Bringing together founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS

May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock’s going stateside. 

Austin, Texas, home to 900+ SaaS companies, has been dubbed as the “Silicon Hills” for its thriving technology industry and strong startup culture. 

The city, known for its laid-back and quirky culture, has evolved into a hub of innovation and entrepreneurship. Two of our favourite characteristics over here at SaaStock. 

From Silicon Valley to Silicon Hills

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the tech migration to Austin and other cities outside of traditional tech hubs, such as the Bay Area. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, at the height of the pandemic, Austin had the highest inflow of tech workers of any major North American city (from May 2020 to April 2021).

The pandemic made remote work more prevalent, and many techies chose to relocate to cities with a lower cost of living and better quality of life. Similarly, many names in Big Tech began to reassess their business models and strategies, including their physical locations. You don’t have to be Elon Musk to think: what’s the point of paying ridiculously high rent for office space when everyone’s working from home?

This explosive growth during this short timeframe saw Austin come out on top as one of the biggest winners in the post-Covid tech landscape: with a transformed cityscape, and a solidified status as a tech hub.

A city of entrepreneurship, creativity and culture

Often referred to as the “Live Music Capital of the World”, Austin is home to more than just tech giants, and software whizzes. 

It’s also home to a vibrant community of artists, musicians, and creatives, and is a hub for events and festivals that showcase local and international talent.

The University of Texas supports this drive, as it helps build the next generation of game-changers and category definers, calling itself a “place to explore countless opportunities for tomorrow’s artists, scientists, athletes, doctors, entrepreneurs and engineers.” The University specifically produces a large number of engineering and computer science graduates every year, with headline-making alumni creating a strong talent pool in the city. 

And the entrepreneurial spirit flows beyond the university, too. 

Capital Factory, an accelerator based in the heart of the city, defines itself as the “Center for gravity for entrepreneurs in Texas”. Helping entrepreneurs meet their first customers, employees, mentors. Sounds like a company we’d get along well with… 

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High growth SaaS companies based in Austin, Texas

Tessian

Employees: 201-500
Locations: Austin, Boston, London
Tessian is a leading cloud email security platform that intelligently protects organizations against advanced threats and data loss on email, while coaching people about security threats in-the-moment. Using machine learning and behavioral data science, Tessian automatically stops threats that evade legacy Secure Email Gateways, including advanced phishing attacks, business email compromise, accidental data loss and insider threats. Tessian’s intelligent approach not only strengthens email security but also builds smarter security cultures in the modern enterprise.

tray.io

Employees: 201-500
Locations: Atlanta, Austin, California, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Durham, Houston, New York City, Washington DC, San Francisco, London, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Sydney

Tray.io is a low-code, cloud-first approach to automation. They’ve built a scalable, resilient, and secure platform that transforms fragmented process into powerful business outcomes. Using the Tray platform, organizations can connect their entire cloud stack using APIs, and thanks to a visual workflow builder, customers can easily create automations that drive their business processes using clicks or code.

LogicMonitor

Employees: 1001-5000
Locations: Austin, Singapore, London, Santa Barbara, New York, Sydney, Cambridge

LogicMonitor®’s SaaS-based observability and IT operations data collaboration platform helps ITOps, developers, MSPs and business leaders gain visibility into and predictability across the technologies that modern organizations depend on to deliver extraordinary employee and customer experiences. LogicMonitor seamlessly monitors everything from networks to applications to the cloud, empowering companies to focus less on troubleshooting and more on innovation.

Forecastr

Employees: 11-50
Locations: Austin, Denver, Louisville

Forecastr is a high-growth, venture-backed startup on a mission to help Founders build great financial models so they can impress their investors and make better decisions.

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The strong startup culture in Austin attracts and nurtures many innovative and entrepreneurial individuals, which helps create a pay-it-forward, supportive and collaborative environment for SaaS startups. 

Pro-Business Climate: Supportive government policies

Another factor that pushes Austin forward as a leading tech hub is its supportive government policies. The city’s leaders have not only recognized the importance of the tech industry that’s flourishing in Austin, but have taken steps to support its growth. 

The Austin Technology Incubator has been established to provide resources and support for startups. Additionally, the city has invested in infrastructure and regulations to support the tech industry, including high-speed internet, cutting-edge facilities and tax incentives. This support has created a favorable environment for tech companies to thrive and has made Austin an attractive place for startups to launch and grow their businesses.

Opening Doors: Capital Venture in Austin

Austin has a thriving startup ecosystem, and there are many venture capital firms and angel investors in the area that are eager to invest in promising SaaS startups.

In 2021, the area set records for venture capital funding, with investments coming to an incredible $5.4billion. Unsurprisingly this slowed the following year, but not drastically: Dealroom reported that Austin-based startups raised $5billion in 2022.

One of the companies leading the way is Jasper AI, who announced a $125M Series A Funding Round in October 2022. 

With Jasper AI’s funding round being one of many,  Dealroom.co reports that Austin-based startups are now worth over $128Billion. 

That’s not a valuation of a small-time ecosystem: Austin’s got its foot in the game. 

As the world builds out the “next generation of tech”, Austin now officially ranks as #25 on a global list of tech ecosystems, based on investment, innovation, talent and outcome.  

Yet, it’s not just any capital for any startup: the city is taking it one step further… 

According to an analysis led by Pitchbook, Austin is one of the leading cities seeing growth in capital raised by female founders.  

Pitchbook’s report shows that Female-founded startups have raised more than $2.8 billion since the start of 2020, a whopping “161% increase from its 2008 to 2019 total”. 

Accelerators such as DivInc are actively working to “transform the tech ecosystem into a more authentically inclusive place”. 

 

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Leading SaaS Investors HQ’d in Austin

LiveOak Venture Partners

LiveOak is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS companies. They focus on companies that are leveraging technology to solve large, complex problems in industries like healthcare, financial services, and enterprise software.

Portfolio includes: Backflip, Ceresa, Chainguard, AmplifA, Flo

Next Coast Ventures

Next Coast Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are solving big problems in large markets and have a unique approach to doing so.

Portfolio includes: Aclaimant, Propensity, Diligent, Submittable, Stoplight

Silverton Partners

Silverton Partners is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are using technology to solve complex problems in the enterprise space and are poised for rapid growth.

Portfolio includes: NotCommon, 443ID, SailPoint, Convey, Uptempo

S3 Ventures

S3 Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are leveraging technology to solve complex business problems and are poised for rapid growth.

Portfolio includes: Liquibase, Allstacks, Sudozi

Mercury Fund

Mercury is an early-stage venture capital platform that seeks out transformative software startups, led by exceptional founders, in communities across America.

Portfolio includes: Molecule, Ambyint, Cloudsnap   

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Local to Global: Building the SaaS startup ecosystem

“The SaaS phenomenon is gaining momentum. There is a critical mass of founders that can come together and share experience. SaaStock is the catalyst for this movement.” – Philippe Botteri, Partner, Accel

Make a real difference to the lives and companies of the SaaS community

Unlike many startups, the SaaStock story didn’t begin in a garage, with a laptop and a few founders. It began for our Founder & CEO, Alex, with a profound interest in SaaS, and a desire to understand the mechanics behind it. Throw a curated SaaS blog into the mix, and a podcast geared solely towards B2B SaaS Founders and he was soon picking the minds of some of the biggest game-changers in SaaS.

This unique position Alex found himself in allowed him to forge strong relationships, climb into the minds of SaaS founders, and share it all with the world. This ultimately led to the birth of a community that just kept on growing, with B2B SaaS founders at the heart of it all. 

There’s something kind of magical that happens when SaaS founders come together. Nobody can deny that it’s a lonely job at the top. 

But coming together at SaaStock: founders are able to learn from one another, transfer knowledge and share war stories. They support each other and give feedback on their businesses ‒ whether over dinner or a pint after an event, or at the main conference – it’s a powerful and lasting impact.

“Patrick Campbell (ProfitWell) met Christian Owens (Paddle) at SaaStock – a $200M acquisition and a $1.4 billion valuation later, the rest is history.”

Alongside facilitating peer-to-peer connections, we introduce SaaS startups to potential investors and customers. 

“In 2022, we facilitated 2,000+ introductions between Founders & Investors in Europe.” 

Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival comes to Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, TripActions, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

When it comes to SaaS, the market in the United States is renowned for being a leader among nations.

Home to over 8x more SaaS companies than anywhere else in the world (The Latka Agency), the SaaS market in the US is set to double in the next two years (Reply)… and it doesn’t stop there. 

As of this year SaaS has an estimated worth of $195 billion (Exploding Topics), and according to experts, that number is only going to increase. We’re predicted to see a continued state of growth and innovation in the SaaS market throughout the US, with forecasts that there will be a 40% year-over-year growth on company B2B SaaS spend (Gartner) – taking us from the current $145 billion SaaS spend per year to a whopping $203 billion dollar spend by the close of 2023. 

The numbers speak for themselves: the past few years have seen a significant increase in demand for SaaS solutions as businesses of all sizes have sought to streamline their operations and improve their competitiveness in the digital age.

While it’s true that industry growth is predicted to continue in an upward trend, the looming economic difficulties will pose a new set of challenges for SaaS businesses looking to beat the competition. This piece highlights the six major focus areas SaaS founders need to build their business strategy around should they wish to thrive over the next 24 months.  

A key driver for the ongoing growth surge has been the ongoing shift towards remote work, which accelerated in the wake of COVID-19 and has continued to establish itself in company operations thereafter. 

There are two elements within the realm of remote work that have contributed to this growth: process and people. With more of us working from home and relying on digital tools to stay connected, the first contributor to growth has been the huge increase in demand for the SaaS products that help organisations manage remote teams and keep operations running smoothly. The second most commonly used SaaS tool with a 13.3% usage rate (Cledara), it’s predicted that by 2026 the market for digital collaboration tools will grow to $20.8 billion; that’s a compound annual growth rate of 1.6%! (Apps Run the World).

The second contributor and the first area of focus for SaaS founders: the talent of the team itself. Rory Brown, Founder & CCO of Kluster, summaries the apprehension too many companies hold when it comes to hiring in times of economic uncertainty, saying “attracting top talent has definitely become more difficult. When the market is unpredictable, people are more likely to have a mentality of ‘I’m doing well, this isn’t the time to make a calculated risk’” (SolutionsDriven). 

Recruiting and retaining talent has never been easy but building a rockstar team is one of few drivers of success that will never fail. Now, moving from the struggles COVID-19 imposed on businesses to the looming uphill battle the economy is set to deliver, SaaS needs to double-down on the quality of the people behind the product.  

From creating well balanced hiring plans to showcasing a unified vision, having the right people on the journey is the first step to paving the way for SaaS success. 

 

Another factor contributing to the growth of the US SaaS market is the increasing popularity of cloud computing. With a 16.3% compound annual growth rate, experts predict that the global cloud computing market, which is the umbrella industry of SaaS, will be worth up to $947.3 billion in the next three years (Markets and Markets). 

As more businesses move their IT infrastructure to the cloud, they are finding that SaaS solutions are an effective way to streamline processes, reduce costs, and improve the overall user experience. While this has led to a proliferation of new SaaS products and services, many of which are designed to integrate with existing cloud platforms like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, the second key area for SaaS founders to consider is how these businesses are using SaaS solutions to improve their customer experience and communications, and drive transitional growth. A study by Gartner estimates that 89% of businesses will heavily rely on their customer experience in order to beat the competition – meaning that now more than ever, founders and their teams need to do the utmost in order to deliver maximum impact to their customers. With some of the world’s leading SaaS companies ramping up their media content and testing new techniques, effective out-of-the-box campaign strategies are how customers will ultimately be brought to the point of sale. For those companies to truly stand the test of time and grow through the market’s turmoil, founders will need to think strategically about their customers, campaigns, and competition in order to achieve stable growth.

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8 US SaaS Companies raising the bar 

ZenBusiness

5-year search growth increase: 3,300%
Founded in: 2015
Based in: Austin, Texas
Funding: $277M (Series Unknown)

A PBC (public benefit corporation) ZenBusiness’ mission is to enable anyone to start, run, and grow their business while avoiding the common pitfalls that derail hopeful entrepreneurs. No more having to wade through forms, taxes, or ongoing state compliance. In November 2021, the company announced a $200M funding round, reached a valuation of $1.7B, and publicised a new partnership with well-known businessman Mark Cuban.

Printify

5-year search growth increase: 1,257%
Founded in: 2015
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $54.1M (Series A)

Printify believes that everyone should have a risk-free chance to build a business selling top-quality merchandise. Their platform brings together merchants and the world’s top printing houses to power a new generation of eCommerce stores. Printify brought in $45M in an H2 2021 Series A funding round from Index Ventures, H&M Group, and even Will Smith’s own investment firm.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

Adalo

5-year search growth increase: 9200%
Founded in: 2018
Based in: St Louis, Missouri
Funding: $9.8M (Series A)

Adalo empowers makers to bring their ideas to life. An in-app building platform, creatives, business owners, and founders create custom web & mobile applications without code. Adalo recently received $8M in a Series A funding round with investment firm Tiger Global (known for being a ‘unicorn-hunter’) leading the pack.

Lokalise

5-year search growth increase: 483%
Founded in: 2017
Based in: Dover, Delaware
Funding: $56M (Series B)

A localization and translation management platform for agile teams, Lokalise provides a cloud platform for users to manage the translations of mobile apps, games, websites – either on their own or with a team of collaborators. A global study by CSA Research showed that 76% of people are more likely to buy goods or services online from a provider that communicates with them in their own language.

ClickUp

5-year search growth increase: 3,850%
Year founded: 2017
Based in: San Diego, California
Funding: $537.5M (Series C)

A productivity platform for scheduling tasks, streamlining communication, and more, ClickUp is trusted by over 800k teams around the world. Zeb Evans, ClickUp’s Founder & CEO, joined us on the SaaStock 2022 stage to discuss how the company grew to over 6M users in five years; sharing how they built a globally recognized brand, developed an innovative product, and cultivated a strong company culture. ClickUp is now valued at over $4 billion.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

Fieldwire

5-year search growth increase: 105%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $41.2M (Series C)

Disrupting the long-held belief that construction is an old-fashioned industry, Fieldwire’s platform gives construction crews a single source of truth for their data while on a project: checklists, inspections, real-time messaging, scheduling, and more. What’s more, users are able to create markups and edit building layouts digitally on iPads or mobile devices.

Notion

5-year search growth increase: 1,460%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $343.2M (Series C)

A productivity platform that allows companies to customise their processes and workflows, Notion can be used to create and collaborate on product roadmaps, organise meeting notes, hold documents, and more. Funded by 30 investors, Notion was most recently valued at $4.2M.

DataBricks

5-year search growth increase: 1057%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $3.5B (Series H)

Databricks is a technology startup focused on helping companies leverage data to provide insights and drive decision-making across multiple industries and areas. The startup has gained popularity with well-known brands (Conde Nast, Adobe, Biogen, and H&M) and investors alike and recently announced a Series H funding round that amounted to a staggering $1.6B.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

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In an effort to further grow and scale their business, SaaS will focus on sales-led revenue operations. The hurdle presented here lies in the intersection of customers having more information than ever before and an even higher unwillingness to be ‘sold to’. 

It’s reported that sales teams have a mere 5% of a customer’s time during their B2B buying journey (Gartner). Combined with the market-led impacts such as longer sales cycles, changes in decision makers and tighter spending, knowing the ins and outs of the market, a company’s processes and the customers’ position in the buying journey is essential for teams wanting to capitalize on that small but mighty 5%. 

Sales-led revenue operations have the potential to fuel some much needed growth for 2023 – but only if the correct internal teams and tools are aligned.

If any press is good press then by the same token any growth is good growth… But not quite. 

The fourth area of focus for SaaS founders and the critical difference that will separate the strongest of the 17,000+ US based SaaS companies (Exploding Topics) apart from the others is those that are able to achieve sustainable, long-term growth. SaaS founders across the US will need to spend a large part of the year focusing on how they can scale their business consistently and sustainably. 

According to Kristina Shen, General Partner at private American venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, the answer for how SaaS businesses can weather hard times is simple: “in a volatile market, SaaS businesses should focus on efficiency before growth” (Andreessen Horowitz). With tough conditions on the horizon for SaaS businesses around the world, the former may lead to the latter but the same can’t necessarily be said in reverse. Companies will need to decide whether or not they are prepared for expansion and what the impact of that reality has on their operations. From constantly refining their product to hitting the next milestone, US SaaS founders will have a much higher chance of reaching success if efficiency is at the heart of their business.

The latest – and some may argue greatest – route to growth is going down the path of PLG (Product-Led Growth). Coined in 2016, many believed it was the future of SaaS and attempted to adopt an effective PLG growth strategy. 

The fifth area of focus for SaaS founders this year is often hailed as the ‘modern GTM’ (Go To Market), and with good merit: PLG companies show 80% higher revenue multipliers and grow faster than traditional companies (Amplitude). What’s more, OpenView, an expansion stage venture firm, found that product-led businesses are valued more than 30% higher than the public-market SaaS Index Fund (6Sense). The data speaks for itself – with seemingly limitless upside potential, founders will need to dually prioritize not only their operational efficiency but also how to effectively position, execute and benchmark their business for some serious product-led growth.

Despite the growth the SaaS market has seen, hurdles still remain. One of the biggest challenges facing US based SaaS companies in 2023 is the need to integrate new systems with existing IT infrastructure – something that is oftentimes complex and time-consuming. Additionally, some organizations are hesitant to adopt SaaS solutions due to concerns around security and data privacy. 

To address these challenges many SaaS providers are investing in new technologies and features that can help organizations integrate their systems and protect their data. For example, some companies are developing integrations with popular project management tools like Asana and Trello, while others are incorporating machine learning and AI technologies to help businesses make more informed decisions and automate repetitive tasks.

How can those facing these hurdles begin to get past them? Like it or not, the sixth area of focus all comes down to one thing: capital.

While many experts predict that SaaS in the US will continue to grow for the foreseeable future, the one key element any particular SaaS company needs in order to truly thrive is funding. Recent headlines have had it all; slowing investment activity, VCs becoming more risk-averse; there’s more pressure than ever for companies to improve their capital efficiency. 

But, despite the headlines,  if there’s one thing the SaaS market will always have going for it, it’s VCs looking to make their next investment. 

Bret Wistrom, Editor at Austin Inno, confirms that when it comes to deals and dollars, US SaaS investment – and those Texas-based in particular – remains strong; “Austin’s venture capital ecosystem is booming, as many of the metro’s relatively new firms continue to land big returns on their tech startup investments.” (BizJournals). Whether bootstrapped or looking to raise capital, SaaS businesses will need to establish what actually matters to investors in 2023 and what adjustments need to be made to secure the funding that unlocks their next wave of growth.

All in all, the state of the SaaS market in the US in 2023 is one of growth, innovation, and increasing importance. Whether it’s a small business looking to improve their workflow or a large enterprise hoping to streamline their operations, SaaS solutions are an essential element. 

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SaaS Experts to Follow 

For SaaS founders looking to truly weather the upcoming storm and come out stronger than ever, it’s paramount that they stick to the focus areas mentioned above when reevaluating their business strategy for 2023 and beyond. 

• Anthony Kennada, Co-founder & CEO, AudiencePlus
• Eli Rubel, CEO, Matter Made
• Sanjiv Kalevar, Partner, OpenView
• Peep Laja, Founder & CEO, Wynter
• Dave Kellogg, Principal, Dave Kellogg Consulting
• Dave Grow, CEO, Lucid Software
• Tae Hea Nahm, Co-founder & Managing Director, Storm Ventures
• Carolyn Betts, Founder & CEO, Betts
• Kevin Dorsey, SVP Sales, Bench
• Patricia McLaren, Co-founder & CEO, RevShoppe
• Roy Solomon, Co-founder & CEO, Salesroom
• Cathy Gao, Partner, Sapphire Ventures
• Chris Walker, CEO, Refine Labs

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Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival in Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, TripActions, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

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A note from SaaStock’s Founder & CEO, Alex Theuma:

As many of you may be aware, the recent collapse of SVB Financial Group has caused a major ripple effect in the global startup community. While we are happy to see the rescue plan put in place so fast by respective governments to avert an extinction level event, we are incredibly saddened to see this happen and we acknowledge the emotional toll it has taken on Founders, SVB customers and the SVB team themselves. 

Our mission at SaaStock is to make a real, impactful difference in the lives of founders and the companies that make up the SaaS community. We recognize the importance of our mission now more than ever and would like to extend our help and support to anyone within the community who may need it. 

We have compiled a centralised repository for SaaS founders affected by the SVB fallout to turn to for resources, support, and advice (note we will be updating this regularly).

Spearheading SaaS in 2023:
A closer look at this year’s industry thought-leaders

Despite economic uncertainty on the horizon and businesses having to review their strategy, there’s one thing experts can say for sure: SaaS is preparing to experience a significant phase of growth. 

As more businesses move to cloud-based solutions and new opportunities open up in SaaS, it’s projected that SaaS will grow from 2022’s figure of $251.17B to an astronomical $883.34B by 2029 (Fortune Business Insights)… that’s a compound annual growth rate of 19.7%! 

There are several entrepreneurs in particular who are making a significant impact and moving the dial forward in SaaS. Using a combination of strategic thinking, technical expertise, and strong business acumen, the following have taken their SaaS companies to new heights and shown what it is to thrive in today’s competitive market.

 

Sarah Ellenbogen 

• Title: Co-Founder & CEO
• Company: Digiphy
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: Los Angeles, California
• Raised: A total of $3.6M over four rounds (Pre-Seed)

A 15-year Youtube and Google veteran, Sarah co-founded Digiphy in spring 2021 with the goal of making customer data collection easier, quicker, and more enjoyable. 

With digital ads fighting for (and losing out on) customer attention, Sarah’s solution with Digiphy is clear: those collecting zero-party data are on the winning team. Crowned by Fast Company as a World Changing Idea of 2022, Digiphy’s ‘always-on’ QR and storyline builder allows users to effortlessly create digital experiences that bridge the physical to digital: delivering useful and engaging information directly to consumers that accelerates sales, captures valuable data and insights, and increases trust. 

We’re excited to share that Digiphy’s advancing to the #EntrepreneurshipWorldCup Thank you @unleashingideas!
It’s an honor to be included alongside so many amazing startups from around the world. #ewc2023 #entrepreneurship #startup #qrmarketing #EWC100https://t.co/LHzosMI3Ub pic.twitter.com/EVL4IZS9Rn

— Digiphy.it (@Digiphy_it) February 17, 2023

 

 

Christina Gilbert

• Title: Co-Founder
• Company: OneSchema
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $6.4M over two rounds (Seed)

A Google alumna and product manager with a background in computer science, Christina co-founded OneSchema in 2021 with the goal that no human should ever have to manually clean a spreadsheet again. 

An embeddable CSV importer, OneSchema saves product and engineering teams from having to write new lines of code to manually resolve errors. As a result, their embeddable tool has dramatically improved customer activation and import completion rates. 

Less than two years since its creation, OneSchema has been listed in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 for enterprise technology, won Product Hunt’s Product of the Year, and was crowned a 2023 High Performer by G2.

 

 

Nikita Gupta 

• Title: Co-Founder & CTO
• Company: Symba
• Founded in: 2017
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $2.9M over four rounds (Seed)

A long-term entrepreneur, Nikita launched Girls Who Code in Ithaca, NY while at Cornell and was heavily involved with Women in Computing. She has previously worked at Apple, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Martha Stewart, and a few startups as a software engineer.

Thank you King Felipe VI for taking the time to meet with the Symba team, for your inquisitive questions and support of EdTech innovations. We look forward to expanding to Spain! @south_summit #SouthSummit21 https://t.co/UQze1rBkrD

— Symba (@symba_io) October 7, 2021

An internship management platform, Symba’s easy-to-use enterprise SaaS tool helps companies streamline their internship program, saving them time and money. Their software enables employers to train interns, facilitate project workflows, measure performance, and build meaningful relationships. In this way, Symba provides oversight and transparency into internship programs and supports companies with real data to track their recruitment processes.

Recently awarded Forbes 30 Under 30 in Enterprise Technology and a Halcyon Fellow, Nikita is an integral part of Symba’s all-female founding team. 

 

 

Aydin Senkut

• Title: Founder & Managing Partner
• Company: Felicis Ventures
• Founded in: 2006
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $2.1B across 8 funds

An original “super-angel” investor, Aydin was named to Forbes’ Midas Lists every year from 2014 to 2021, and was also named among the New York Times’ Top 20 Venture Capital investors in years 2016 – 2019. Aydin is well-known as an early backer of a number of iconic companies including Adyen, Shopify, Pluralsight, Credit Karma, Fitbit, Rovio, Meraki, Guardant Health and Soundhound. He was the first Product Manager at Google before starting Felicis Ventures.

So excited about @felicis / our partner @nikipez leading @madkudu $18M Ser A; huge tailwinds as sales gets more data oriented and #PLG can be instrumented with them; we have been hearing their praises in multiple boards + amazing customer refs https://t.co/s4XRVKAg6p

— Aydin Senkut (@asenkut) November 15, 2022

Felicis Ventures invests in seed through Series C stage companies across multiple sectors and industries, and currently manages over $2B in capital across 8 funds. The firm is an early backer of 40+ companies valued at more than $1B, and has had more than 90 of its portfolio companies acquired or go public.

 

 

Isabelle Winkles

• Title: Chief Financial Officer
• Company: Braze
• Founded in: 2011
• Based in: New York, New York
• Raised: A total of 175.1M over 9 rounds (Series E)

With over 20 years of experience in finance leadership roles, Isabelle joined Braze as their CFO in 2020 having been Chief of Staff to the CFO at Cognizant. Prior to that she spent 18 years at Morgan Stanley, where—following the financial crisis—she established and led finance teams to support strategic business decisions in the context of evolving global regulatory landscapes. Her extensive knowledge and understanding of the financial market has led to many successes in her roles; most recently Braze’s highly anticipated and successful IPO in November 2021. 

A customer engagement platform, Braze powers customer-centric interactions and drives growth with their data-driven cross-channel solution. They’ve seen incredible growth in recent years, citing a 2022 financial year-end revenue figure of $70.4 million – up 64% year-over year, driven by new customers, upsells, and renewals.

Braze was named a Leader in the 2019 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Mobile Marketing Platforms and was recognized as one of Inc Magazine’s 2019 Best Workplaces.

 

 

Meghan Keaney Anderson

• Title: VP Marketing
• Company: Jasper AI
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: Austin, Texas
• Raised: A total of $131M over 3 rounds (Series A)

Meghan has over 20 years of marketing experience having acted as CMO at The Wanderlust Group and VP at Hubspot (where she was for nearly 10 years!) before starting as VP Marketing at Jasper AI in 2022. 

Founded just over two years ago, Jasper AI already has over 100 thousand paying customers (including those from Canva, Zendesk, Klarna, HelloFresh, Zoom and more) – and it’s no wonder why. With the release of ChatGPT, AI is set to be a soaring hot topic in 2023. 

Meghan previously taught at Boston University and has led keynotes on topics ranging from storytelling through data to SEO, as well as leading The Growth Show podcast. With currently over 10k+ followers on twitter, Meghan shares all things AI with her community:

I listen to @matgpod all the time. It feels like an espresso shot of marketing. So I was hyped to join @kippbodnar to talk about AI. We had so much fun. It doubled as a retirement party for one overused tactic. Find out which one in the full ep >> https://t.co/c7mr73IdJe pic.twitter.com/D9WGtY6YEc

— Meghan Keaney Anderson (@meghkeaney) February 16, 2023

 

 

Tope Awotona

• Title: Founder & CEO
• Company: Calendly
• Founded in: 201
• Based in: Atlanta, Georgia
• Raised: A total of $350.6M over 2 rounds (Series B)

An all-in-one meeting lifecycle platform, Tope founded Calendly with the vision of simplifying scheduling for everyone without the back-and-forth emails. With his strategic direction, the platform has grown and evolved to over 10 million monthly users across 116 countries in the ten years since its conception.

Prior to Calendly, Tope spent the majority of his career in enterprise software sales, working for companies such as IBM, Perceptive Software, and Dell Technologies, in addition to launching a series of startups. He is the recipient of the 2021 Atlanta Business Chronicle Most Admired CEO Award and 2019 Comparably Best CEOs award.

 

 

Cynthia Savard Saucier

• Title: VP UX
• Company: Shopify
• Founded in: 2004
• Based in: Ontario, Canada
• Raised: A total of $122.3M over 4 rounds (Series C)

Cynthia’s passion and forté lie in a field that is not always fully understood: she creates smart, emotional connections between companies and users. Co-Author of Tragic Design and user experience extraordinaire, Cynthia has been using her strategic design, ergonomics and problem solving skills at Shopify for the last 8+ years – all of which have led to her broad recognition as a leading expert on multi-platform interface design.

Yes! And we have not simply stacked 3 pages into a single page. This alone would not have improved the conversion rate much. Every single pixel has been reconsidered.
-Smarter address entry saving keystrokes
-better validation
-optimized spacing
-increased performance https://t.co/nkm43iddlT

— Cynthia Savard Saucier (@CynthiaSavard) February 10, 2023

A leading global commerce company, Shopify’s platform and services are engineered for reliability and delivering a better shopping experience for consumers around the world. The business powers millions of companies in more than 175 countries and is trusted by brands such as Allbirds, Gymshark, PepsiCo, Staples, and more.

 

 

Chris Walker

• Title: Founder & CEO
• Company: RefineLabs
• Founded in: 2018
• Based in: Austin, Texas
• Raised: N/A

A serial entrepreneur, Chris founded Refine Labs to challenge the things companies were doing that weren’t buyer centric, as well as the ‘best practices’ that he believed weren’t working. Determined that if he was going to change the way B2B marketing was done, he would have to do it himself. Refine Labs was founded in 2019 under that premise – and they are now changing the way B2B companies go to market. Fueled by marketing execution at scale, Refine Labs uses real data from real customers to create demand strategy and research for their clients. 

Previously, Chris led marketing at two B2B firms where he built the foundation of his unique perspective on demand generation. Chris also hosts the State of Demand Gen podcast where he chats with today’s top B2B leaders to share tangible advice and tactics to over 15,000 marketers.

 

 

Cathy Gao

• Title: Partner
• Company: Sapphire Ventures
• Founded in: 2011
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $9B across 14 funds (Oversubscribed second fund)

A high-impact investor and board member, Cathy has been recognized by the Venture Capital Journal as a Rising Star and by Silicon Valley Business Journal as a Woman of Influence. Prior to Sapphire Ventures, Cathy was an investor at AXA Venture Partners where she invested in enterprise software. She started her career at Blackstone and TA Associates and was an operator at Gusto, joining shortly after the Series B. 

Given the 10+ year bull run, many founders have never been through a challenging market.

Here are 5 key ingredients start-ups need to survive in a down market:

— cathy gao (@cgao) February 13, 2023

Sapphire Ventures is a venture capital firm with offices in Menlo Park, San Francisco, Austin, and London, and is considered one of the world’s premier venture capital firms. Cathy is renowned for being incredibly founder-focused, a real thought partner, and a true champion through the ups and downs of building a rapidly scaling business.

 

 

Susan Kuo

• Title: Co-founder
• Company: Singular
• Founded in: 2014
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $50M over four rounds (Non-equity Assistance)

Singular, a marketing intelligence platform, unifies marketing analytics, giving marketers actionable insights from previously siloed data. Susan’s extensive background in mobile ad tech, analytics, and gaming was integral in the creation of Singular.

Before founding Singular, she held senior leadership roles at Onavo and InMobi. As an active member of the mobile community, she serves on the advisory board for several mobile-focused startups. Susan helped Onavo grow from the bottom up into a multi-million-dollar SaaS firm. Now a team of 200+, with customers including LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter who use Singular for their marketing analytics.

 

 

Nina Vellayan

• Title: CEO
• Company: Engageware
• Founded in: 2000
• Based in: Tewksbury, Massachusetts
• Raised: N/A

Nina is an accomplished, dynamic senior-level executive with a 20-year track record of successful strategic and tactical leadership in high-paced organisations within the SaaS AI-powered B2B and B2C software and payments industry.

As CEO, Nina’s visionary approach and effective leadership style will further propel Engageware’s ability to scale to meet market demand as the company reports record-annual recurring revenue and profitability.

The ENGAGE 2023 trends report explores U.S. based banks & CUs detailing their:
Strategic priorities
Current initiatives
Outlook on customer engagement

Plus, a deep dive into #banking consumers’ attitudes, behaviors, and expectations for 2023: https://t.co/gJCrDdeRBF pic.twitter.com/4MTEWIqOEM

— Engageware (@engageware) December 7, 2022

Prior to joining Engageware, Nina held multiple senior-level executive positions within financial, payments and software technology organizations. Nina’s previous leadership roles include CEO, Xeeva; CEO of FrontStream Payments; COO of Official Payments (Nasdaq: OPAY); and divisional President at Sallie Mae (Nasdaq: SLM).

 

Arlan Hamilton

• Title: Founder & Managing Partner
• Company: Backstage Capital
• Founded in: 2015
• Based in: Los Angeles, California
• Raised: A total of $41M across two funds

Backstage Capital is a seed investment fund that backs overachieving, underrepresented startup founders. Arlan made history by making the cover of Fast Company as the first Black woman who is not an entertainer or athlete.

I released this new @AmyPorterfield ep of “Your First Million” a day early bc it’s SO good.

This conversation went places neither of us ever imagined! We talk about self-doubt, imposter syndrome, self-sabotage, making tons of money, privilege, and more!https://t.co/bpOZQWKjlY pic.twitter.com/wM8Al8ucPo

— Arlan (@ArlanWasHere) February 21, 2023

Arlan built this nearly $30M fund to prioritise entrepreneurs of colour and LGBTQ+. Arlan has invested in over 200 startups and also runs Runner, a labour marketplace that connects startups with operations people looking for part-time work. To date, it has supported over 100 hires.

Arlan also runs her own podcast and Youtube channel – Your First Million Podcast – and has over 1,000 subscribers.

 

David Potter

• Title: Co-founder
• Company: Curu
• Founded in: 2016
• Based in: Denver, Colorado
• Raised: A total of $3M over seven rounds (Seed)

Curu enables lenders to open more accounts by showing users the actions necessary to meet eligibility for their financial goals.

David is a Gates Scholar, having received the full-ride ‘Bill Gates’ Millennium Scholarship. David has used this opportunity to give back to the Techstars community by serving as a Techstars Chapters Board Member for the Colorado Chapter. In this role, David connects the Techstars family and helps expand the community while always exploring ways to increase the value of events and resources. 

 

 

Immad Akhund

• Title: CEO & Founder
• Company: Mercury
• Founded in: 2019
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $152.2M over nine rounds (Secondary Market)

Immad is the co-founder and CEO at Mercury – a unicorn company worth over $1.6bn. Prior to founding Mercury, Immad was the CEO and co-founder at Heyzap, a mobile developer tools company, which sold for $45m in 2016. He is an active investor in Silicon Valley and has invested in 100+ seed-stage startups including Airtable, Substack, and Rappi.

Over the years, I have tried to share learnings from my startups and seed investing.

Decided to combine my startup tweets+tweetstorms into a tweethurricane.

Here are my learnings + advice, from pitching investors to getting through the journey:

— immad (@immad) March 30, 2021

 

---

Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival comes to Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, Navan, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

Spearheading SaaS in 2023:
A closer look at this year’s industry thought-leaders

With economic uncertainty on the horizon and businesses having to review their strategy, there’s one thing experts can say for sure: SaaS is preparing to experience a significant phase of growth. 

As more businesses move to cloud-based solutions and new opportunities open up in SaaS, it’s projected that SaaS will grow from 2022’s figure of $251.17B to an astronomical $883.34B by 2029 (Fortune Business Insights)… that’s a compound annual growth rate of 19.7%! 

There are several entrepreneurs in particular who are making a significant impact and moving the dial forward in SaaS. Using a combination of strategic thinking, technical expertise, and strong business acumen, the following have taken their SaaS companies to new heights and shown what it is to thrive in today’s competitive market.

 

Sarah Ellenbogen 

• Title: Co-Founder & CEO
• Company: Digiphy
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: Los Angeles, California
• Raised: A total of $3.6M over four rounds (Pre-Seed)

A 15-year Youtube and Google veteran, Sarah co-founded Digiphy in spring 2021 with the goal of making customer data collection easier, quicker, and more enjoyable. 

With digital ads fighting for (and losing out on) customer attention, Sarah’s solution with Digiphy is clear: those collecting zero-party data are on the winning team. Crowned by Fast Company as a World Changing Idea of 2022, Digiphy’s ‘always-on’ QR and storyline builder allows users to effortlessly create digital experiences that bridge the physical to digital: delivering useful and engaging information directly to consumers that accelerates sales, captures valuable data and insights, and increases trust. 

We’re excited to share that Digiphy’s advancing to the #EntrepreneurshipWorldCup Thank you @unleashingideas!
It’s an honor to be included alongside so many amazing startups from around the world. #ewc2023 #entrepreneurship #startup #qrmarketing #EWC100https://t.co/LHzosMI3Ub pic.twitter.com/EVL4IZS9Rn

— Digiphy.it (@Digiphy_it) February 17, 2023

 

 

Christina Gilbert

• Title: Co-Founder
• Company: OneSchema
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $6.4M over two rounds (Seed)

A Google alumna and a product manager with a background in computer science, Christina co-founded OneSchema in 2021 with the goal that no human ever has to manually clean a spreadsheet again. 

An embeddable CSV importer, OneSchema saves product and engineering teams from having to write new lines of code to manually resolve errors. 

As a result, their embeddable tool has dramatically improved customer activation and import completion rates. 

Less than two years since its creation, OneSchema has been listed in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 for enterprise technology, won Product Hunt’s Product of the Year, and was crowned a 2023 High Performer by G2.

 

 

Nikita Gupta 

• Title: Co-Founder & CTO
• Company: Symba
• Founded in: 2017
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $2.9M over four rounds (Seed)

A long-term entrepreneur, Nikita launched Girls Who Code in Ithaca, NY while at Cornell and was heavily involved with Women in Computing. She has previously worked at Apple, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Martha Stewart, and a few startups as a software engineer.

Thank you King Felipe VI for taking the time to meet with the Symba team, for your inquisitive questions and support of EdTech innovations. We look forward to expanding to Spain! @south_summit #SouthSummit21 https://t.co/UQze1rBkrD

— Symba (@symba_io) October 7, 2021

An internship management platform, Symba’s easy-to-use enterprise SaaS tool helps companies streamline their internship program, saving them time and money. Their software enables employers to train interns, facilitate project workflows, measure performance, and build meaningful relationships. In this way, Symba provides oversight and transparency into internship programs and supports companies with real data to track their recruitment processes.

Recently awarded Forbes 30 Under 30 in Enterprise Technology and a Halcyon Fellow, Nikita is an integral part of Symba’s all-female founding team. 

 

 

Aydin Senkut

• Title: Founder & Managing Partner
• Company: Felicis Ventures
• Founded in: 2006
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $2.1B across 8 funds

An original “super-angel” investor, Aydin was named to Forbes’ Midas Lists every year from 2014 to 2021, and was also named among the New York Times’ Top 20 Venture Capital investors in years 2016 – 2019. Aydin is well-known as an early backer of a number of iconic companies including Adyen, Shopify, Pluralsight, Credit Karma, Fitbit, Rovio, Meraki, Guardant Health and Soundhound. He was the first Product Manager at Google before starting Felicis Ventures.

So excited about @felicis / our partner @nikipez leading @madkudu $18M Ser A; huge tailwinds as sales gets more data oriented and #PLG can be instrumented with them; we have been hearing their praises in multiple boards + amazing customer refs https://t.co/s4XRVKAg6p

— Aydin Senkut (@asenkut) November 15, 2022

Felicis Ventures invests in seed through Series C stage companies across multiple sectors and industries, and currently manages over $2B in capital across 8 funds. The firm is an early backer of 40+ companies valued at more than $1B, and has had more than 90 of its portfolio companies acquired or go public.

 

 

Isabelle Winkles

• Title: Chief Financial Officer
• Company: Braze
• Founded in: 2011
• Based in: New York, New York
• Raised: A total of 175.1M over 9 rounds (Series E)

With over 20 years of experience in finance leadership roles, Isabelle joined Braze as their CFO in 2020 having been Chief of Staff to the CFO at Cognizant. Prior to that she spent 18 years at Morgan Stanley, where—following the financial crisis—she established and led finance teams to support strategic business decisions in the context of evolving global regulatory landscapes. Her extensive knowledge and understanding of the financial market has led to many successes in her roles; most recently Braze’s highly anticipated and successful IPO in November 2021. 

A customer engagement platform Braze powers customer-centric interactions and drives growth with their data-driven cross-channel solution. They’ve seen incredible growth in recent years, citing a 2022 financial year-end revenue figure of $70.4 million – up 64% year-over year, driven by new customers, upsells, and renewals.

Braze was named a Leader in the 2019 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Mobile Marketing Platforms and was recognized as one of Inc Magazine’s 2019 Best Workplaces.

 

 

Meghan Keaney Anderson

• Title: VP Marketing
• Company: Jasper AI
• Founded in: 2021
• Based in: Austin, Texas
• Raised: A total of $131M over 3 rounds (Series A)

Meghan has over 20 years of marketing experience having acted as CMO at The Wanderlust Group and VP at Hubspot (where she was for nearly 10 years!) before starting as VP Marketing at Jasper AI in 2022. 

Founded just over two years ago, Jasper AI already has over 100 thousand paying customers (including those from Canva, Zendesk, Klarna, HelloFresh, Zoom and more), and it’s no wonder why. With the release of ChatGPT, AI is set to be a soaring hot topic in 2023. 

Meghan previously taught at Boston University and has led keynotes on topics ranging from storytelling through data to SEO, as well as leading The Growth Show podcast. With currently over 10k+ followers on twitter, Meghan shares all things AI with her community:

I listen to @matgpod all the time. It feels like an espresso shot of marketing. So I was hyped to join @kippbodnar to talk about AI. We had so much fun. It doubled as a retirement party for one overused tactic. Find out which one in the full ep >> https://t.co/c7mr73IdJe pic.twitter.com/D9WGtY6YEc

— Meghan Keaney Anderson (@meghkeaney) February 16, 2023

 

 

Tope Awotona

• Title: Founder & CEO
• Company: Calendl
• Founded in: 201
• Based in: Atlanta, Georgi
• Raised: A total of $350.6M over 2 rounds (Series B)

An all-in-one meeting lifecycle platform, Tope founded Calendly with the vision of simplifying scheduling for everyone without the back-and-forth emails. With his strategic direction, the platform has grown and evolved to over 10 million monthly users across 116 countries in the ten years since its conception.

Prior to Calendly, Tope spent the majority of his career in enterprise software sales, working for companies such as IBM, Perceptive Software, and Dell Technologies, in addition to launching a series of startups. He is the recipient of the 2021 Atlanta Business Chronicle Most Admired CEO Award and 2019 Comparably Best CEOs award.

 

 

Cynthia Savard Saucier

• Title: VP UX
• Company: Shopify
• Founded in: 2004
• Based in: Ontario, Canada
• Raised: A total of $122.3M over 4 rounds (Series C)

Cynthia’s passion and forté lie in a field that is not always fully understood: she creates smart, emotional connections between companies and users. Co-Author of Tragic Design and user experience extraordinaire, Cynthia has been using her strategic design, ergonomics and problem solving skills at Shopify for the last 8+ years – all of which have led to her broad recognition as a leading expert on multi-platform interface design.

Yes! And we have not simply stacked 3 pages into a single page. This alone would not have improved the conversion rate much. Every single pixel has been reconsidered.
-Smarter address entry saving keystrokes
-better validation
-optimized spacing
-increased performance https://t.co/nkm43iddlT

— Cynthia Savard Saucier (@CynthiaSavard) February 10, 2023

A leading global commerce company, Shopify’s platform and services are engineered for reliability and delivering a better shopping experience for consumers around the world. The business powers millions of companies in more than 175 countries and is trusted by brands such as Allbirds, Gymshark, PepsiCo, Staples, and more.

 

 

Chris Walker

• Title: Founder & CEO
• Company: RefineLabs
• Founded in: 2018
• Based in: Austin, Texas
• Raised: N/A

A serial entrepreneur, Chris founded Refine Labs to challenge the things companies were doing that weren’t buyer centric, as well as the ‘best practices’ that he believed weren’t working. Determined that if he was going to change the way B2B marketing was done, he would have to do it himself. Refine Labs was founded in 2019 under that premise – and they are now changing the way B2B companies go to market. Fueled by marketing execution at scale, Refine Labs uses real data from real customers to create demand strategy and research for their clients. 

Previously, Chris led marketing at two B2B firms where he built the foundation of his unique perspective on demand generation. Chris also hosts the State of Demand Gen podcast where he chats with today’s top B2B leaders to share tangible advice and tactics to over 15,000 marketers.

 

 

Cathy Gao

• Title: Partner
• Company: Sapphire Ventures
• Founded in: 2011
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $9B across 14 funds (Oversubscribed second fund)

A high-impact investor and board member, Cathy has been recognized by the Venture Capital Journal as a Rising Star and by Silicon Valley Business Journal as a Woman of Influence. Prior to Sapphire Ventures, Cathy was an investor at AXA Venture Partners where she invested in enterprise software. She started her career at Blackstone and TA Associates and was an operator at Gusto, joining shortly after the Series B. 

Given the 10+ year bull run, many founders have never been through a challenging market.

Here are 5 key ingredients start-ups need to survive in a down market:

— cathy gao (@cgao) February 13, 2023

Sapphire Ventures is a venture capital firm with offices in Menlo Park, San Francisco, Austin, and London, and is considered one of the world’s premier venture capital firms. Cathy is renowned for being incredibly founder-focused, a real thought partner, and a true champion through the ups and downs of building a rapidly scaling business.

 

 

Susan Kuo

• Title: Co-founder
• Company: Singular
• Founded in: 2014
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $50M over four rounds (Non-equity Assistance)

Singular, a marketing intelligence platform, unifies marketing analytics, giving marketers actionable insights from previously siloed data.

Susan’s extensive background in mobile ad tech, analytics, and gaming was integral in the creation of Singular. Before founding Singular, she held senior leadership roles at Onavo and InMobi. As an active member of the mobile community, she serves on the advisory board for several mobile-focused startups.

Susan helped Onavo grow from the bottom up into a multi-million-dollar SaaS firm. Now a  team of 200+, with customers including LinkedIn, Microsoft, Twitter who use Singular for their marketing analytics.

 

 

Nina Vellayan

• Title: CEO
• Company: Engageware
• Founded in: 2000
• Based in: Tewksbury, Massachusetts
• Raised: N/A

Nina is an accomplished, dynamic senior-level executive with a 20-year track record of successful strategic and tactical leadership in high-paced organisations within the SaaS AI-powered B2B and B2C software and payments industry.

As CEO, Vellayan’s visionary approach and effective leadership style will further propel Engageware’s ability to scale to meet market demand as the company reports record annual recurring revenue and profitability.

The ENGAGE 2023 trends report explores U.S. based banks & CUs detailing their:
Strategic priorities
Current initiatives
Outlook on customer engagement

Plus, a deep dive into #banking consumers’ attitudes, behaviors, and expectations for 2023: https://t.co/gJCrDdeRBF pic.twitter.com/4MTEWIqOEM

— Engageware (@engageware) December 7, 2022

Prior to joining Engageware, Nina held multiple senior-level executive positions within financial, payments and software technology organizations. Nina’s previous leadership roles include CEO, Xeeva; CEO of FrontStream Payments; COO of Official Payments (Nasdaq: OPAY); and divisional President at Sallie Mae (Nasdaq: SLM).

 

Arlan Hamilton

• Title: Founder & Managing Partner
• Company: Backstage Capital
• Founded in: 2015
• Based in: Los Angeles, California
• Raised: A total of $41M across two funds

Backstage Capital is a seed investment fund that backs overachieving, underrepresented startup founders. Arlan made history by making the cover of Fast Company as the first Black woman who is not an entertainer or athlete.

I released this new @AmyPorterfield ep of “Your First Million” a day early bc it’s SO good.

This conversation went places neither of us ever imagined! We talk about self-doubt, imposter syndrome, self-sabotage, making tons of money, privilege, and more!https://t.co/bpOZQWKjlY pic.twitter.com/wM8Al8ucPo

— Arlan (@ArlanWasHere) February 21, 2023

Arlan built this nearly $30M fund to prioritise entrepreneurs of colour and LGBTQ+. Arlan has invested in over 200 startups and also runs Runner, a labour marketplace that connects startups with operations people looking for part-time work. To date, it has supported over 100 hires.

Arlan also runs her own podcast and Youtube channel – Your First Million Podcast – and has over 1,000 subscribers.

 

David Potter

• Title: Co-founder
• Company: Curu
• Founded in: 2016
• Based in: Denver, Colorado
• Raised: A total of $3M over seven rounds (Seed)

Curu enables lenders to open more accounts by showing users the actions necessary to meet eligibility for their financial goals.

David is a Bill Gates Scholar, having received the full-ride ‘Bill Gates’ Millennium Scholarship. David has used this opportunity to give back to the Techstars community by serving as a Techstars Chapters Board Member for the Colorado Chapter. In this role, David connects the Techstars family and helps expand the community while always exploring ways to increase the value of events and resources. 

 

 

Immad Akhund

• Title: CEO & Founder
• Company: Mercury
• Founded in: 2019
• Based in: San Francisco, California
• Raised: A total of $152.2M over nine rounds (Secondary Market)

Immad is the co-founder and CEO at Mercury – a unicorn company worth over $1.6bn. 

Over the years, I have tried to share learnings from my startups and seed investing.

Decided to combine my startup tweets+tweetstorms into a tweethurricane.

Here are my learnings + advice, from pitching investors to getting through the journey:

— immad (@immad) March 30, 2021

Prior to founding Mercury, Immad was the CEO and co-founder at Heyzap, a mobile developer tools company, which sold for $45m in 2016. He is an active investor in Silicon Valley and has invested in 100+ seed-stage startups including Airtable, Substack, and Rappi.

 

---

Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival comes to Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, Navan, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

When it comes to SaaS, the market in the United States is renowned for being a leader among nations.

Home to over 8x more SaaS companies than anywhere else in the world (The Latka Agency), the SaaS market in the US is set to double in the next two years (Reply)… and it doesn’t stop there. 

As of this year SaaS has an estimated worth of $195 billion (Exploding Topics), and according to experts, that number is only going to increase. We’re predicted to see a continued state of growth and innovation in the SaaS market throughout the US, with forecasts that there will be a 40% year-over-year growth on company B2B SaaS spend (Gartner) – taking us from the current $145 billion SaaS spend per year to a whopping $203 billion dollar spend by the close of 2023. 

The numbers speak for themselves: the past few years have seen a significant increase in demand for SaaS solutions as businesses of all sizes have sought to streamline their operations and improve their competitiveness in the digital age.

While it’s true that industry growth is predicted to continue in an upward trend, the looming economic difficulties will pose a new set of challenges for SaaS businesses looking to beat the competition. This piece highlights the six major focus areas SaaS founders need to build their business strategy around should they wish to thrive over the next 24 months.  

 

 

A key driver for the ongoing growth surge has been the ongoing shift towards remote work, which accelerated in the wake of COVID-19 and has continued to establish itself in company operations thereafter. 

There are two elements within the realm of remote work that have contributed to this growth: process and people. With more of us working from home and relying on digital tools to stay connected, the first contributor to growth has been the huge increase in demand for the SaaS products that help organisations manage remote teams and keep operations running smoothly. The second most commonly used SaaS tool with a 13.3% usage rate (Cledara), it’s predicted that by 2026 the market for digital collaboration tools will grow to $20.8 billion; that’s a compound annual growth rate of 1.6%! (Apps Run the World).

The second contributor and the first area of focus for SaaS founders: the talent of the team itself. Rory Brown, Founder & CCO of Kluster, summaries the apprehension too many companies hold when it comes to hiring in times of economic uncertainty, saying “attracting top talent has definitely become more difficult. When the market is unpredictable, people are more likely to have a mentality of ‘I’m doing well, this isn’t the time to make a calculated risk’” (SolutionsDriven). 

Recruiting and retaining talent has never been easy but building a rockstar team is one of few drivers of success that will never fail. Now, moving from the struggles COVID-19 imposed on businesses to the looming uphill battle the economy is set to deliver, SaaS needs to double-down on the quality of the people behind the product.  

From creating well balanced hiring plans to showcasing a unified vision, having the right people on the journey is the first step to paving the way for SaaS success. 

 

 

Another factor contributing to the growth of the US SaaS market is the increasing popularity of cloud computing. With a 16.3% compound annual growth rate, experts predict that the global cloud computing market, which is the umbrella industry of SaaS, will be worth up to $947.3 billion in the next three years (Markets and Markets). 

As more businesses move their IT infrastructure to the cloud, they are finding that SaaS solutions are an effective way to streamline processes, reduce costs, and improve the overall user experience. While this has led to a proliferation of new SaaS products and services, many of which are designed to integrate with existing cloud platforms like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, the second key area for SaaS founders to consider is how these businesses are using SaaS solutions to improve their customer experience and communications, and drive transitional growth. A study by Gartner estimates that 89% of businesses will heavily rely on their customer experience in order to beat the competition – meaning that now more than ever, founders and their teams need to do the utmost in order to deliver maximum impact to their customers. With some of the world’s leading SaaS companies ramping up their media content and testing new techniques, effective out-of-the-box campaign strategies are how customers will ultimately be brought to the point of sale. For those companies to truly stand the test of time and grow through the market’s turmoil, founders will need to think strategically about their customers, campaigns, and competition in order to achieve stable growth.

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8 US SaaS Companies raising the bar 

ZenBusiness

5-year search growth increase: 3,300%
Founded in: 2015
Based in: Austin, Texas
Funding: $277M (Series Unknown)

A PBC (public benefit corporation) ZenBusiness’ mission is to enable anyone to start, run, and grow their business while avoiding the common pitfalls that derail hopeful entrepreneurs. No more having to wade through forms, taxes, or ongoing state compliance. In November 2021, the company announced a $200M funding round, reached a valuation of $1.7B, and publicised a new partnership with well-known businessman Mark Cuban.

Printify

5-year search growth increase: 1,257%
Founded in: 2015
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $54.1M (Series A)

Printify believes that everyone should have a risk-free chance to build a business selling top-quality merchandise. Their platform brings together merchants and the world’s top printing houses to power a new generation of eCommerce stores. Printify brought in $45M in an H2 2021 Series A funding round from Index Ventures, H&M Group, and even Will Smith’s own investment firm.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

Adalo

5-year search growth increase: 9200%
Founded in: 2018
Based in: St Louis, Missouri
Funding: $9.8M (Series A)

Adalo empowers makers to bring their ideas to life. An in-app building platform, creatives, business owners, and founders create custom web & mobile applications without code. Adalo recently received $8M in a Series A funding round with investment firm Tiger Global (known for being a ‘unicorn-hunter’) leading the pack.

Lokalise

5-year search growth increase: 483%
Founded in: 2017
Based in: Dover, Delaware
Funding: $56M (Series B)

A localization and translation management platform for agile teams, Lokalise provides a cloud platform for users to manage the translations of mobile apps, games, websites – either on their own or with a team of collaborators. A global study by CSA Research showed that 76% of people are more likely to buy goods or services online from a provider that communicates with them in their own language.

ClickUp

5-year search growth increase: 3,850%
Year founded: 2017
Based in: San Diego, California
Funding: $537.5M (Series C)

A productivity platform for scheduling tasks, streamlining communication, and more, ClickUp is trusted by over 800k teams around the world. Zeb Evans, ClickUp’s Founder & CEO, joined us on the SaaStock 2022 stage to discuss how the company grew to over 6M users in five years; sharing how they built a globally recognized brand, developed an innovative product, and cultivated a strong company culture. ClickUp is now valued at over $4 billion.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

Fieldwire

5-year search growth increase: 105%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $41.2M (Series C)

Disrupting the long-held belief that construction is an old-fashioned industry, Fieldwire’s platform gives construction crews a single source of truth for their data while on a project: checklists, inspections, real-time messaging, scheduling, and more. What’s more, users are able to create markups and edit building layouts digitally on iPads or mobile devices.

Notion

5-year search growth increase: 1,460%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $343.2M (Series C)

A productivity platform that allows companies to customise their processes and workflows, Notion can be used to create and collaborate on product roadmaps, organise meeting notes, hold documents, and more. Funded by 30 investors, Notion was most recently valued at $4.2M.

DataBricks

5-year search growth increase: 1057%
Founded in: 2013
Based in: San Francisco, California
Funding: $3.5B (Series H)

Databricks is a technology startup focused on helping companies leverage data to provide insights and drive decision-making across multiple industries and areas. The startup has gained popularity with well-known brands (Conde Nast, Adobe, Biogen, and H&M) and investors alike and recently announced a Series H funding round that amounted to a staggering $1.6B.

Image from Exploding Topics: 40 Skyrocketing SaaS Companies & Startups (2023)

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In an effort to further grow and scale their business, SaaS will focus on sales-led revenue operations. The hurdle presented here lies in the intersection of customers having more information than ever before and an even higher unwillingness to be ‘sold to’. 

It’s reported that sales teams have a mere 5% of a customer’s time during their B2B buying journey (Gartner). Combined with the market-led impacts such as longer sales cycles, changes in decision makers and tighter spending, knowing the ins and outs of the market, a company’s processes and the customers’ position in the buying journey is essential for teams wanting to capitalize on that small but mighty 5%. 

Sales-led revenue operations have the potential to fuel some much needed growth for 2023 – but only if the correct internal teams and tools are aligned.

 

 

If any press is good press then by the same token any growth is good growth… But not quite. 

The fourth area of focus for SaaS founders and the critical difference that will separate the strongest of the 17,000+ US based SaaS companies (Exploding Topics) apart from the others is those that are able to achieve sustainable, long-term growth. SaaS founders across the US will need to spend a large part of the year focusing on how they can scale their business consistently and sustainably. 

According to Kristina Shen, General Partner at private American venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, the answer for how SaaS businesses can weather hard times is simple: “in a volatile market, SaaS businesses should focus on efficiency before growth” (Andreessen Horowitz). With tough conditions on the horizon for SaaS businesses around the world, the former may lead to the latter but the same can’t necessarily be said in reverse. Companies will need to decide whether or not they are prepared for expansion and what the impact of that reality has on their operations. From constantly refining their product to hitting the next milestone, US SaaS founders will have a much higher chance of reaching success if efficiency is at the heart of their business.

 

 

The latest – and some may argue greatest – route to growth is going down the path of PLG (Product-Led Growth). Coined in 2016, many believed it was the future of SaaS and attempted to adopt an effective PLG growth strategy. 

The fifth area of focus for SaaS founders this year is often hailed as the ‘modern GTM’ (Go To Market), and with good merit: PLG companies show 80% higher revenue multipliers and grow faster than traditional companies (Amplitude). What’s more, OpenView, an expansion stage venture firm, found that product-led businesses are valued more than 30% higher than the public-market SaaS Index Fund (6Sense). The data speakers for itself – with seemingly limitless upside potential, founders will need to dually prioritize not only their operational efficiency but also how to effectively position, execute and benchmark their business for some serious product-led growth.

Despite the growth the SaaS market has seen, hurdles still remain. One of the biggest challenges facing US based SaaS companies in 2023 is the need to integrate new systems with existing IT infrastructure – something that is oftentimes complex and time-consuming. Additionally, some organizations are hesitant to adopt SaaS solutions due to concerns around security and data privacy. 

To address these challenges many SaaS providers are investing in new technologies and features that can help organizations integrate their systems and protect their data. For example, some companies are developing integrations with popular project management tools like Asana and Trello, while others are incorporating machine learning and AI technologies to help businesses make more informed decisions and automate repetitive tasks.

How can those facing these hurdles begin to get past them? Like it or not, the sixth area of focus all comes down to one thing: capital.

While many experts predict that SaaS in the US will continue to grow for the foreseeable future, the one key element any particular SaaS company needs in order to truly thrive is funding. Recent headlines have had it all; slowing investment activity, VCs becoming more risk-averse; there’s more pressure than ever for companies to improve their capital efficiency. 

But, despite the headlines,  if there’s one thing the SaaS market will always have going for it, it’s VCs looking to make their next investment. 

Bret Wistrom, Editor at Austin Inno, confirms that when it comes to deals and dollars, US SaaS investment – and those Texas-based in particular – remains strong; “Austin’s venture capital ecosystem is booming, as many of the metro’s relatively new firms continue to land big returns on their tech startup investments.” (BizJournals). Whether bootstrapped or looking to raise capital, SaaS businesses will need to establish what actually matters to investors in 2023 and what adjustments need to be made to secure the funding that unlocks their next wave of growth.

All in all, the state of the SaaS market in the US in 2023 is one of growth, innovation, and increasing importance. Whether it’s a small business looking to improve their workflow or a large enterprise hoping to streamline their operations, SaaS solutions are an essential element. 

 

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SaaS Experts to Follow 

For SaaS founders looking to truly weather the upcoming storm and come out stronger than ever, it’s paramount that they stick to the focus areas mentioned above when reevaluating their business strategy for 2023 and beyond. 

• Anthony Kennada, Co-founder & CEO, AudiencePlus
• Eli Rubel, CEO, Matter Made
• Sanjiv Kalevar, Partner, OpenView
• Peep Laja, Founder & CEO, Wynter
• Dave Kellogg, Principal, Dave Kellogg Consulting
• Dave Grow, CEO, Lucid Software
• Tae Hea Nahm, Co-founder & Managing Director, Storm Ventures
• Carolyn Betts, Founder & CEO, Betts
• Kevin Dorsey, SVP Sales, Bench
• Patricia McLaren, Co-founder & CEO, RevShoppe
• Roy Solomon, Co-founder & CEO, Salesroom
• Cathy Gao, Partner, Sapphire Ventures
• Chris Walker, CEO, Refine Labs

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Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival in Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, TripActions, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

Bringing together founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS

May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock’s going stateside. 

Austin, Texas, home to 900+ SaaS companies, has been dubbed as the “Silicon Hills” for its thriving technology industry and strong startup culture. 

The city, known for its laid-back and quirky culture, has evolved into a hub of innovation and entrepreneurship. Two of our favourite characteristics over here at SaaStock. 

From Silicon Valley to Silicon Hills

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the tech migration to Austin and other cities outside of traditional tech hubs, such as the Bay Area. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, at the height of the pandemic, Austin had the highest inflow of tech workers of any major North American city (from May 2020 to April 2021).

The pandemic made remote work more prevalent, and many techies chose to relocate to cities with a lower cost of living and better quality of life. Similarly, many names in Big Tech began to reassess their business models and strategies, including their physical locations. You don’t have to be Elon Musk to think: what’s the point of paying ridiculously high rent for office space when everyone’s working from home?

This explosive growth during this short timeframe saw Austin come out on top as one of the biggest winners in the post-Covid tech landscape: with a transformed cityscape, and a solidified status as a tech hub.

A city of entrepreneurship, creativity and culture

Often referred to as the “Live Music Capital of the World”, Austin is home to more than just tech giants, and software whizzes. 

It’s also home to a vibrant community of artists, musicians, and creatives, and is a hub for events and festivals that showcase local and international talent.

The University of Texas supports this drive, as it helps build the next generation of game-changers and category definers, calling itself a “place to explore countless opportunities for tomorrow’s artists, scientists, athletes, doctors, entrepreneurs and engineers.” The University specifically produces a large number of engineering and computer science graduates every year, with headline-making alumni creating a strong talent pool in the city. 

And the entrepreneurial spirit flows beyond the university, too. 

Capital Factory, an accelerator based in the heart of the city, defines itself as the “Center for gravity for entrepreneurs in Texas”. Helping entrepreneurs meet their first customers, employees, mentors. Sounds like a company we’d get along well with… 

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High growth SaaS companies based in Austin, Texas

Tessian

Employees: 201-500
Locations: Austin, Boston, London
Tessian is a leading cloud email security platform that intelligently protects organizations against advanced threats and data loss on email, while coaching people about security threats in-the-moment. Using machine learning and behavioral data science, Tessian automatically stops threats that evade legacy Secure Email Gateways, including advanced phishing attacks, business email compromise, accidental data loss and insider threats. Tessian’s intelligent approach not only strengthens email security but also builds smarter security cultures in the modern enterprise.

tray.io

Employees: 201-500
Locations: Atlanta, Austin, California, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Durham, Houston, New York City, Washington DC, San Francisco, London, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Sydney

Tray.io is a low-code, cloud-first approach to automation. They’ve built a scalable, resilient, and secure platform that transforms fragmented process into powerful business outcomes. Using the Tray platform, organizations can connect their entire cloud stack using APIs, and thanks to a visual workflow builder, customers can easily create automations that drive their business processes using clicks or code.

LogicMonitor

Employees: 1001-5000
Locations: Austin, Singapore, London, Santa Barbara, New York, Sydney, Cambridge

LogicMonitor®’s SaaS-based observability and IT operations data collaboration platform helps ITOps, developers, MSPs and business leaders gain visibility into and predictability across the technologies that modern organizations depend on to deliver extraordinary employee and customer experiences. LogicMonitor seamlessly monitors everything from networks to applications to the cloud, empowering companies to focus less on troubleshooting and more on innovation.

Useful

Employees: 1-10
Locations: Austin, Remote

Useful is the fastest way for Product Managers to create powerful highlights from customer conversations to share insights and learnings with their teams. For teams, Useful offers a shared, searchable database of customer calls.

Forecastr

Employees: 11-50
Locations: Austin, Denver, Louisville

Forecastr is a high-growth, venture-backed startup on a mission to help Founders build great financial models so they can impress their investors and make better decisions.

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The strong startup culture in Austin attracts and nurtures many innovative and entrepreneurial individuals, which helps create a pay-it-forward, supportive and collaborative environment for SaaS startups. 

Pro-Business Climate: Supportive government policies

Another factor that pushes Austin forward as a leading tech hub is its supportive government policies. The city’s leaders have not only recognized the importance of the tech industry that’s flourishing in Austin, but have taken steps to support its growth. 

The Austin Technology Incubator has been established to provide resources and support for startups. Additionally, the city has invested in infrastructure and regulations to support the tech industry, including high-speed internet, cutting-edge facilities and tax incentives. This support has created a favorable environment for tech companies to thrive and has made Austin an attractive place for startups to launch and grow their businesses.

Opening Doors: Capital Venture in Austin

Austin has a thriving startup ecosystem, and there are many venture capital firms and angel investors in the area that are eager to invest in promising SaaS startups.

In 2021, the area set records for venture capital funding, with investments coming to an incredible $5.4billion. Unsurprisingly this slowed the following year, but not drastically: Dealroom reported that Austin-based startups raised $5billion in 2022.

One of the companies leading the way is Jasper AI. who announced a $125M Series A Funding Round in October 2022. 

With Jasper AI’s funding round being one of many,  Dealroom.co reports that Austin-based startups are now worth over $128Billion. 

That’s not a valuation of a small-time ecosystem: Austin’s got its foot in the game. 

As the world builds out the “next generation of tech”, Austin now officially ranks as #25 on a global list of tech ecosystems, based on investment, innovation, talent and outcome.  

Yet, it’s not just any capital for any startup: the city is taking it one step further… 

According to an analysis led by Pitchbook, Austin is one of the leading cities seeing growth in capital raised by female founders.  

Pitchbook’s report shows that Female-founded startups have raised more than $2.8 billion since the start of 2020, a whopping “161% increase from its 2008 to 2019 total”. 

Accelerators such as DivInc are actively working to “transform the tech ecosystem into a more authentically inclusive place”. 

 

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Leading SaaS Investors HQ’d in Austin

LiveOak Venture Partners

LiveOak is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS companies. They focus on companies that are leveraging technology to solve large, complex problems in industries like healthcare, financial services, and enterprise software.

Portfolio includes: Backflip, Ceresa, Chainguard, AmplifA, Flo

Next Coast Ventures

Next Coast Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are solving big problems in large markets and have a unique approach to doing so.

Portfolio includes: Aclaimant, Propensity, Diligent, Submittable, Stoplight

Silverton Partners

Silverton Partners is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are using technology to solve complex problems in the enterprise space and are poised for rapid growth.

Portfolio includes: NotCommon, 443ID, SailPoint, Convey, Uptempo

S3 Ventures

S3 Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in B2B SaaS startups. They focus on companies that are leveraging technology to solve complex business problems and are poised for rapid growth.

Portfolio includes: Liquibase, Allstacks, Sudozi

Mercury Fund

Mercury is an early-stage venture capital platform that seeks out transformative software startups, led by exceptional founders, in communities across America.

Portfolio includes: Molecule, Ambyint, Cloudsnap   

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Local to Global: Building the SaaS startup ecosystem

“The SaaS phenomenon is gaining momentum. There is a critical mass of founders that can come together and share experience. SaaStock is the catalyst for this movement.” – Philippe Botteri, Partner, Accel

Make a real difference to the lives and companies of the SaaS community

Unlike many startups, the SaaStock story didn’t begin in a garage, with a laptop and a few founders. It began for our Founder & CEO, Alex, with a profound interest in SaaS, and a desire to understand the mechanics behind it. Throw a curated SaaS blog into the mix, and a podcast geared solely towards B2B SaaS Founders and he was soon picking the minds of some of the biggest game-changers in SaaS.

This unique position Alex found himself in allowed him to forge strong relationships, climb into the minds of SaaS founders, and share it all with the world. This ultimately led to the birth of a community that just kept on growing, with B2B SaaS founders at the heart of it all. 

There’s something kind of magical that happens when SaaS founders come together. Nobody can deny that it’s a lonely job at the top. 

But coming together at SaaStock: founders are able to learn from one another, transfer knowledge and share war stories. They support each other and give feedback on their businesses ‒ whether over dinner or a pint after an event, or at the main conference – it’s a powerful and lasting impact.

“Patrick Campbel (ProfitWell) met Christian Owens (Paddle) at SaaStock – a $200M acquisition and a $1.4 billion valuation later, the rest is history.”

Alongside facilitating peer-to-peer connections, we introduce SaaS startups to potential investors and customers. 

“In 2022, we facilitated 2,000+ introductions between Founders & Investors in Europe.” 

Europe’s hottest SaaS Festival comes to Austin

Taking place at the Austin Marriott Downtown, May 31st – June 2nd, SaaStock USA will bring together 800+ founders, investors and a whole lotta SaaS. 

• 3 day in-person conference
  • Where we bring together the highest Concentration of SaaS decision-makers
• 800+ Attendees (400+ SaaS Founders and 100+ SaaS-focused Investors)
  • We facilitate human connections, not just meetings
• Actionable Content for every company stage
  • Hand-picked speakers who’ve proven themselves to be world class leaders, trendsetters and disruptors in SaaS. 

SaaStock attendees, speakers and sponsors include the likes of Vitally, &Open, Vanta, ProfitWell by Paddle, Intercom, Accel, Founderpath, Stripe, UiPath, TripActions, Clickup. 

Limited tickets available.

From the SaaStock 2022 Bootstrap Stage: Dave Kellogg, Executive in Residence, Balderton Capital, discusses how to drive your SaaS GTM efficiency in the next two years using these key strategies and tactics.

[Key Quote]

With the need to extend cash runways, a threatening macro environment, and never-ending pressure to improve efficiency, SaaS startups today are thinking hard about how to improve the efficiency of their go-to-market (GTM) operations as they enter the 2023 planning season. In this fast-paced presentation, Balderton’s SaaS executive-in-residence, Dave Kellogg, will discuss strategies and tactics that work — and that don’t work — to improve the efficiency of your GTM operations.

Listen to the full episode, watch the video below and subscribe to the SaaS Revolution Show podcast today.

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Watch now, or listen to the audio-only version below:


Listen to the audio now:
https://thesaasrevolutionshow.simplecast.com/episodes/reacceleration-finding-building-new-engines-of-growth-for-the-years-ahead

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If you want similar tips and are looking to achieve success all year round, check out the SaaStock Founder Membership:

A private community of ambitious SaaS founders scaling to $10MM ARR. Get a support network of peers, connect with likeminded founders around the globe, and learn proven strategies from industry experts. Apply now to scale up your SaaS.

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Want to join the pioneers at the forefront of The SaaS revolution? Subscribe to our newsletter today to get exclusive content, receive actionable value-based insights and create your Rocketship SaaS.

Plus – follow us on SaaStock’s social channels! Check out our profiles on , , , and .

And if you can’t wait another week for our next podcast, listen to our previous two here:

From the SaaStock 2022 Scale Stage: Des Traynor, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Intercom, discusses reacceleration: how SaaS companies can find and build new engines of growth for the years ahead.

Building everything for someone is, generally speaking, better than something for everyone. The only caveat is, if you have something for everyone, you’ll be able to get into any business out there but you’ll probably struggle to stick. If you build everything for someone, you’ll have a very specific market so most of the people you have nothing for but for the people you have built for, you will stick like glue. 

After a turbulent couple of quarters, startups realise that sitting on their hands and waiting for another bull market to make everything right again is not a strategy. Instead, they must control their destiny, find new revenue growth engines, and ultimately push their business forward. This talk is based on conversations with dozens of startups of all shapes and sizes and is all about how to find the areas within your business where the massive opportunities lie, and how to exploit them.

Listen to the full episode, watch the video below and subscribe to the SaaS Revolution Show podcast today.

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Watch now, or listen to the audio-only version below:


Listen to the audio now:
https://thesaasrevolutionshow.simplecast.com/episodes/reacceleration-finding-building-new-engines-of-growth-for-the-years-ahead

---

If you want similar tips and are looking to achieve success all year round, check out the SaaStock Founder Membership:

A private community of ambitious SaaS founders scaling to $10MM ARR. Get a support network of peers, connect with likeminded founders around the globe, and learn proven strategies from industry experts. Apply now to scale up your SaaS.

---

Want to join the pioneers at the forefront of The SaaS revolution? Subscribe to our newsletter today to get exclusive content, receive actionable value-based insights and create your Rocketship SaaS.

Plus – follow us on SaaStock’s social channels! Check out our profiles on , , , and .

And if you can’t wait another week for our next podcast, listen to our previous two here:

The latest episode of the SaaS Revolution Show sees Massimo Arrigoni, CEO at BEE, join our host Alex Theuma to share his lessons learned after five years of running remote retreats.

Constructive criticism, right, which kind of hurts but if I have to say – that’s the thing that’s helped me the most. Whether it’s my kids that tell me “Dad, you’re not listening!” – when your kid tells you something like that, right, and it stops you in your tracks. Colleagues, my wife, friends- that constructive criticism that comes from somebody that you really care about and you trust, that I think is what has helped me the most. 

Massimo shares:

• Lessons learnt from scaling BEE
• The company’s key data points
• Mistakes remote companies should avoid
• His biggest failure and lesson learnt
• His advice to getting through the headwinds facing SaaS

and more!

Listen to the full episode, watch the video below and subscribe to the SaaS Revolution Show podcast today.

---

Watch now, or listen to the audio-only version below:


Listen to the audio now:
https://thesaasrevolutionshow.simplecast.com/episodes/5-years-of-running-remote-retreats-lessons-learned-massimo-arrigoni-ceo-at-bee

---

If you want similar tips and are looking to achieve success all year round, check out the SaaStock Founder Membership:

A private community of ambitious SaaS founders scaling to $10MM ARR. Get a support network of peers, connect with likeminded founders around the globe, and learn proven strategies from industry experts. Apply now to scale up your SaaS.

---

Want to join the pioneers at the forefront of The SaaS revolution? Subscribe to our newsletter today to get exclusive content, receive actionable value-based insights and create your Rocketship SaaS.

Plus – follow us on SaaStock’s social channels! Check out our profiles on , , , and .

And if you can’t wait another week for our next podcast, listen to our previous two here: