Founded & Funded Madrona Ventures

In this episode, Madrona Managing Director Matt McIlwain hosts David Shim, founder and CEO of Read AI. These two have known each other for over two decades, having worked together at Farecast and then Placed, which David founded in 2011. They came together again in 2021, when David started Read AI, which delivers AI solutions that make meetings, emails, and messages more valuable to teams with AI-generated summaries, transcripts, and highlights.
In this episode, David and Matt examine how leveraging emerging technologies, getting engagement from multiple members of your ecosystem in the early days, and learning your way into a business model have been three themes across David's startup journeys. They explore the challenges and success of implementing AI in various categories, the benefits of using AI model cocktails for more accurate and intelligent applications, and where they see the opportunity for founders well beyond productivity AI. It's a great discussion you won't want to miss.
Transcript:  https://www.madrona.com/read-ai-david-shim-efficient-meetings-intelligent-agents
Chapters:     
00:00 Introduction
01:51 The Genesis of Read AI: From Concept to Reality
04:26 Leveraging Emerging Technologies: The Journey of Placed and Read AI
09:10 The Evolution of Business Models: Learning from the Market
12:13 Engagement and Distribution: Partnering with Platforms
14:07 Innovating Meeting Summaries: Read AI’s Shift to Intelligent Recaps
16:06 The Power of Model Cocktails: Enhancing AI Applications
18:03 From Zero to Growth: The Momentum of Read AI
21:06 Read AI: The Future of AI Productivity & Intelligent Agents
26:12 Exploring Product-Led Growth and Market Expansion
29:56 – Horizontal v. Vertical
31:46 – Gen-native v. Gen-enhanced
35:45 Importance of Model Cocktails
35:55 Opportunities for Founders

In this episode of Founded & Funded, Madrona Managing Director Steve Singh and Christal Bemont, CEO of Direct Travel, Madrona's newest portfolio company, delve into the acquisition of Direct Travel and its pivotal role in revolutionizing the $1.4T corporate travel ecosystem, along with  @Spotnana , Troop, and Center.
 
Full Transcript: https://bit.ly/3wxBFuT
 
(00:00) Intro
(01:19) Direct Travel: Transforming Corporate Travel Management
(03:56) The Challenges of Modern Business Travel
(07:43) The Perfect Trip: A Vision for Seamless Travel
(10:06) Spotnana: Building the Next-Generation Travel Platform
(16:27) Integrating Solutions: Center and Troop's Role in the Travel Ecosystem
(20:58) Direct Travel's Strategic Vision and Integration
(25:15) Realizing the Perfect Trip: Timeline and Expectations

In this episode of Founded & Funded, Madrona Investor Paul Goel and Neon Co-founder & CEO Nikita Shamgunov dive into the database market and the importance of creating a killer developer experience while balancing that experience with performance and reliability. Nikita also shares just how bullish he is on AI, his excitement for AI agents like Devin, and advises founders to not wait on an idea they’re passionate about.
 
Full transcript here:


(00:00) Introduction
(00:46) Nikita's Background and the Genesis of Neon
(02:50) The Right Time to Build Neon and Database Market Insights
(05:17) Neon's Differentiation in the Database Market
(08:10) The Importance of Developer Experience
(11:56) Building a Culture of Reliability and Performance
(16:24) Strategic Growth and the Future of Neon
(20:26) AI's Impact on the Future and Neon's Role
(29:08) Intelligent Applications Nikita's Eyeing
(30:53) Challenges and Advice for Founders
 

Investor Sabrina Wu hosts Bobsled Co-founder and CEO Jake Graham for the latest episode of Founded & Funded. Jake is revolutionizing data sharing across platforms, enabling customers to get to analysis faster directly in the platforms where they work. Madrona co-led Bobsled's $17 million series A last year, which put the company at an $87 million valuation.
In this episode, Jake — who had stints at Neo4j, Intel, and Microsoft — provides his perspective on why enabling cross-cloud data sharing is often cumbersome yet so important in the age of AI. He also shares why you can't PLG the enterprise, how to convince customers to adopt new technologies in a post-zero interest rate environment, and what it takes to land and partner with the hyperscalers.
Transcript here: https://www.madrona.com/bobsled-cross-cloud-data-sharing/


(00:00) Introduction
(01:36) Why found a startup?
(03:00) The Genesis of Bobsled: From Inspiration to Reality
(05:26) Understanding Bobsled’s Functionality: Cross-Cloud Data Sharing
(09:48) The Role of Cross-Cloud Data Sharing in the Age of AI
(13:05) Redefining the Modern Data Stack and Its Future
(18:04) Navigating Enterprise Sales and Partnerships in Tech
(23:22) Strategic Partnerships and Navigating the Hyperscaler Landscape
(29:40) Leadership Lessons and Vision for Bobsled

Madrona Partner Vivek Ramaswami hosts May Habib, co-founder and CEO of Writer, a 2023 IA40 winner. Writer is a full-stack generative AI platform for the enterprise. In this episode, May shares her perspective on founding a GenAI company before the ChatGPT craze, building an enterprise-grade product and go-to-market motion with 200% NRR, whether RAG and vector DBs even have a role in the enterprise, the essential attributes she looks for when hiring, and some valuable lessons she learned from past experiences. It's a must listen for anyone building in AI.
 
Transcript: https://www.madrona.com/writer-ceo-may-habib-generative-ai-platform
 
(00:00) Introduction
(01:00) The founding story of Writer
(01:19) Understanding Writer's product and value proposition
(02:58) The importance of building your own AI models
(07:10) The role of vector databases and RAG in enterprise 
(12:41) Navigating the challenges of enterprise sales in AI
(16:43) The essential attributes May looks for when hiring 
(19:13) The journey of building a high-growth AI company
(29:27) Final thoughts and hiring at Writer

Hear from Madrona Managing Director Soma Somasegar as he discusses his path to venture capital by way of 27 years at Microsoft. He shares invaluable insights about what he looks for in a founder, the importance of passion in founders, the state of cloud technology, and the future of AI and Startups. Tim also shares Madrona's core principles, his favorite books for entrepreneurs, and his personal interests outside of work, including his passion for outdoor sports and the nonprofit Global Partnerships. This chat is a must-watch for aspiring entrepreneurs looking for insights into the venture capital world or strategies to capture an investor's eye.
(00:00) Introduction
(01:18) Soma's Journey from Microsoft to Madrona
(02:08) Choosing the Venture Capital Path
(03:31) Why Seattle and Madrona?
(05:33) Soma's Investment Focus: AI and Cloud Infrastructure
(08:00) Evaluating Founders and Teams
(11:17) Recommended Books for Founders
(12:20) Soma's Passion for Cricket