From AngelList to OnDeck to Blackbird, David has spent a decade designing the connective tissue between people, products, and ideas.
NZ's own David Booth now joins a16z as Partner and Head of Ecosystem.
His mission: make a16z the F1 pit crew of venture, where network power compounds and every founder gets faster.
David helped build one of the world’s most impactful founder communities through On Deck, helping over 1,000 startups raise more than $2B. But his path wasn’t conventional. He built momentum quietly — through community, consistency, and backing other founders long before becoming a VC himself.
In this conversation, David shares how he went from building a dinner-table movement to being invited to join one of the most powerful VC firms in the world.
It’s a story about showing up, lifting others, and trusting that if you do the hard things well, people will notice.
How On Deck grew from idea to $20M+ revenue and a $70M raise
Lessons from his time as Entrepreneur in Residence at Blackbird
How building a Kiwi founder network in SF led to a16z
What great VCs actually look for in early-stage founders
Why advising others made him a better founder — and now a better investor
🔑 Topics Covered:
The crossroad moment where he almost walked away from the company he built
Why fundraising is just as much about self-awareness as it is about metrics
How scaling culture is the real moat, and why most startups miss it
The psychological shift from operator to investor — and what founders still get wrong
Why joining a16z isn’t the finish line—it’s the beginning of a new mission
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In this episode of Startup Theatre, host Troy Hammond sits down with serial founder and engineer Nimo Naamani—a man who’s lived through the chaos of founding blockchain companies, building developer tools, getting acqui-hired by Twitter, and now taking on one of the hardest industries of all: healthcare.
Nimo shares wild stories—from building Horizon State, to selling his startup to Twitter, to launching Propagator, a platform aiming to connect every health transaction in New Zealand. Along the way, we unpack the mindset of a “zero to one” founder, what makes a 10x engineer (or a 100x one), and why he thinks clarity is more important than speed.
Plus, you’ll hear about:
Building tech under Jack Dorsey and Elon Musk
Why he believes every system leaks and how Propagator builds around that
The surprising cult-like spirit inside Twitter
The infamous swamp origin story (yes, it involves a cowboy costume and actual sh*t)
If you’re a startup builder, healthtech nerd, or just love hearing from people who do the hard stuff, this is one for the queue.
🎧 Tune in now – and take notes. Nimo knows how to build a product and scale.
🔑 Topics Covered
The swampy origin story that shaped Nimo’s love of chaos and hard problems
What happens inside a Twitter acqui-hire — and why they paid top dollar for his team
How Propagator is fixing healthcare by doing the hardest thing first and not storing your data
Why most startups fail at integration — and what it actually takes to connect legacy systems
The messy truth about co-founders, clarity, and leading when you're not a natural CEO
🔥 Soundbites
"Speed without clarity is just noise.""I don’t want to store your data. I want to move it — fast and safely.""I’ve been surrounded by bullsh!t since I was four. I’m used to chaos.""I never wanted to be CEO. I just want to fix things.""You don’t need a cult to build a great company. You need adults.""A startup is not a family. I’ve got kids — I don’t need more at work.""I’ll take the swamp every time. That’s where the real work is.""Most people start with the easy. We started with the hard.""The best founders aren’t the loudest. They’re the most convicted.""Every system leaks. So prepare, don’t panic."
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What happens when a broke Kiwi founder and his team fly to San Francisco with only $15,000 left, sleep in a basement, and end up playing poker with the investor who changes everything?
In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy Hammond sits down with Alistair McLeay, co-founder and co-CEO of Grw AI, one of New Zealand’s most ambitious artificial intelligence startups.
Alistair shares how a chance poker game in San Francisco helped him land funding and kickstart the creation of what he calls a “superhuman AI sales leader.”
Grw AI is a tool that coaches, trains, and lifts entire sales teams like the world’s best manager on steroids.
🔑 Topics Covered:
From investing in San Frasnciso, to neural networks, this is a story about risk, belief, and the blurred line between human intuition, machine intelligence, and moral responsibility.If you care about startups, AI ethics, and the people shaping the future of artificial intelligence when everything is on the line, this one is for you.
🔥 Soundbites:
🎧 Tune in now – and take notes. Alistair doesn’t hold back.
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In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy Hammond sits down with Michael "Koz" Koziarski, a veteran software engineer, startup founder, and open source contributor, to talk about the messy, real, and rewarding side of building software and leading teams.
From his early work in Ruby on Rails and open source to his leadership roles at Vend and Southgate Labs, Koz shares the honest truths about engineering in high-growth environments.
You’ll hear how great leadership isn’t about having all the answers, it’s about building trust, hiring well, and raising the performance bar.
This conversation delves into what it truly takes to lead technical teams, navigate outages, transition from consulting to product development, and why there are no silver bullets—just consistent, hard, and deliberate work.
Whether you're an engineer stepping into leadership or a founder trying to build a high-performing team, Koz’s lessons on product understanding, trust, AI expectations, and crisis management will resonate.
🔑 Topics Covered:
🔥 Soundbites:
🎧 Tune in now – and take notes. Koz doesn’t hold back.
This podcast was brought to you by our amazing sponsor in Vanta 🙌🏻
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In this episode of Startup Theatre, we sit down with Sam Kidd, co-founder and CEO of Lawvu, the pioneering legal operations platform that's transforming how in-house legal teams operate around the globe. Sam shares the journey of turning a bold idea from Tauranga, New Zealand in to a global SaaS company trusted by enterprise legal departments worldwide.
We dive into:
The pain points in legal ops that inspired Lawvu
Lessons learned scaling a startup in a niche (and often overlooked) industry
The mental resilience needed to lead through hypergrowth and headwinds
Why building company culture and customer trust go hand-in-hand
The future of legal tech and where Lawvu is headed next
Whether you're an early-stage founder, a SaaS junkie, or just love hearing how great ideas become global businesses, this one’s packed with insights you don’t want to miss.
🎧 Tune in now – and take notes. Sam doesn’t hold back.
This podcast was brought to you by our amazing sponsor in Vanta 🙌🏻
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Ever wondered what your colleagues really think about you?
In this episode, we sit down with Aaron Ward, co-founder and CEO of Huckleberry, the global startup turning workplace feedback on its head.
Aaron isn’t new to shaking up the world of work.
He previously co-founded AskNicely, a customer feedback SaaS that grew to Series B and raised over USD $50m, helping companies around the world rethink how they measure and act on customer experience.
With Huckleberry, he’s now bringing that same obsession with feedback and growth to the way we understand ourselves at work.
Huckleberry is the world’s first voice-based 360 feedback platform, designed to strip out the clunky surveys, save 90% of the time, and put your professional reputation in your pocket.
Think of it as the LinkedIn of feedback, a shareable profile that captures your strengths, work style, and how your team actually sees you.
In our conversation, Aaron shares how his team is reinventing one of the most broken parts of work: feedback. We explore the psychology of reputation, why most companies get it wrong, and how AI can transform the way we understand ourselves and grow our careers.
If you’ve ever wanted a no-BS view of your office reputation....
This episode is for you.
In this episode, we chat with "Global growth exec" Chris Teeling.
For two decades, he has held global leadership roles in high-growth technology companies, where he has built and led world-class teams, shaped strategy, scaled internationally, and delivered lasting results.
🚀 At Xero, he had the privilege as a member of the global ELT to help drive the company’s global expansion, scaling from 70,000 customers to over 1.5 million. He led and shaped strategy, growth, capital markets, corporate development, product, and operations. Breaking through the biggest barriers and cutting a path to $10s of billions in value was impressive. Still, for himself, he's most proud of the incredible people he helped grow along the way and the incredible things they are achieving on the world stage today.
📈 Over the last few years, he has been applying his experience scaling three successful global tech companies to help founders and leaders accelerate growth by uniting their people and harnessing AI tailwinds to turbocharge the journey.
🌏 On a broader mission, Chris committed to helping Kiwis prosper. Whether by working with great businesses to grow New Zealand's export economy or by improving people's retirement choices as an Independent Director of a major superannuation fund, his goal is to leave a lasting positive impact.
💡 Chris also announces his next new CEO role with a very successful Wellington SaaS company.
In this episode of Startup Theater, host Serge Van Dam engages in a dynamic conversation with female founders Irina Miller from Daisy Lab and Mrinali Kumar from Eat Kinda.
These amazing founders are pioneering the alternative protein sector in New Zealand.
On this episode, you will hear them discuss their journeys, the challenges of scaling their startups, and the importance of innovation in the food industry.
Irina shares insights about Daisy Lab's mission to create dairy alternatives using precision fermentation, while Milli talks about her experience launching cauliflower-based ice cream with Eat Kinda.
The conversation also touches on the broader plant-based market landscape, the role of female founders in startups, and the importance of vulnerability and collaboration in entrepreneurship.
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In this episode, host Serge van Dam engages in a deep conversation with Axton Pitt from LitMaps and David Moide from Foundry Lab.
They explore the intersection of science and entrepreneurship, discussing how science-based startups can drive innovation and have a positive impact.
Axton shares how LitMaps accelerates scientific research by helping users navigate academic papers.
David discusses Foundry Lab's mission to rebuild metal casting in the West.
The conversation also touches on the challenges of leadership, the importance of creativity in science, and the geopolitical landscape affecting scientific research.
The episode concludes with rapid-fire questions and highlights of other science-centric startups.
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With the amazing Electrify Aotearoa conference behind us, we wanted to share some of the amazing people who presented and attended.
In this special episode of the Startup Theatre podcast, we shine a spotlight on the remarkable women who are leading the charge in entrepreneurship.
Recorded live at the Electrify Aotearoa event, this episode features insightful conversations with inspiring female founders who are breaking barriers and redefining success in their respective fields.
Join host Adrienne Muir as she sits down with Marian Johnson, MNZM, the founder of Electrify Aotearoa, who shares her vision for growing the women's founder pipeline and creating opportunities for high-growth startups.
Alliv Samson co-founder of Kami, discusses her journey from a university competition to building a successful edtech company used by millions of students and teachers worldwide.
Kristen Lunman and Natalie Ferguson from Powrsuit, talk about the importance of risk-taking and redefining success for women in leadership roles.
Lucy Pink and Hannah Hardy-Jones from Contented, explore the power of capturing meaningful conversations and the role of AI in transforming business insights.
Throughout the episode, these trailblazing women share their personal stories, challenges, and triumphs, offering valuable insights and inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Tune in to discover how they are not only transforming industries but also paving the way for future generations of women in business.
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Angie Judge is a prominent figure in New Zealand’s technology industry, and she currently serves as the CEO of Dexibit, a cutting-edge analytics platform for visitor attractions. Judge’s entrepreneurial journey has been characterised by innovation, leadership, and a profound understanding of data-driven decision-making.
In 2015, Judge founded Dexibit, a company that has transformed analytics for visitor attractions, such as museums and galleries. Under her leadership, Dexibit offers these institutions insightful data and predictive analytics, allowing them to make informed decisions and optimise their operations while enhancing the visitor experience.
Before establishing Dexibit, Angie Judge had a significant career in the technology industry. She worked for companies like HP, Finco, and Amdocs, a multinational corporation specialising in software and services for communications, media, and financial service providers, where she was the Sales Director and Head of Transformation and Innovation. These various roles shaped her expertise in technology and innovation, paving the way for her entrepreneurial ventures.
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Nick Lissette is the founder and CEO of Black Pearl Group, a New Zealand-born SaaS company generating over $12.5M in ARR from the US market and he’s just getting started.
With a relentless drive and a famously no-BS approach to business, Nick has been scaling startups since he was 24, when he bought his first company for $1, walked into an office with a server, a car park, and no clue what he was doing and figured it out the hard way.
Since then, he’s built and sold multiple businesses, survived the brutal cycles of SaaS, and taken Black Pearl public on the NZX, with plans now underway for a dual listing on the ASX. Under his leadership, Black Pearl has launched a suite of products that use real AI, not vaporware, to help SMEs in the US find and close more customers. Nick doesn’t just talk about AI—his team builds it, deploys it, and uses it to scale faster with fewer people. And yes, he thinks Elon might’ve had a point about Twitter headcount.
Nick is as authentic as they come. He tells it like it is, about fundraising, hiring tough operators, managing burnout, building billion-dollar visions, and grinding through hill runs with his teenage son to stay mentally sharp.
Whether he’s cold-calling from a Taco Bell in Arizona or closing deals face-to-face in the US, Nick plays to win, and he’ll either succeed or “die trying.”
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Ben Gracewood is one of those rare tech leaders who’s done the whole arc—starting in low-level code, scaling product and engineering teams at Vend through to a $400 million exit, and now leading in a world where AI is rewriting the playbook.
With a deep background in software development and executive leadership, Ben has built teams, shaped product strategy, and helped grow one of New Zealand’s most successful SaaS companies. But he’s not stuck in nostalgia. Today, he’s laser-focused on what comes next—and he’s convinced that we can now do more with fewer people.
Ben’s current work explores how artificial intelligence can augment product and engineering teams—not to replace humans, but to strip away busywork and let great people focus on what matters. He’s open in questioning the bloat that’s crept into many tech orgs, and he’s even willing to say what others won’t: maybe Elon wasn’t entirely wrong when he gutted Twitter’s headcount. Brutal? Maybe. But Ben thinks it opened up an uncomfortable truth—most tech teams are overstaffed and under-focused.
Whether it’s scaling with soul, building leaner, smarter teams, or staying close to the craft as a leader, Ben brings a no-BS, high-empathy perspective to what modern product leadership looks like. He’s still a builder at heart—and now he’s building with AI at his side.
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For nearly two decades, Heather has worked across strategy, operations, product marketing, revenue, and executive go-to-market roles in 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗼𝗻 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆 startups and multinational companies.
On this episode, we discuss the impact of AI on business and the importance of 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗜 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 to stay competitive.
Heather shares her insights on the future of work, the necessity of adapting to new technologies, and the 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗔𝗜.
"𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘢𝘩𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵." ~ Heather Gadonniex
In this engaging conversation, Heather shares her insights on the evolving landscape of startups, the impact of AI on productivity, and the importance of 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗼-𝗧𝗼-𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀.
"That's mind-blowing." ~ Adrienne Muir
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Hamish Edwards hasn't told his story in detail before. and so you get to hear it for the first time.
Renowned for co-founding Xero with Rod Drury in 2006 in his accounting companies' boardroom, before they ever moved to said apartment.
As a practicing accountant at the time and working with Rod, Hamish played a pivotal role in Xero's early growth, shaping the product and expanding its customer base across New Zealand, Australia, and the United Kingdom by closely collaborating with accounting firms.
In this episode, Hamish tells us how and why Xero was founded and what he is doing now with https://www.firmcheck.com/.
We discuss the importance of obsession in achieving success and whether all founders have to be obsessed or not.
Now worth in the vicinity of $300 million, we ask Hamish:
Has success changed you?
If you are a founder looking to go global, this one is not to be missed.
This podcast is brought to you by our amazing sponsor in Vanta and could not be done without them.
Lowry Gladwell has been at the forefront of some of New Zealand’s most iconic companies, from law to payments, tech partnerships to sales.
Playing a key role in Vend’s journey through to their successful exit in 2021 and leading Xero’s embedded finance strategy and execution, Lowry knows his domain well.
Now, as Head of New Zealand at Airwallex—an Australian unicorn transforming banking and financial service, Lowry is focused on building the local team and introducing Airwallex’s game-changing product to the New Zealand market.
In this episode, we discuss all things revenue and channel partner growth, and how you should build a function and hire a team.
If you are a product company looking to go global, this one is not to be missed.
Rowan Simpson has been at the heart of New Zealand's most successful technology companies. As a founding team member at Trade Me and Xero, he witnessed firsthand how great companies are built through consistent execution. His subsequent investments and hands-on work with ventures like Vend and Timely have helped shape a generation of high-growth companies.If you’re the kind of person who hates being wrong (let’s be honest, that’s most of us), then How to Be Wrong is a game-changer. It completely flips the script on failure, showing that being wrong isn’t something to fear—it’s something to embrace. The book and ultimately this podcast is packed with real-world wisdom, practical advice, and a refreshing perspective on how to navigate uncertainty without letting your ego get in the way.
Nicole Retter is the sole Founder and CEO of PAM.
🤖 PAM stands for "Personal Admin Manager" and is your Family's own Digital PA
👩🏽💻 Nicole has been a marketer for 20 years, working in big ad agencies, and digital agencies delivering festivals, and guiding sole traders.
🚀 Her specialty is supporting Start-ups and SME’s, and due to your limited resources, we get to be creative in our approach and make a big impact fast.
🧑🧑🧒🧒 Nicole is the proud Founder of PAM, an app currently under construction to support busy families to thrive by reducing/sharing all the family admin crap we’re drowning under. She will be its first customer.
💁🏻♂️ In this episode, Nicole goes deep into the PAM story and the lessons she has learned to bring this product to the world!
👀 Please check out our sponsor in Talent Army who are NZ's best tech startup recruiters.
Philip Fierlinger co-founded Xero, playing a major role as Head of Design, leading Xero to become a disruptive platform and an iconic global brand.
Now he is the co-founder of Upstock, a B2B e-commerce & logistics platform transforming the food & beverage industry.
His early career highlights include work for Beastie Boys and General Magic.
In this episode Philip goes deep on the Xero story and the lessons he has learned to make Upstoack a 🦄 also.
Please check out our sponsor in Talent Army who are NZ's best tech startup recruiters.
In this episode, we chat with Derek Handley Derek is an entrepreneur known for co-founding alongside Sir Richard Branson The B Team - a global collective advocating economic systems change to protect our natural environment and secure a safe, sustainable, and equitable future for all Before The B Team, Derek was one of the first young Kiwi entrepreneurs to build a global start-up, The Hyperfactory, an early pioneer driving the transition from the PC world to the mobile world. He started it out of University and took from a balcony in Anzac Ave Auckland to offices across the world from New York to India and almost 200 people, before selling to a 100 year old NYSE-listed giant Meredith Corporation. Have served on the Board of Sky TV, sustainability board of Air New Zealand, as Adjunct Professor at AUT; Innovator in Residence at Wharton University of Pennsylvania and as campaign Chair for Prince Harry Duke of Sussex for his sustainable travel initiative “Travalyst”. Founder of Aera VC, a global climate-tech seed fund investing in transformative technologies to radically reverse climate change. Our 25+ portfolio companies have gone on to raise over $2b NZD. Personal angel investor in over 50 start-ups, still actively backing 2-4 companies a year - most recently examples x.Ai Series B and Tracksuit. Awarded Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Sir Peter Blake Leader, and Victoria University Distinguished Alumni awards He is now building his latest company in Aera.
Aera is a new Kiwi fintech start-up helping first-home buyers build a deposit in half the time.