Unicorn Builders

Assaf Resnick: the Story of BigPanda ($1.2 Billion Valuation)

In today's episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Assaf Resnick, CEO and Co-Founder of BigPanda, an AIOps platform that's raised $337 Million in funding.
Topics Discussed:
The serendipitous moment that took Assaf from VC to strike out on his own as a founder, and the hunger that drives him forward
The personal challenges of becoming a business founder, from emotional strain to strategic divergences
Why building a successful business means balancing growth with efficiency, and always being ready to adapt as circumstances change
Why product-market fit is absolutely essential, and how founders can make sure they never lose focus of their clients’ pain points
BigPanda’s vision of becoming the leading name in the AI ops space, and the strategic steps that they hope will take them there
 
Favorite book: 
Siddhartha: A Novel

Arik Shtilman: the Story of Rapyd ($15 Billion Valuation)

In today's episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Arik Shtilman, CEO and Co-Founder of Rapyd, a Fintech as a service platform that's raised over $800 Million in funding, about why today’s global economy needs a new generation of payment solutions. Offering powerful fintech solutions to collect, hold and send funds across countries and between currencies with ease, Rapyd makes sure their customers have the time and resources available to focus on what matters most - building and growing their businesses.
We also speak about Arik’s CEO superpowers of staying hungry and getting deep into the details, advice for early founders to focus on building a brand and boosting awareness, Rapyd’s marketing strategies, and creating a new category with ‘fintech as a service.’
Topics Discussed:
Lessons learned from the Israeli military 
The mindset Arik and his co-founders had when they founded the company
How to deal with negative press
The ROI of David Guetta
How one meeting saved the company from being closed 
Why the spray and  pray approach to fundraising doesn't work 
How Arik keeps him team and himself hungry and motivated 
Why brand awareness is everything 

Raj De Datta: the Story of Bloomreach ($2.2 Billion Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Raj De Datta, CEO and Co-founder of Bloomreach, an e-Commerce experience platform that’s raised $450 Million in funding, about why, in a world where we all live digitally, it’s time to bring the e-Commerce experience up to the standards we’d expect from traditional shopping. By providing personalized advertising to engage digital customers, and then a seamlessly integrated pathway to the products that caught their attention, Bloomreach is making e-commerce a more rewarding experience for everyone involved, and helping the brands behind it reach new levels of growth and engagement.
We also speak about what the post-financial crisis startup economy of 2009, why hard times can actually be a benefit in the long run, how years of trials and tribulations with Bloomreach taught Raj the central importance of perseverance, and how his singular vision on a more enjoyable experience of a digital world eventually carried Bloomreach to the top.
Topics Discussed:
The story of a startup cycle, Bloomreach’s trials and tribulations from a strong start to uncertainty and back again to the top
Why money is only one thing you need to  build a successful business, and easy access to capital is no guarantee of success
Why what leaders need more than anything is clarity of vision, but how Raj found catharsis in sharing his uncertainty during a difficult time
How Raj envisioned a digital shopping experience long before e-Commerce came to dominate the market
How Bloomreach’s cultural playbook puts strong teams at the heart of their business model
Why Raj wants to share his story to encourage other founders in the space, and why, for him, it’s always ‘day’

Marcelo Lebre: the Story of Remote ($3 Billion+ Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Marcelo Lebre, COO and Co-founder of Remote, a global payroll, tax and HR compliance platform that’s raised nearly $500 Million in funding, about how supporting employers to recruit, hire and pay the best talent from across the world is building a better way of working for everyone. Their remote-first offering might have seemed outlandish just a few years ago, but in a post-pandemic economy it has quickly taken this young startup to unicorn status, a growth trend that sees no signs of slowing down any time soon.
We also speak about what it was like growing up as a tech-obsessed kid in a small rural town, how Marcelo’s family responded to his rapid success, why it’s sometimes hard for him to comprehend the scale of what remote has become, why anxiety can be a superpower as much as a ‘super problem,’ and why, at the end of the day, for Marcelo it all comes down to problem-solving.
Topics Discussed:
The origins of remote, from a small village upbringing to a chance double date, and on to become a globally recognised brand
Why working remotely means Marcelo sometimes struggles to get his head around the growth Remote has experienced in recent years
How the COVID-19 pandemic supercharged the remote-work revolution, and how Marcelo’s vision put Remote ahead of the curve
What it felt like to have friends and family recognise Remote’s astounding success
Why Marcelo might call anxiety both a ‘super problem’ and superpower
Why solving one problem after the next is still the main motivation for Marcelo to keep driving Remote forwards

Michael Witte: the Story of Workrise ($3 Billion Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Michael Witte, CEO & Co-founder of Workrise, a marketplace for on demand services and skilled labor in the energy industry that’s raised over $750 Million in funding, about why the energy sector’s needs for digital innovation are equal to its dependence on advanced extraction technologies, and how Workrise fits in to the future of energy. A B2B marketplace to bring together skills and expertise from disparate vendors and individuals to implement energy projects to the highest possible standard, Workrise is set to drive efficiency and expediency in this foundational part of our economy.
We also speak about Michael’s background as a native Texan and as a energy engineer, the staggering technology in the energy extraction process but why the sector lags behind in terms of digitalization, how personal experience led him to found Workrise, and how he manages to balance being a father, husband, dog owner and CEO.
Topics Discussed:
Michael’s life as a native Texan and his career in the oil and gas sector
The complexity of energy extraction projects involving a wide range of stakeholders, skills and expertise
The current state of the Austin tech ecosystem and why Michael is proud to be a part of it
The staggering technology required to extract energy resources, but why the sector still lags behind in terms of digitalization
Why so many would-be founders never really consider what their success might mean, and the responsibility that comes with a leadership role
How Michael balances his business with the responsibility of being a husband, father and ‘dog father’

Spike Lipkin: the Story of Newfront ($2.2 Billion Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Spike Lipkin, CEO and Co-founder of Newfront, a modern insurance platform that’s raised $310 Million in funding, about why the insurance industry has been so slow to move with the times, and the new generation of insurance solutions delivering better outcomes for their customers. By empowering experts in risk management with the latest digital technologies, Newfront is leading the way in transforming the sector on behalf of their customers.
We also speak about Spike’s background, from growing up in Colorado to finding his way into the insurance industry, his personal experiences confronting mountains of paperwork, why insurance is so central to innovation and progress across almost every field of human endeavor, and how large language models are helping Newfront produce actionable comparisons from huge amounts of industry data.
Topics Discussed:
Spike’s background and why he feels fortunate to have found his way into the insurance industry
The central role of insurance, and managing risk more generally, in driving innovation across almost every field of human endeavor
Spike’s first-hand experience confronting huge amounts of insurance industry paperwork, and why the sector has been so slow to modernize
The role of new technology like large language models in redefining the insurance experience, and the importance of actionable comparisons for clients
The central focus on broker productivity and transaction rates as metrics of success for Newfront

Ajay Kulkarni: the Story of Timescale ($1 Billion+ Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Ajay Kulkarni, CEO of Timescale, an open source time series SQL database that’s raised over $180 Million in funding, about why, as computers get more powerful and data storage gets cheaper, the future of our digital transformation lies in better databases. With a market offering optimized for data intensive applications which capture large volumes of information for use in enterprise decision making, but faster, cheaper and better than current market offerings, Timescale is set to make a massive impact on the way data affects all of our daily lives.
We also speak about how perseverance kept Ajay in the startup space even after less than successful attempts at first, why he believes the success in any business is the grind, the pros and cons of starting a business during tough economic times, and how Timescale’s early PLG strategy was built on the strength of their community.
Topics Discussed:
Ajay’s first forays as a founder, and why he feels he learned a lot but never quite got the formula right until now
Why Ajay believes that when it comes to business success, there’s nothing more essential than the grind
The competitive aspect of a commercial enterprise, and why every founder needs a bit of faith in themselves and their idea
How constant development in the data collection and storage capacity of our devices makes better databases and essential tool for the economy of tomorrow
Why Timescale’s faster, cheaper, better model for data intensive applications is leaving the competition behind
How building a community helped give Timescale’s PLG strategy a head start

Gary Hoberman: the Story of Unqork ($2 Billion+ Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Gary Hoberman, CEO and Founder of Unqork, a no-code enterprise application platform that’s raised over $400 Million in funding, about why the future of tech innovation for some of the world’s largest companies is being built without a single line of code. With a range of software solutions combining automation and cutting-edge analytics, Unqork helps their clients divert critical resources back to driving forward momentum instead of maintaining out-of-date solutions.
We also speak about Gary’s impressive career in some of the world’s leading enterprises, how his entrepreneurial family helped shape his unique approach to business, Gary’s vision for innovation in business, and why, as far as he’s concerned, cutting-edge technology really is magic.
Topics Discussed:
Gary’s career in the world of global enterprise and what it taught him about his own personal approach to business
How Gary found firms spending 80% of their budget just to ‘keep the lights on.’
What it was like transitioning from corporate heights to the world of startup technology
Gary’s fascination with coding as a language, and why Unqork helps their clients innovate without it
How people find happiness in different enterprise spaces and why it all comes down to personal psychology
Why technology is magic as far as Gary is concerned

Tony Jamous: the Story of Oyster ($1.1 Billion Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Tony Jamous, CEO of Oyster, about how remote working is bringing the world together, building new opportunities and making a dent in one of our greatest collective challenges – global inequality. Oyster’s seamless, red-tape-free solution for any company to hire anyone, anywhere, is more than just a revenue stream, it’s a mission-based company determined to lead the way toward a better future of work for us all.
We spoke about Oyster’s extraordinary funding success, the impact of the pandemic and the importance of timing, and how personal experiences building a global company led him to appreciate the challenge of hiring across borders. A self-proclaimed ‘future of work activist,’ Tony wants to see a world where barriers and borders to productivity are eliminated, allowing people to optimize their skills in their communities and end the cycle of brain drain afflicting much of the world.
 Topics Discussed:
The future of a truly global economy, and why bureaucracy hurts us all, in the long run,
How Tony became a ‘future of work activist’ and what it means to run a mission-based company
Why global talent can become the basis of a global community, and why borders build inequality into our society
The importance of like-minded investors, and why a mission is everything when founding a company to drive real change
Why learning and leadership go hand in hand, and why every first-time founder needs a good coach
Target market resonance and the challenge of positioning a revolutionary company in a saturated market
Why global work will soon become ‘future work,’ and how Oyster is positioning itself to get ahead of the curve

Barr Moses: the Story of Monte Carlo ($1.6 Billion Valuation)

In today’s episode of Unicorn Builders, we speak with Barr Moses, Co-Founder & CEO of Monte Carlo, a data observability platform that’s raised over $230 Million in funding. 
Topics Discussed:
Barr’s background in the Israeli military, and the lessons in analytics and dealing with challenges that she brought to the world of business
How Barr’s Mother became her business inspiration from a young age, and what she learned from watching her business journey
Why it can be easy to end up making content only for yourself, and how important it is to communicate with your potential clients to know what’s really going on
Why Monte Carlo’s focus is on getting as many customers as possible and making them as happy as they possibly can
Why Barr spends time on podcasts, at speaking events and writing blogs to share the concept behind her new business category
The data observability category and why Barr is so thrilled to see it establishing itself