Welcome to In Depth, a new podcast from First Round Review that’s dedicated to surfacing the tactical advice founders and startup leaders need to grow their teams, their companies and themselves. Hosted by Brett Berson, a partner at First Round, In Depth will cover a lot of ground and a wide range of topics, from hiring executives and becoming a better manager, to the importance of storytelling inside of your organization. But every interview will hit the level of tactical depth where the very best advice is found. We hope you’ll join us. Subscribe to “In Depth” now and learn more at firstround.com
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Welcome to In Depth, a new podcast from First Round Review that’s dedicated to surfacing the tactical advice founders and startup leaders need to grow their teams, their companies and themselves. Hosted by Brett Berson, a partner at First Round, In Depth will cover a lot of ground and a wide range of topics, from hiring executives and becoming a better manager, to the importance of storytelling inside of your organization. But every interview will hit the level of tactical depth where the very best advice is found. We hope you’ll join us. Subscribe to “In Depth” now and learn more at firstround.com
Go hard early: How lessons from Verkada shaped Serval's AI agents for IT teams | Jake Stauch (Founder and CEO)
In Depth
1 hour 23 minutes
1 week ago
Go hard early: How lessons from Verkada shaped Serval's AI agents for IT teams | Jake Stauch (Founder and CEO)
Jake is the founder and CEO of Serval, an AI-driven IT automation and service management platform that just raised $47M in Series A funding this week. Before founding Serval, Jake spent over five years at Verkada, where he led multiple products from 0-1 and helped scale the company across hardware and software. His years at Verkada taught him that winning in enterprise means delivering consumer-quality experiences to business buyers — a lesson that shapes how Serval turns complex IT automation into something that feels magical.
In this episode, Jake and Brett dive into the lessons from Verkada that inspired Serval's founding, what it takes to disrupt entrenched enterprise categories, and practical tips for getting deeply embedded with customers and hiring high-quality candidates.
In today’s episode, we discuss:
Why building “in existing categories” can be more powerful than creating new ones
The lessons from Verkada that shaped Serval's platform strategy
The customer interview question that unlocked the IT buyer’s hidden pain points
How Serval's automation builder uses AI to generate code-based workflows
Redefining engineering and PM roles with forward-deployed engineers
Keeping the hiring bar high in an AI-native startup
Why there’s a “land grab” moment right now in enterprise AI
And much more...
Where to find Jake:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakestauch/
Twitter/X: https://x.com/jakeserval
Where to find Brett:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brett-berson-9986094/
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/brettberson
Where to find First Round Capital:
Website: https://firstround.com/
First Round Review: https://review.firstround.com/
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/firstround
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FirstRoundCapital
This podcast on all platforms: https://review.firstround.com/podcast
References:
Alex McLeod: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexmcleodio/
Clay: https://www.clay.com
Cloudflare: https://www.cloudflare.com
Cursor: https://cursor.sh
Filip Kaliszan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaliszan/
Hans Robertson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hansrobertson
Linear: https://linear.app
Okta: https://www.okta.com
Rippling: https://www.rippling.com
Serval: https://www.serval.com/
ServiceNow: https://www.servicenow.com
Verkada: https://www.verkada.com
Workday: https://www.workday.com
Timestamps:
(02:25) Lessons from holding different product roles
(07:29) Turning “hard mode” into a moat
(10:49) The early days of Serval
(12:59) Scratching the founder itch
(14:57) Unconventional interview techniques
(17:47) Solving core interview challenges
(21:10) Planning the early product roadmap
(23:03) The surprising power of patience
(26:12) Serval’s impressive technical advantage
(27:35) Disrupting legacy incumbents
(31:13) Building for mid-market and enterprise
(33:35) Serval’s enduring roadmap
(36:08) How to sell to an existing market
(39:16) The evolving role software plays
(43:55) Building for AI that didn’t exist yet
(49:49) Serval’s forward-deployed engineers
(58:31) The hybrid PM-GM
(1:00:27) “You can over-prioritize”
(1:02:48) The unexpected value of panic buttons
(1:04:50) What Serval looks for in new talent
(1:07:01) The ultimate hiring litmus test
(1:13:59) Building out Serval’s go-to-market function
(1:16:31) The evolving IT market in 2025
In Depth
Welcome to In Depth, a new podcast from First Round Review that’s dedicated to surfacing the tactical advice founders and startup leaders need to grow their teams, their companies and themselves. Hosted by Brett Berson, a partner at First Round, In Depth will cover a lot of ground and a wide range of topics, from hiring executives and becoming a better manager, to the importance of storytelling inside of your organization. But every interview will hit the level of tactical depth where the very best advice is found. We hope you’ll join us. Subscribe to “In Depth” now and learn more at firstround.com
