Episode 403 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Nick Ornitz and Shannon Kay, Co-Founders of Topline Pro.
Make something people want is the motto behind Y Combinator. It sounds simple, yet so many founders miss this fundamental requirement.
Topline Pro is a perfect case study in getting it right. They didn't fall victim to early false positives; instead, they listened, experimented, and successfully pivoted to solve a true, massive problem for an underserved market.
Topline Pro is building AI that empowers local home service pros to grow and scale their businesses. They provide a critical platform to help with the marketing, sales, and operations of running a business in the trades, allowing these business owners to focus on their craft.
The company recently announced a $27M Series B funding round led by Northzone, with new participation from Tactile Ventures, and Industry Ventures, alongside continued support from existing investors Forerunner Ventures, Bonfire Ventures, TMV, Flybridge, and BBG Ventures.
In this interview, we dive into:
* The inspirational backstory of Nick and Shannon and how they decided to build a company together after meeting at HBS.
* Their initial concept called Dwelling, the "false positive" they experienced, and the strategic pivot.
* Their time at Y Combinator and how early access to GPT opened their eyes to the potential of AI.
* The value that Topline Pro is providing customers and the exciting opportunities ahead following their Series B.
* Growth plans, hiring goals, and the culture they're building at Topline Pro.
* Advice for non-AI native companies that are starting to build out their own AI strategy.
* And so much more!
Episode Sponsor:
As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
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Episode 403 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Nick Ornitz and Shannon Kay, Co-Founders of Topline Pro.
Make something people want is the motto behind Y Combinator. It sounds simple, yet so many founders miss this fundamental requirement.
Topline Pro is a perfect case study in getting it right. They didn't fall victim to early false positives; instead, they listened, experimented, and successfully pivoted to solve a true, massive problem for an underserved market.
Topline Pro is building AI that empowers local home service pros to grow and scale their businesses. They provide a critical platform to help with the marketing, sales, and operations of running a business in the trades, allowing these business owners to focus on their craft.
The company recently announced a $27M Series B funding round led by Northzone, with new participation from Tactile Ventures, and Industry Ventures, alongside continued support from existing investors Forerunner Ventures, Bonfire Ventures, TMV, Flybridge, and BBG Ventures.
In this interview, we dive into:
* The inspirational backstory of Nick and Shannon and how they decided to build a company together after meeting at HBS.
* Their initial concept called Dwelling, the "false positive" they experienced, and the strategic pivot.
* Their time at Y Combinator and how early access to GPT opened their eyes to the potential of AI.
* The value that Topline Pro is providing customers and the exciting opportunities ahead following their Series B.
* Growth plans, hiring goals, and the culture they're building at Topline Pro.
* Advice for non-AI native companies that are starting to build out their own AI strategy.
* And so much more!
Episode Sponsor:
As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
Episode 393: Daniel Demetri - Founder & CEO, Trellis
The VentureFizz Podcast
51 minutes 16 seconds
2 months ago
Episode 393: Daniel Demetri - Founder & CEO, Trellis
Episode 393 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Daniel Demetri, Founder & CEO of Trellis.
Through the advancements of technology like cloud computing and AI, you no longer need to have a huge team to support a company that is hitting major levels of revenue. And, it’s not just the ones you read about like Lovable, Cursor, Wiz, etc., as there are other companies that are able to achieve impressive feats with a relatively lean team.
Trellis falls under this category. Conserving cash is an obvious benefit, but as Daniel explains, another advantage is speed. It removes the layers of an organization which in return allows employees to process information and make decisions faster.
Trellis is an insurtech start-up with a mission to simplify and automate shopping for home and auto insurance by powering intelligent insurance experiences using machine learning, real-time bidding, and conversational AI, backed by a team of nationally licensed insurance advisors. The company is funded by top investors, including QED, General Catalyst, Nyca, and Amex Ventures.
In this episode of our podcast, we cover lots of great topics like:
* Daniel’s background, including being a webmaster pre-college and some stories of the inner workings of Harvard.
* His progression as a Product Manager at Google (including his interviews with Marisa Mayer) and how he got involved in startups.
* Co-Founding a company that disrupted the title insurance industry called Doma which eventually went public and is now private, plus how this experience prepped him to be a CEO.
* What led him down the path of starting Trellis and how the company is applying modern technology to the traditional model of insurance sales.
* Lots of details about Trellis in terms of the team structure, hiring plans, and what’s next for the company.
* His thoughts on what makes a great product manager.
* And so much more!
The VentureFizz Podcast
Episode 403 of The VentureFizz Podcast features Nick Ornitz and Shannon Kay, Co-Founders of Topline Pro.
Make something people want is the motto behind Y Combinator. It sounds simple, yet so many founders miss this fundamental requirement.
Topline Pro is a perfect case study in getting it right. They didn't fall victim to early false positives; instead, they listened, experimented, and successfully pivoted to solve a true, massive problem for an underserved market.
Topline Pro is building AI that empowers local home service pros to grow and scale their businesses. They provide a critical platform to help with the marketing, sales, and operations of running a business in the trades, allowing these business owners to focus on their craft.
The company recently announced a $27M Series B funding round led by Northzone, with new participation from Tactile Ventures, and Industry Ventures, alongside continued support from existing investors Forerunner Ventures, Bonfire Ventures, TMV, Flybridge, and BBG Ventures.
In this interview, we dive into:
* The inspirational backstory of Nick and Shannon and how they decided to build a company together after meeting at HBS.
* Their initial concept called Dwelling, the "false positive" they experienced, and the strategic pivot.
* Their time at Y Combinator and how early access to GPT opened their eyes to the potential of AI.
* The value that Topline Pro is providing customers and the exciting opportunities ahead following their Series B.
* Growth plans, hiring goals, and the culture they're building at Topline Pro.
* Advice for non-AI native companies that are starting to build out their own AI strategy.
* And so much more!
Episode Sponsor:
As a longtime champion of the local startup ecosystem, Silicon Valley Bank supports innovative companies with the solutions and financing they need through every stage of growth. With more than 1,500 bankers and relationship advisors, and $42B in loans as of Q2 2024 – SVB delivers the right people, service and resources to support your entire financial journey. Learn more at SVB.com.
