Category Visionaries

Yarden Shaked, CEO, and Founder at Varos: $4M Raised to Revolutionize Competitive Analytics and Break Data Silos

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 Yarden Shaked, CEO and Founder of Varos, a data analytics platform that has raised $4 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
Identifying the Problem: Varos addresses the lack of comparative data analytics for e-commerce and SaaS companies by allowing them to benchmark key metrics like customer acquisition cost and retention rate against similar businesses.
Give to Get Model: The platform's value proposition is built on a cooperative model where users must share their data to access aggregated and anonymized insights from others, creating a robust data ecosystem.
YC Experience: Yarden highlights the intensity and value of Y Combinator, emphasizing the importance of staying lean, focusing on growth, and the crucial lessons learned from interacting with other talented founders.
Category Creation: Varos is pioneering the competitive data analytics category, offering unique insights that traditional analytics tools lack, thereby requiring significant market education and evangelism.
Navigating Challenges: Building a new category involves overcoming significant hurdles, including customer education and validating the hypothesis that businesses need and will benefit from comparative analytics.
Future Vision: Yarden is motivated by the challenge of proving the Varos hypothesis, expanding the user base, and scaling the team to establish a new standard in data analytics.
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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

Paul Lewis, CEO of Calamu: $20 Million Raised to Build the Cyber Storage Category

In today’s episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Paul Lewis, CEO of Calamu, about his career solving problems in the cyber economy, and why the Calamu approach of securing private assets in the public domain of the cloud is the future of security for our data. The reality is that ransomware attacks and data breaches happen, so instead of promising more than they can deliver, Calamu focuses on taking the right action in the critical moments after data has been compromised to make sure their clients can quickly and effectively recover.
By developing a new ‘cyberstorage’ category in the security space, Calamu are differentiating themselves from the competition, breaking through the supercrowded industry’s background noise, and establishing themselves as a major market player, while retaining a community-oriented ethic to help solve the collective challenge of keeping our data safe.
Topics Discussed:
The roots of insecurity in cyberspace, and why easy communication left the door wide open for breaches
The modern cybersecurity landscape, and why constant evolution is driving a security arms race
Why cyberattacks are inevitable these days, and how companies can respond to the threat
How Paul Lewis’ dog was responsible for Calamu’s big business idea
Why the cloud is the new public domain, and what it means for the future of cybersecurity
How Calamu finds its niche in a crowded marketplace of security solutions
Why punitive measures are likely not the right cybersecurity solution, and how community-minded approaches can build real resilience
 
Favorite book: 
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don't

Gary Lewis, CEO & Co-Founder of Resourcify: $15 Million Raised to Build the Future of Recycling Management

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 Gary Lewis, Co-Founder & CEO of Resourcify, a digital waste management platform that has raised over €15 Million in funding.
Here are the most Interesting Points from the Conversation:
The Circular Economy's Impact: Gary emphasizes the role of circularity in achieving net-zero CO2 targets by 2050, stating that up to 50% of these targets will come from recycling and waste management.
Tackling Waste Management Complexity: Resourcify aims to simplify the waste management process for large enterprises, making recycling more manageable and turning it into a potential revenue stream.
Early Stage Funding Dynamics: Gary shares insights on the European venture capital landscape, noting its maturity and the ample opportunities for climate tech investments.
Adoption and Growth: Resourcify has €150 million worth of waste under management, with plans to double this number in the next 12 to 18 months, making it the fastest-growing recycling platform in Europe.
Navigating Market Resistance: Despite resistance from established waste management players, Resourcify focuses on adding value and fostering innovation to disrupt the industry.
Future Vision: Gary envisions Resourcify becoming the "reverse Amazon" for waste management, providing a holistic solution for companies to manage and recycle their waste efficiently.
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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
 

Achuthanand Ravi, CEO of Kula: $14 Million Raised to Build the Future of Recruiting

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Achuthanand Ravi, CEO of Kula, a global-facing tech-forward recruitment automation platform helping recruiters across a whole range of industries manage their workflows more efficiently. Finding himself in the recruitment space almost by accident, Achuthanand has worked his way through a whole range of tech companies, giving him insights into the challenges of recruiting top talent, and how they could be overcome through automation technology.
In little over a year, Kula has transformed from a fresh startup into a global company with interests in India and America, adopting a function-agnostic, region-agnostic and open position promising to revolutionize the rapidly transforming recruitment sector in a post-pandemic, remote working economy.
Topics Discussed:
Being successful in India without necessarily becoming an Engineer or Doctor, and how Achuthanand found his way into recruitment
How Kula engages with its clients' main recruitment channels, and how their solutions set them apart from the competition
Building a global brand from the bottom up, getting a foot hold across America and India
Why technology came so late to the HR sector compared to sales and marketing
How the uptick in HRtech promises a dynamic new global workforce
Why Kula is the only platform running a recruiter-specific solution, and why they want to make everyone in every organization a recruiter
The challenges of spread and scale for contemporary marketing, and why automation is key
 
Favorite book: 
Creative Selection: Inside Apple's Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs

Thibaut Sahagian, CEO of Multis: $9 Million Raised to Build a New Category of Software Designed to Meet the Needs of Web3 Organizations

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Thibaut Sahagian, CEO of Multis. Thibaut is an entrepreneur active in the crypto world since 2014, and could be called a true pioneer of Web3 native businesses. He’s turned his passion for B2B and SaaS strategies into a dynamic enterprise with Multis, a financial toolkit and banking services platform integrating the best solutions from across the space and helping enterprise partners sort, save, and spend crypto in ways that make sense for them. In a market dominated by greed and growth, Multis focuses on real solutions as a more sustainable, resilient strategy to see them safely through the volatility of a bull-bear business cycle.
Topics Discussed:
How being a crypto pioneer led to a B2B-focused business mindset, and what Thibaut learned in the early years of the space
Why decentralized money markets were the real game changer for crypto, and how compound protocol made all the difference
FTX finance, the effect on crypto’s long-term prospects, greed and the debate over the need for governance
The future of finance as a hybrid space between centralized and decentralized exchanges
Multis’ Web3 pitch - quick, seamless banking solutions to sort, manage and spend funds, token liquidity and more
Why a bear market today is the bull market of tomorrow, and a great time to get in on investments
Breaking through the crypto noise, and why Multis keeps to a traditional, relationship-oriented approach
Why being a market pioneer means spending time on education and constructing your own target markets
 
Favorite book: 
The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World

Jason Lavender, CEO of Electives: $10M Raised to Redefine Corporate Training

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 Jason Lavender, CEO & Co-Founder of Electives, a corporate learning platform that has raised over $10 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
Electives' Unique Approach: Electives offers interactive, live classes led by a diverse range of instructors, including FBI agents, athletes, professors, and authors, rather than traditional corporate trainers.
Engagement and Interactivity: Addressing the lack of engagement in corporate training, Electives emphasizes live, interactive sessions that allow employees to connect with peers and instructors.
Customer Profile and Traction: Initially targeting mid-sized tech companies, Electives now serves a wide range of enterprises, celebrating milestones such as 100 companies hosting classes and over $1 million paid to teachers.
Teacher Recruitment and Referrals: The platform sources instructors from varied backgrounds, often through referrals from existing teachers, ensuring a wide array of unique and engaging content.
Market Disruption and New Category: Inspired by the book "Play Bigger," Electives aims to create a new category in corporate learning, moving beyond traditional training models to offer comprehensive human development.
Future Vision: Electives aims to be a staple in every company, providing diverse learning experiences that enhance personal and professional growth, while continuing to refine their category definition.
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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
 

Vincenz Klemm, CEO of Baobab: $4 Million to Build the Future of Cyber Insurance

In today’s episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Vincenz Klemm, CEO of Baobab, about his journey from fintech to political science and back into the startup space, leading the European cyber insurance market with Baobab, a company trying to do digital security more safely. Companies get hacked more than most of us might like to think, and how well we recover depends on getting the right precautions in place. For Baobab, that could mean just a comprehensive insurance package, or going even further with a tailor-made collaboration with customers and symbiotic product learning as we grow together. It's a relatively new science in general, which is why building strong networks across sectors and in different markets is absolutely key to success.
Topics Discussed:
The problem of hacking for modern companies, and the businesses backing hacker labs all over the world
How to differentiate between different attack strategies, and why DDos is getting more sophisticated, and more population
Quantifying intangible assets - how does one account for reputation damage when it comes to calculating an insurance premium?
The fundamental needs of cyber insurance are everywhere, but not all regulatory frameworks are the same. How to expand across different markets in the short-medium term
 
Favorite book: 
A Culture of Growth: The Origins of the Modern Economy 

Casey Rosenthal, CEO of Verica: $17 Million Raised to Build the Future of Chaos Engineering

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Casey Rosenthal, CEO of Verica, about his career in digital security, making a name for himself with the concept of chaos engineering, and how he eventually took those ideas mainstream with Verica, a continuous verification platform which helps people map the limitations of their existing software solutions and make contingencies for when things go wrong. An increasingly popular concept, ‘chaos engineering’ is essentially a toolkit to experiment with a system’s critical capacity, but a great tool doesn’t always make a perfect product, and Carey explains a little bit about how commercial viability can be an engineering challenge all of its own, why continuous verification is the final piece of the DevOps revolution, and why the biggest challenge for Verica is aligning disparate development cycles.
Topics Discussed:
Chaos engineering - what does it mean? Why is it so important and what impact can it have on an enterprise tech setup
Why more and more companies are seeking to add chaos engineering to their approach, and why it’s already popular in fintech
Why diversity is key for modern tech companies, driving better performance and ultimately more success
Continuous verification and the DevOps revolution - where does this new category stand in the story?
How harmonizing schedules between different departments can be a real challenge for a company looking to expand
 
Favorite book: 
What Works: Gender Equality by Design

Hersh Tapadia, CEO of Allstacks: $16 Million Raised to Build the Value Stream Intelligence Category

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Hersh Tapadia, CEO of Allstacks, about his journey between disciplines to eventually develop a value stream intelligence platform to close the development gap between software companies and their clients in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector. Navigating the very different approaches of RnD-release and constant evolution takes a great deal of highly coordinated communication, and Allstacks integrates seamlessly within an existing workstream, providing insights, indicators, and alerts to make sure you always know what’s going on. More than just helping us predict and respond to problems coming down the pipeline, the Allstacks approach provides employees with the storytelling tools they need to deliver context, advocate key positions and assert impact over a team, department or entire organization.
Topics Discussed:
An intersectional career between engineering and biomedicine, how Hersh found a career between disciplines
Stakeholder expectations, unexpected challenges and what ‘delivering’ really means
Solving the surprise issue, and why everyone wants to plan for an anticipated outcome
Harmony, building teams, and why individual accomplishment isn’t enough for success
Why value stream intelligence gives employees the tools to create a more satisfying, meaningful workplace experience
 
Favorite book: 
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

James Hawkins, CEO of PostHog: $21 Million Raised to Build the Future of Product Analytics

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with James Hawkins,  Co-Founder and CEO of PostHog, about what makes startups so exciting, and how to make a successful business in the digital era. By leveraging a strong commitment to PNG and flexible approach to development through their open source product operating platform, PostHog integrated the needs of their customers with a stellar business proposal, driving opportunities to innovate and grow together as a community.
Topics Discussed:
How finance became startups - how James fell into the world of start-up enterprises from a career in investment banking
Why not everyone is happy about the digital transition, and why some companies prefer to keep their data offline
Why 'slow and steady' is still relevant for stable growth in the market, even today
PLG as a core business strategy, and why a transition to big enterprise might require a revised sales strategy
The power of feedback in building a customer profile before going overboard with staff spending.
 
Favorite book: 
No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention