What Investors Actually Look For In Founders | Dan Teran & James Gettinger

What Investors Actually Look For In Founders | Dan Teran & James Gettinger

Most founders think investors are looking for the perfect idea. They're not. At the earliest stages, investors are really trying to answer a much harder question: Is this founder capable of building something extraordinary? In this episode of Verticals, Luke and Nic sit down with Dan Teran and James Gettinger of Gutter Capital to unpack exactly how they evaluate founders before there's meaningful revenue, traction, or even a finished product. They break down: -Why resourcefulness beats pedigree -What "founder-market fit" actually means -How customer obsession separates great founders from everyone else -Why evidence beats storytelling every time -The founder traits they consistently see in breakout companies 🎟️ TICKETS DROPPED. Vertical Software Summit — 5-billion-dollar Vertical AI CEOs confirmed to speak. Snag a ticket before they're gone. 👉 FOLLOW DAN TERANLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/danteran 👉 FOLLOW JAMES GETTINGERLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-gettinger-452a228X ➡️ https://x.com/chess_is_ok 👉 FOLLOW LUKE SOPHINOSX ➡️ https://x.com/lukesophinosLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukesophinos/NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://www.newsletter.lukesophinos.com/ 👉 FOLLOW NIC POULOSX ➡️ https://x.com/picnoulosLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/npoulos/NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://insights.euclid.vc/ 🎬 TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 03:59 Why Gutter Capital was built differently 06:04 Resourcefulness beats pedigree every time 10:10 The traits that predict exceptional founders 17:12 How VCs really reference-check founders 28:17 The most surprising startups in their accelerator 34:52 The final advice every founder should hear If you enjoyed this episode, drop a comment and hit subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next!

The Next AI Giants Will Be Both Consumer and Enterprise (Here’s Why) | Nikhil Basu Trivedi

For years, venture capital forced founders into boxes. You were either a consumer company or an enterprise company. But some of the biggest companies in the world never followed those rules. Today, the line between consumer and enterprise is becoming harder to see… and AI may be accelerating that shift. OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google are moving faster than anyone expected. And for many startups, the biggest risk isn't competition from another startup, it's building directly into the AI kill zone. In this episode of Verticals, Luke and Nic sit down with Nikhil Basu Trivedi, Co-Founder and GP of Footwork VC, to discuss how founders can build defensible companies in an era dominated by foundation models, and why the next generation of category-defining companies may need to win both consumers and enterprises at the same time. They unpack some of the biggest questions facing founders right now: -Is the line between consumer and enterprise disappearing? -What actually creates a moat in the AI era? -How do you avoid building directly into the kill zone of OpenAI and Anthropic? -Which overlooked industries are ripe for AI transformation? 👉 FOLLOW NIKHIL BASU TRIVEDI LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilbt X ➡️ https://x.com/nbt 👉 FOLLOW LUKE SOPHINOS X ➡️ https://x.com/lukesophinos LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukesophinos/ NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://www.newsletter.lukesophinos.com/ 👉 FOLLOW NIC POULOS X ➡️ https://x.com/picnoulos LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/npoulos/ NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://insights.euclid.vc/ 🎬 TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 03:16 The venture thesis behind Footwork VC 05:11 Why the best companies win consumers and enterprises 13:05 Should founders focus or expand faster in AI? 24:40 Network effects, moats, and what still matters in AI 31:14 The biggest opportunities in 2026 35:12 Avoiding the AI kill zone 40:27 What makes a vertical AI market worth pursuing? 42:38 The hottest AI companies in 202 49:17 Final lessons for founders building in the AI era

The New Rules for Building Vertical AI | Kyle Lui

The biggest problem in AI isn't building the product. It's staying relevant six months later. Models improve every month. New competitors appear every week. And switching costs are lower than most founders want to admit. So what actually creates a moat? In this episode of Verticals, Luke and Nic sit down with Kyle Lui from Bling Capital to break down the new rules for product-market fit, market sizing, and defensibility in the AI era. They also cover: -Why AI-native companies are growing faster than SaaS ever did -Why some of the best opportunities now look “too niche” for traditional VC -How AI is changing org charts, hiring, and management itself If you are building, investing, or trying to understand where vertical AI is actually headed, this is a sharp tactical breakdown of what matters now(and what probably won’t matter anymore). 👉 FOLLOW KYLE LUI LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylelui 👉 FOLLOW LUKE SOPHINOS X ➡️ https://x.com/lukesophinos LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukesophinos/ NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://www.newsletter.lukesophinos.com/ 👉 FOLLOW NIC POULOS X ➡️ https://x.com/picnoulos LINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/npoulos/ NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://insights.euclid.vc/ 🎬 TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 03:26 The frameworks top investors use to spot breakout startups 07:19 What product-market fit actually means now 13:12 Why “AI services” are changing software economics 18:05 The hardest question in AI 24:36 The hidden advantage of routing across multiple models 31:04 Are AI models becoming a commodity? 35:47 How AI companies tap into labor budgets 39:16 Why “too niche” markets might become massive in AI 40:23 Will vertical AI become winner-take-all like SaaS? 45:14 The biggest mistake investors are making right now 52:21 The niche AI market that surprised even their LPs If you enjoyed this episode, drop a comment and hit subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next!

Why Voice AI Could Change Software Forever | Mike Droesch

Everyone thinks AI will change software through chat. But the biggest shift might actually happen through voice. Because when humans stop typing and start talking to AI naturally, the amount of context, emotion, and real-world data flowing into software explodes. And that changes everything. In this episode of Verticals, Mike Droesch from Bessemer Venture Partners breaks down why voice AI is becoming one of the most important layers in vertical software. And we also go deep on what is actually happening inside the Voice AI boom: -Why voice agents are finally good enough to use in production -How AI voice infrastructure became a massive opportunity -Why regulated industries like healthcare and insurance are adopting faster than expected They also unpack the biggest debates in AI right now: -Is Voice AI becoming a commodity? -Where will defensibility actually come from? -Why evals, workflow ownership, and data flywheels matter more than ever If you are building in AI, SaaS, healthcare, fintech, or customer support, this episode is one of the clearest breakdowns of where Voice AI is headed next. 🎬 TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Why Voice AI could transform software forever 03:15 The infrastructure powering the Voice AI boom 06:04 Why healthcare and finance are adopting Voice AI fast 11:15 The hidden moat behind Voice AI platforms 15:34 Why humans still matter in AI voice workflows 19:45 Voice AI use cases nobody saw coming 24:26 The real future of AI interfaces 29:11 Which Voice AI markets are overcrowded… and which aren’t 34:41 How AI pricing models are changing software economics 37:53 What investors actually look for in AI startups now 41:32 The biggest mistake Voice AI founders make 42:55 Why owning the entire workflow matters 📃 TOPICS 1. Voice AI & AI Voice Agents 2. Vertical AI & Vertical SaaS 3. AI Infrastructure & Developer Platforms 4. Healthcare AI, Fintech AI & Regulated Industries 5. The Future of AI Interfaces & Conversational Software

Nic Gets Put in the Hot Seat: What’s Actually Happening in Vertical AI?

Everyone wants to build an AI company right now.But most founders are asking the wrong question.The real challenge isn’t building AI.It’s building something defensible once everyone else has access to the same models.In this episode of Verticals, the tables turn.Nic joins Vignesh Ravikumar and Brendon Schmidt from Sierra Ventures for a deep dive into what it actually takes to build and invest in vertical AI today.Nic shares lessons from nearly 15 years investing in vertical software and AI and explains why the biggest opportunities in AI aren’t just about models… they’re about workflows, distribution, and defensibility.They unpack the biggest shifts happening right now:-Why vertical AI is evolving faster than SaaS ever did-How AI-native startups are attacking incumbents-Why “speed” alone is not a moatAnd they tackle the biggest debate in tech right now:Is SaaS actually dying… or are we just watching a new generation of winners emerge?Watch until the end to find out! #verticals #startup #ai #entrepreneurship #businessideas 👉 FOLLOW VIGNESH RAVIKUMARLINKEDIN ➡️https://www.linkedin.com/in/vravikumar1 👉 FOLLOW BRENDON SCHMIDTLINKEDIN ➡️https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendonschmidt/👉 FOLLOW LUKE SOPHINOSX ➡️ https://x.com/lukesophinosLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukesophinos/NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://www.newsletter.lukesophinos.com/👉 FOLLOW NIC POULOSX ➡️ https://x.com/picnoulosLINKEDIN ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/npoulos/NEWSLETTER ➡️ https://insights.euclid.vc/🎬 TIMESTAMPS:00:00 Intro03:01 The shift from vertical SaaS to vertical AI08:18 How AI is changing the founder profile12:24 Why customer discovery matters more than ever18:55 How vertical AI startups beat incumbents28:14 Why “speed” is NOT a moat34:28 The rise of AI services businesses39:35 The vertical AI sectors investors want most42:39 How founders should position their company49:25 Is contrarian investing still alive in venture?58:59 The biggest mistakes founders make early on01:09:12 Is SaaS actually dying?If you enjoyed this episode, drop a comment and hit subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next!