A Product Market Fit Show | Startup Podcast for Founders

He got 100k signups in 30 days. They all churned. 2 years later, he hit $10M ARR. | Rich White, Founder of Fathom

In this episode, Rich breaks down the wild story of Fathom's launch. He reveals how they secured a prime spot on the Zoom Marketplace and generated 100,000 signups in 30 days—only to realize 99.9% of them were useless.  He discusses the pivot to monetization when the market crashed, how to design a product for viral loops, and why staying in private beta for 10 months was the best decision he ever made. Why You Should Listen * Why getting 100,000 signups in a single month nearly killed the company. * How to use the "Iceberg Strategy" to build a defensible moat. * Why you should attack the "800-pound gorilla" incumbent. * How to hit $100k ARR by selling a roadmap that doesn't exist yet. * The "Visible Feature" mechanic that drives zero-cost viral growth in B2B. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, viral growth, product market fit, AI startup, freemium strategy, Zoom marketplace, PLG, B2B sales, Fathom 00:00:00 Intro 00:03:14 Why Sales Reps Hated Gong 00:07:54 Betting on Transcription Costs Going to Zero 00:11:52 The 10 Month Private Beta Strategy 00:17:46 The Zoom Marketplace Launch 00:19:52 100k Signups and Zero Growth 00:26:39 Selling a Roadmap to Hit 100k ARR 00:33:53 The Viral Loop of Visible Bots 00:36:12 Why Enterprise Sales Was a Trap 00:39:51 The Moment of True Product Market Fit Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]

He grew his startup to $150M ARR & an IPO. Now he's back for the AI wave. | Bob Tinker, Founder of MobileIron & BlueRock

Bob is a serial entrepreneur who founded MobileIron, grew it to $150M in revenue, and took it public. Now, he's back with his fourth startup, BlueRock, tackling the next massive wave: agentic AI security. In this episode, Bob breaks down the distinct difference between finding Product-Market Fit and finding Go-To-Market Fit—and why confusing the two can kill your company.  He shares the exact questions he asked early customers to pivot from a generic mobile idea to a billion-dollar enterprise solution, the painful transition from founder-led sales to a repeatable playbook, and why he believes agentic AI is the "mobile wave" all over again. Why You Should Listen * Why asking "what else is bothering you?" can uncover real pain points. * Why finding Product-Market Fit might actually increase your burn rate. * Why founder-led sales often fail to scale and what to do about it. * How to use a "Deal Grind" session to turn anecdotal sales wins into a scientific Go-To-Market machine. * Why identifying the right tech wave matters more than your initial idea. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, go to market fit, enterprise sales, founder led sales, mobileiron, agentic AI, cybersecurity startup, bob tinker 00:00:00 Intro 00:03:17 Talk to Customers Before Writing Code 00:15:28 Why Finding PMF Can Increase Burn Without Growth 00:17:51 The Founder "Magic Pixie Dust" Trap 00:25:34 The Deal Grind Exercise 00:31:43 From 1M to 80M ARR in 4 Years 00:32:54 Why Agentic AI is the Next Mobile Wave 00:38:30 The Famous Sequoia Tombstone Meeting 00:40:17 The Magic Question: What Else is Bothering You? Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]

How his AI-enabled Services startup hit $1M ARR in just 3 months. | Shahar Peled, Founder of Terra Security

In less than 12 months, Shahar went from an idea to a $30M Series A and a team of 40. He didn't sell another AI tool—he built an AI-first service that replaced expensive human consultants in the massive pen-testing market. In this episode, Shahar breaks down the "Service-as-Software" playbook that allowed him to hit $1M ARR in just three months. He reveals how to convert design partners into paying customers before the product is finished, why he refuses to sell to service providers, and how to achieve a 40% SQL-to-Close rate in the enterprise. Why You Should Listen * How to hit $1M ARR in a single quarter with zero marketing spend. * Why asking "Would you use this?" is useless and the one question that actually validates demand. * Why "Service-as-Software" is the single best business model for AI startups * How to maintain a 100% win rate against competitors in live bake-offs. * The ultimate litmus test for knowing if you have true Product-Market Fit. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, finding pmf, agentic AI, cybersecurity startup, B2B sales strategy, service as software, rapid scaling, Felicis 00:00:00 Intro 00:04:06 Why Manual Pen Testing is Broken 00:15:42 Ideation and The Wallet Test 00:22:38 How to Convert Design Partners to Paid 00:28:05 40 Percent SQL to Close Rate 00:33:14 The Service as Software Business Model 00:46:06 Hitting 1M ARR in One Quarter 00:48:50 Raising a 30M Series A from Felicis 00:50:01 The Turn It Off PMF Test Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]

He hit $1M ARR with just 2 people. 2 years later, he's worth $1.5B. | Ashwin Sreenivas, Co-Founder of Decagon

Ashwin built a $1.5B company in two years. He didn't do it with a massive team or a complex 5-year roadmap. He did it by ignoring "strategy" and talking to 100+ buyers until he found a problem so painful they would pay six figures for a solution that didn't fully exist yet. In this episode, Ashwin breaks down the exact playbook Decagon used to go from zero to unicorn. He reveals why he refused to hire anyone until $1M ARR, how to differentiate in a crowded AI market, and why your customers are the only roadmap you’ll ever need. Why You Should Listen * How to hit $1M ARR in 6 months with just two founders and zero employees. * The "Willingness to Pay" test: How to know if a customer will sign a $150k check. * Why "over-thinking" your strategy is the fastest way to kill your startup. * How to close massive enterprise deals before you have a full product. * Why going vertical is often the wrong move for AI startups. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, finding pmf, B2B sales, enterprise sales, AI startup, customer discovery, pricing strategy, early stage growth 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:56 Selling His First AI Startup to Scale 00:09:11 Why Founders Over Intellectualize Strategy 00:13:48 How to Get 100 Customer Interviews 00:15:10 The 150k Willingness to Pay Test 00:21:05 Hitting 1M ARR with Zero Employees 00:25:09 Ignoring Scalability to Win Early Customers 00:31:43 Defensibility in the Gen AI Era 00:39:42 Mocking APIs to Close Enterprise Deals 00:42:58 The Moment of True Product Market Fit Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]

His 1st startup failed. His 2nd became a unicorn in just 18 months. | Jake Stauch, Founder of Serval

Jake founded Serval in April 2024— by Dec 2025 he'd raised a $75M Series B from Sequoia at a $1B valuation. He didn't look for a "wedge" or a "niche." He looked at ServiceNow—a $160B, 20+ year-old incumbent that everyone IT team relies on—and rebuilt it from the ground up in a YEAR.  In this episode, Jake reveals the audacity behind building a full-platform replacement from Day 1, why he spent months building in the dark with zero revenue, and how he achieved a 50% demo-to-close rate on six-figure enterprise deals. Why You Should Listen * How to go from incorporation to a $1B valuation in just 18 months. * The psychological shift in sales calls that proves PMF. * How to build a demo so compelling that 50% buy on the spot. * Why you no longer need to find a small wedge to win post Gen AI. * The specific question that stops customers from giving you generic feedback. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, hypergrowth, zero to one, unicorn startup, Sequoia Capital, replacing legacy software, enterprise sales strategy, ServiceNow competitor, Jake Stauch 00:00:00 Intro 00:03:25 Why "Hair on Fire" Problems Matter 00:06:58 Learning What Winning Feels Like at Verkada 00:14:05 100+ Customer Discovery Calls 00:18:12 The One Question That Unlocks Real Pain 00:23:48 Why No-Code Workflows Fail 00:28:45 Taking Risks on AI Model Improvements 00:35:49 From $0 to Six-Figure ACVs in 6 Months 00:39:00 The Strategy to Rip and Replace ServiceNow 00:47:30 The "Rounding Up" Signal of PMF Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]