A Product Market Fit Show | Startup Podcast for Founders

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]

It took him 4 years to launch—then he hit $1M ARR in 30 days. | Siqi Chen, Founder of Runway

Siqi was the CEO of a hot startup doing $20M a year. Then COVID hit. Overnight, revenue went to zero. He had to lay off 95% of his staff. In the chaos of trying to save the company using broken spreadsheets, he found his next big idea: Runway. But the path wasn't a straight line. Siqi spent four years building the product before fully launching.  In this episode, he breaks down why product taste matters more than A/B testing, and the insane viral launch strategy that overwhelmed his sales team and generated $1M ARR in a single month. Why You Should Listen * How a viral marketing campaign added $1M ARR in just 30 days. * Why "user love" is a trap. * Why it took 4 years of building in the dark to create the "Figma for Finance." * How to mentally survive losing 95% of your revenue and staff overnight. * Why startups are a test of stamina, not intelligence. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, viral marketing, fintech, financial modeling, finding pmf, startup growth, founder stories, Siqi Chen 00:00:00 Intro 00:04:09 The COVID Crash: From $20M to $0 ARR 00:20:36 The V1 Trap: Great UI, Zero Willingness to Pay 00:36:25 The 4 Year Build: Comparing to Figma and Notion 00:46:53 The Viral Time Locked Jacket Launch 00:53:04 Adding 1M ARR in 30 Days 00:53:45 The PMF Moment Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]

Solo Episode: B2B SaaS is dead. Here's what the best AI founders are doing instead.

The startup game has completely changed. If you are still building with the 2018-2022 B2B SaaS playbook, you are already behind.  In this episode, we break down exactly how the GenAI shift has altered value creation, competition, and business models forever. This isn’t just about adding AI to your product—it’s about rethinking your entire reason to exist.  If you want to know where the massive, uncrowded opportunities are right now (and why Service-as-Software is the next gold rush), this is your blueprint. Why You Should Listen * Why "incremental value" startups are no longer fundable. * The 3 new threats killing your "time-to-market" moat. * Why the B2B SaaS playbook is dead and what’s replacing it. * The massive "Service-as-Software" opportunity most founders are missing. * Moving beyond "per seat" pricing: The new revenue models winning today. Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, GenAI startups, product market fit, service as software, B2B SaaS, AI business models, startup competition, seed stage, founder advice 00:00:00 Intro  00:01:57 Pre-Gen AI vs Post-Gen AI Eras  00:03:23 The Trap of Incremental Value Props  00:06:58 Gen AI Unlocks Undeniable Value  00:08:50 The New Triple Threat Competition  00:11:50 Why Time in Market Is Dead  00:13:14 Cycle Speed Is the Only Moat Left 00:15:00 Rethinking B2B SaaS Business Models  00:16:45 The Service as Software Opportunity Send me a message to let me know what you think! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1889238/open_sms]