In this episode, Andrew Peterson, co-founder of Aviso Ventures, engages in an insightful conversation, sharing insights on the founding story of Signal Sciences, strategies for hiring and managing employees in early-stage startups, the importance of scaling a company while maintaining culture, and advice for founders and early employees in the startup ecosystem.

The discussion also touches on the role of AI in achieving business value and differentiation, the effectiveness of AI in product development and investment, and the challenges faced by founders in the cybersecurity industry.

Topics discussed:

- Founding Story of Signal Sciences (Exit to Fastly for $825 Million)

- Importance of Establishing Clear Roles and Dynamics Among Co-founders

- Finding the Right Fit for Early Employees

- Unique Hiring Strategies in Startups

- Strategies for Closing Candidates in Early-Stage Startups

- Impact of Scaling Up on Team Dynamics and Culture

- Transition from Early-stage to Scaling in a Startup

- Identifying and Embracing Product Market Fit

- Advice for Founders and Early Employees

- Importance of Grit and Hard Work

- Challenges Faced by Founders in the Cybersecurity Industry

Links:

Find Andrew on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewmarshallpeterson/)

Aviso Ventures' website (https://avisoventures.com/)

Brick by Brick is presented by Garuda Ventures (https://garuda.vc).

About Garuda Ventures:

Garuda Ventures is a B2B-focused pre-seed and seed venture fund. Garuda is a first-check firm and aims to earn the right to be a founder's first call as they go about building their companies. To learn more, visit https://www.garuda.vc

Today's episode was hosted by Arpan Punyani. Find Arpan on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/arpanpunyani/), Substack (https://arpanpunyani.substack.com/) or X/Twitter (https://x.com/arpanpunyani)

Brick by Brick is available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts & Spotify. Hit 'subscribe' to stay up to date with new episodes!