-beating pitch

Ryan Janssen, CEO and Co-Founder of Zenlytic: $5.4 Million Raised for AI-Assisted Business Intelligence to Drive Better Decisions

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Ryan Janssen, CEO and Co-Founder of Zenlytic, a business intelligence tool for commerce brands that's raised $5.4 Million in funding, about why siloed data can obscure all kinds of critical business insights, and how automation with a human touch can help everyone get a better idea of what’s going on. With an easy-to-access portal for deep diving into a company’s data, assisted by Zoe the natural language interface, Zenlytic promises enterprise-grade business intelligence and insights you can really trust.
We also speak about why Ryan considers himself a true nerd, his career moving back and forth between the engineering and venture investment space, having a front-row seat for the development of today’s large language models, why Zenlytic decided to target primarily commerce-oriented companies, and why getting their product in front of people as quickly as possible is the core of their sales strategy. 
Topics Discussed:
Ryan’s background between software engineering and the venture capital space, and why he considers himself a true ‘nerd’
Studying at ‘AI school,’ and having a front-row seat for the development of today’s iconic large language models
Why data is only as good as the tools you have to make sense of it, and the Zenlytic value proposition as a business intelligence platform
Zenlytics AI-powered data analyst and the advantage of having a fully accessible business intelligence system available 24/7
Why getting their product in front of people with a demo is Zenlytic’s preferred sales strategy, and how they make it happen
 
Favorite book: 
The Lean Startup

Roei Ganzarski, CEO of Alitheon: $30 Million Raised to Help Organizations Trace the Untraceable

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Roei Ganzarski, CEO of Alitheon, a company that builds solutions for authentication, identification, and traceability of parts, products and people, about how counterfeiting and piracy have emerged as a global challenge for businesses across almost every sector, and the new tools needed in the fight against them. By protecting their client’s products from black market competition, as well as detecting and tracking down costly fakes, Alitheon makes sure that authenticity is rewarded, the way things should be.
We also talk about Roei’s upbringing in Asia and how his father’s work in shipping took him around the world before coming back to Israel, the culture differences he’s experienced in the Pacific Northwest of America, just how ubiquitous fakes and forgeries are in the modern economy, and why making sure products are what they claim to be doesn’t just help customers, but can fight crime and save our environment as well.
Topics Discussed:
Roei’s youth spent traveling around the world with his parents before moving back to live in Israel
The culture shock of moving to the Pacific Northwest, and what it’s like adjusting to a less straight-talking culture
How Roei became fascinated with the fight against counterfeits, and the origin story of Alitheon
Why counterfeits can do more than just hurt a bottom line, and the potential impacts on workers’ rights, criminal networks, and the environment
Future prospects for consumer-grade anti counterfeit technology, and the impact it could have on society
 
Favorite book: 
Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle

Andy Mowat, CEO and Co-Founder of Gated: Over $3 Million Raised to Build Noise Cancelling Headphones for Email

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Andy Mowat, CEO and Co-Founder of Gated, a communication platform that's raised over $3 Million in funding, about why articulating your personal and professional priorities is all but essential in an increasingly noisy digital world. Forming a first line of focus-oriented defense around your online presence, Gated helps people connect with like-minded individuals through the conversations they actually want to have, while keeping your screen and your attention free from cold emails and other communications that could waste your valuable time.
We also speak about Andy’s background working across a slew of SaaS startups, what it’s like bringing an innovative idea to market, why companies getting more and more siloed ultimately harms their long-term functional efficiency, and how keeping people’s inboxes more exclusive can actually help salespeople stand out in the markets that matter most to them.
 
Topics Discussed:
Andy’s career background working on go-to-market strategies for a wide range of SaaS-oriented companies
How Andy sees modern companies becoming increasingly siloed in terms of their operations, and why that’s a problem in the long run
The Gated value proposition, and why protecting your online presence from unnecessary noise is a strategic market opportunity
Gated’s relationship with salespeople and marketers, and why Andy believes they’ll get over an early aversion to ultimately build better relationships
How Gated is changing the way people think about email, and the legacy Andy wants to leave in the startup space
 
Favorite book: 
Traction

Marcin Wyszynski, Co-Founder of Spacelift: Over $22 Million Raised to Build the Future of IaC Management

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Marcin Wyszynski, Co-Founder of Spacelift, an IAC management platform that's raised over $22 Million in funding, about how coming across a market-winning idea led him to embark on an entrepreneurial journey in SaaS. Providing a streamlined, flexible and transparent environment for development operations, Spacelift is facilitating a whole new kind of collaboration in corporate software development.
We also speak about his background as a consultant and building a career at Google, the current and future state of the Polish startup scene, how working in the early days of devops led Marcin to his market-winning idea, and why his time as a technical CEO might soon come to an end so he can focus more on product development.
Topics Discussed:
Marcin’s background in statistics and software engineering, and how he built a career at Google
How the Polish startup scene is really coming into its own, and producing globally relevant tech companies
Why building new software solutions is usually a last choice for companies, and how that impacted Marcin’s consultancy work
Why Marcin plans to transition from CEO to focus on product development as the company grows
Spacelift’s security-first approach, and how that helped them settle into a product-market fit based on trust
Why stability in software development will always take priority over shiny new technology 
 
Favorite book:
Empowered: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Products

Sohaib Zahid, CEO and Co-Founder of Railz: $15 Million Raised to Build to Accounting Data as a Service Category

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Sohaib Zahid, CEO and Co-Founder of Railz, an accounting data platform that's raised over $15 Million in funding, about why the future of finance needs access to data, and how they make sense of it for their customers. By connecting to major accounting, banking, and eCommerce platforms to provide quick access to normalized and analyzed financial data on small and medium-sized customers, Railz helps their clients make the right business-focused decisions in real-time.
We also speak about Sohaib’s background in the medical field and how he made the transition to the tech economy through the world of hardware, new data tools transforming the financial sector, why analysis and not access has been holding it back for so long, and the vital importance of integrating trust at every level of business.
Topics Discussed:
Sohaib’s background in med school and what career trajectories look like for your typical ‘Asian kid’
How he worked his way through a range of businesses before landing as the founder of Railz
The new data technology transforming the world of financial decision making
Why analysis, not access, has been holding back the finance sector, and how Railz is bringing a new depth and scope of understanding to the industry
How building trust into the way your business functions operates at multiple levels between team, product, and customer
Why small business’ decisions should be based on comprehensive analysis of the entire growth cycle
 
Favorite book: 
The Alchemist

James Evans, Co-Founder and CEO of CommandBar: $24 Million Raised to Build the Leading AI-Powered User Assistance Platform

Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech's most innovative B2B founders. In today's episode, we're speaking with James Evans, Co-Founder & CEO of CommandBar, a developer tool that's raised $24 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
Importance of Open-Ended Questions: James emphasizes the value of asking open-ended questions in customer interviews to uncover genuine insights.
Origin of CommandBar: CommandBar started as a solution to simplify a complex edtech tool, leading to the creation of a command palette that improves user experience.
Evolving Market Category: Initially positioned as a command palette as a service, CommandBar now falls under the broader category of digital adoption tools.
Landing Major Clients: James discusses how they secured impressive logos like AngelList and Gusto by positioning CommandBar as a no-brainer experiment with high ROI potential.
Competing with In-House Solutions: CommandBar's main competition often comes from companies considering building their own solutions, which James addresses by emphasizing the benefits of specialized tools.
Future Vision: James envisions CommandBar becoming a universal layer across all software, enhancing user experience and productivity on a large scale.

Virginia Klausmeier, CEO and Founder of Sylvatex: More Than $15 Million Raised to Build a Better Class of Sustainable Materials and Drive the Green Revolution

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Virginia Klausmeier, CEO and Founder of Sylvatex, a renewable nanochemistry platform that's raised more than $15 Million in funding.
Topics Discussed:
Growing up in Asia and Virginia’s unique insights into the diversity and difference which makes us what we are
Virginia’s inspirational father, and what admiration for her family gave her in terms of motivation to make a big change
Challenges and innovation in the sustainable energy sector, and why electric vehicle batteries are at the centre of a green transition
The manufacturing bottleneck standing in the way of a real sustainable transition, and how Sylvatex’ advanced materials can provide the solution
Scaling a sustainable solution, and the growth prospects for the green economy moving forward.
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Sponsors:
Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership.
www.FrontLines.io
The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe. 
www.GlobalTalent.co
 

Kevin Busque, CEO and Founder of Guideline: $339 Million Raised to Help More Small Businesses Offer Retirement Plans

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Kevin Busque, CEO and Founder of Guideline, a 401K platform for small business that's raised $339 Million in funding, about why so few employees in the US have access to a retirement plan for their autumn years, and their mission to make them more accessible and effective for everyone involved. Covering everything from payroll integrations to intuitive dashboards and intelligent advertising, Guideline gives people the power to invest in their financial future with confidence.
We also speak about Kevin’s early start in business with a highschool custom computer enterprise, his lifelong love of digital technologies and transition through the sector to become a founder, the regulatory pain that both inspired and impeded the early days of Guideline, and how technology is revolutionizing the retirement industry.
Topics Discussed:
Kevin’s lifelong love of computer technology, from a highschool business to working in firms across the sector
The early struggle to raise capital which meant Guideline almost ‘died before it started’
Why only 10% of US firms offer their employees meaningful retirement plans, and why Guideline is on a mission to change that
How technology is helping bring a new category of solutions to this long-struggling aspect of the US economy
The regulatory pain of trying to launch a startup in such a heavily regulated and slow-moving space
How working with finance engineers helped generate a wealth of actionable business ideas to work from