Fund/Build/Scale

Eric Ly is the CEO of KarmaCheck, where he’s tackling a problem he first noticed years ago as a co-founder of LinkedIn:

People don’t always tell the truth about themselves.

To address this, KarmaCheck — launched in 2019 — automates key aspects of the background check process. By reducing complexity, employers can speed up hiring, while job applicants experience less friction along the way.

“This is one of the first touch points with the employer: experiencing pain and frustration having to go through this process,” said Eric.

“For us to show up with something new and different and better was frankly a breath of fresh air for the employers, the customers that we work with.”

In this episode, we discuss:

We also talk about stepping out of LinkedIn’s shadow, resisting the temptation to build for a single customer, and knowing when to say “no” to feature requests.

(1:37) “Several years ago, I became really interested in this whole concept around trust and trust online.” — How Eric first recognized the problem that led to KarmaCheck.

(3:22) Entering a highly regulated industry without prior experience — where Eric found the confidence to take the leap.

(5:30) A look back at KarmaCheck’s first hires — who they brought in early and why.

(6:47) How KarmaCheck convinced early customers to take a chance on an unproven solution.

(10:36) “Where employers don't even meet the people that they interview in person, there's an opportunity for the wrong things to happen.” 

(12:21) “We identified a pain point in corporate America that people often experience frustration with.” 

(14:34) How Eric used early customer feedback to shape KarmaCheck’s product strategy.

(16:11) The role of proof-of-concept programs in building customer trust.

(21:16) “Make sure that whatever you commit to in your product is going to be applicable for more than one customer.” 

(24:47) When customer feedback leads you down the wrong path — how to recognize it and recover.

(27:46) Why it’s important to keep track of rejected product ideas. 

(29:49) The lessons from LinkedIn that Eric chose not to apply at KarmaCheck.

(32:54) Advice for founders who want to step out of a shadow and build something completely new.

(35:54) How to find a mentor when you don’t have a built-in network — Eric’s tips for making meaningful connections.

(38:24) The one question Eric would ask a CEO if he were interviewing for a job at an early-stage startup.

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

Most early-stage founders I talk to are focused on getting their first customers, hiring their first employees, or maybe, if they’re lucky, closing their first round of funding. But what happens after that?

For Rohit Choudhary, the answer was building a whole new category.

Rohit is the CEO and co-founder of Acceldata, a data observability platform that helps companies manage the complexity of modern data infrastructure. Before starting the company, he spent years inside the problem — working on data engineering challenges at Hortonworks and other enterprise tech firms.

Like a lot of technical founders, Rohit didn’t start out dreaming of being a CEO — but the problem was too big to ignore.

In this episode, we talk about:

If you’re trying to figure out how to go from technical insight to scalable business, this one’s for you.

(2:16) “ There are four of us co-founders, and we were all part of the same engineering team at Hortonworks.”

(4:33) “ We felt that here was a unique opportunity for us to be able to build something really, really large and big.”

(6:16) How Acceldata approached proof-of-concept programs in its early days.

(8:23) “ How did you decide which one of you would become the CEO?”

(11:31) Rohit’s seed-stage recruiting strategy: “ we had to excite them with the long-term vision.”

(14:35) “ People like me, we learned how to sell despite coming from an engineering background.”

(16:46) Why the co-founders “took a leap of faith” by formalizing their sales process early.

(18:46) “ We were familiar with how business is conducted in the U.S.,” which made expansion easier.

(21:08) Early challenges they faced after closing a Series A.

(23:08) How “a big mistake” from a previous startup still influences Rohit’s choices today.

(25:30) Wondering if it’s time to throw in the towel? Do a self-assessment.

(28:31) Three core skills engineers need to acquire if they want to become effective CEOs.

(31:39) “ I used to interview almost everyone until we were at about, you know, 170-180.”

(33:82) How creating a 10-year strategy informed their day-to-day decision making.

(36:27) The one question he’d have to ask the CEO in an interview before he could accept an offer.

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

Startups face unexpected risks every day — cyberattacks, lawsuits, market shifts —but many entrepreneurs don’t think about risk management until it’s too late.

In this episode of Fund/Build/Scale, Vouch co-founder/CEO Sam Hodges explains why risk management should be top of mind for early-stage founders. We discuss:

(2:27) “ Risk management is something that a lot of founders don't think about a lot, but when it matters, it really matters.”

(3:26) How Sam connected with co-founder Travis Hedge.

(5:53) Why Vouch’s first team member was a design lead.

(6:35) What sets Corix apart from Vouch’s core offerings.

(9:05) The process behind starting up a new business unit.

(12:42) “ At some point in scale, almost every company is going to organize around products, geographies, or market segments.”

(15:05) “ There are three very specific stakeholder groups that we talk to all the time.”

(18:50) Inside their messaging, branding and rollout strategy for Corix.

(21:59) “ The roots of Corix are ‘core’ and ‘risk,’ and we really do think that's what this is all about.”

(25:47) How Sam’s day-to-day work is different since launching a new BU.

(28:25) A few thoughts about time management and self-care.

(30:32) “ I am not a big fan of the term ‘work-life balance.’”

(33:22) “ When you make a decision like this, it is going to always feel like it is too early or too late.”

(35:48) Insurtech trends early-stage founders should look out for in 2025.

(40:14) The biggest risk-management mistakes Sam sees founders making.

(43:14) The one question he’d have to ask an insurtech CEO if he were interviewing for a job.

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

Amr Awadallah is the CEO and co-founder of Vectara. Previously, he co-founded Cloudera, which went public in 2017 and was acquired for $5.3 billion, and also served as VP of Developer Relations at Google Cloud. His first startup, Aptivia, was acquired by Yahoo, where he later became VP of Product Intelligence Engineering.

I talked to him about his experience as an immigrant in Silicon Valley, the frameworks he’s built to articulate vision and credibility, and what he’s learned about pitching investors and recruiting top talent over the years.

(3:39) “ The more technical definition of what we do is ‘RAG as a service.’”

(5:38)  ”You ask your car, ‘why is this icon showing, what's wrong with you?’ And the car will tell you, hey, you need to go change my oil.’”

(8:07) What makes Vectara a blue-ocean company.

(10:05) How to win an investor’s confidence when your current TAM is zero.

(12:04)  ”There's three things anybody looks for when they're going to join any job, and you need to at least win two of the three.”

(15:06) How Amr connected with the other Vectara co-founders.

(17:24) Why he’s “a very big opponent to building in stealth.”

(21:50) Attending Stanford helped Amr visualize himself as an entrepreneur. 

(24:34) “ Many entrepreneurs think that the idea is what's going to make a company succeed or not.”

(28:54) How he cultivated an appetite for risk again after spending eight years at Yahoo.

(32:44) “ Only get the PhD in one case, and one case only: if you want to be a professor.”

(37:35) “ By definition, more immigrants will be more willing to take risks.”

(41:33) “ There's so many VCs out there pretending they're amazing.”

(43:54) There are two types of salespeople: “coin operators” and “innovators.”

(48:20) You can start up outside Silicon Valley, but “ if you can move here, move here.”

(50:27) Two questions he’d ask the CEO if he were interviewing for a job with a new startup.

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

In this episode of Fund/Build/Scale, I talked with YL Ventures Partner Andy Ellis (a former CISO) about his approach to storytelling, tactics for founder-led sales and marketing, and why he thinks the cybersecurity hiring challenge isn’t a talent shortage, but a market misunderstanding.

We also discussed refining product-market fit, customer discovery methods and pitfalls like believing in one's own narrative too strongly. The conversation also touched on hiring strategies, managing design partnerships, and maintaining humility as a founder. “The basic entry level skill of reading the room is knowing when somebody already agrees with you,” said Andy.

(1:44) Andy describes his day-to-day work at YL Ventures with founders.

(4:08)  "It's like you now have an infant, and your only job as a parent is to create a competent adult.”

(6:33) How he prefers to be pitched.

(7:52)  ”The art of storytelling is taking a message and putting it in a narrative vehicle.”

(14:38) The biggest storytelling mistakes early-stage founders make.

(17:08) “ The basic entry level skill of reading the room is knowing when somebody already agrees with you.”

(18:50) “ Fear is a hard, hard sale… It's so transparent and CISOs do this every day.”

(19:36) Common cybersecurity GTM missteps.

(21:40)  ”The moment that you can sell the same product to two different companies, you should have a sales rep.”

(23:45) How Andy helps founders read the room when they’re trying to make a sale.

(27:20) “ You're hiring really out of a very different pool when you're in the cybersecurity space.”

(29:08) “ Stealth is sort of a misnomer, but we're still sort of stuck in it.”

(30:54) What to say if you want someone to quit their cushy job and join your risky startup.

(32:46)  Rock-star hires are “fantastic if they stumble into your lap, but you can't go look for them.”

(35:08) “ That first marketer you hire needs to be able to do a lot of things.”

(39:05) “People with massive egos have a lot of humility.”

(41:20) Trends in cybersecurity and AI he’s excited about in 2025.

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

Two of the three co-founders of Operant AI — CTO Dr. Priyanka Tembey and CMO Ashley Roof — joined me to talk about building the first runtime application protection platform and navigating the challenges of cloud-native security. The company announced a $10M Series A in September 2024 — In October, we discussed taking the leap into entrepreneurship, the lessons they learned through customer discovery and education, making early hires count, and the importance of early-stage team dynamics.

(2:28) “ I think it was within six months that we were able to have our first customer conversation.”

(3:46) What can customers do with a runtime application protection platform?

(9:38) “ What is interesting about our team is we don't come from prior security vendor companies.”

(12:59) Ashley explains how her first “real job” at Google eventually led her to Operant AI.

(15:51) “ I had many years of imposter syndrome to get over.”

(17:57) Why working with design partner teams is key, particularly for stealth startups.

(20:43) Priyanka discusses the company’s early customer education efforts.

(24:23) Ashley on why previous runtime application protection products hit “the trough of despair pretty fast.”

(28:26) Turning design partners into paying customers was part of their seed-to-Series A transition.

(31:04) Priyanka explains how Operant AI runs proof-of-concept programs for customers.

(34:28) Why they decided to start up in stealth.

(36:29) “ I honestly don't know how any consumer company could possibly start in stealth.”

(38:35) “ We have the technical leadership in place now… to scale the product further.”

(41:02) Inside their recruiting strategy and process.

(44:35) What’s changed since closing the Series A?

Thanks for listening!

Startups are built on grit, vision, and — surprisingly — a lot of peer advice. In this episode, I sat down with Mallory Contois, Head of Community at Mercury and leader of Mercury Raise, their founder success platform.

Why do founders rely more on peer networks and podcasts like this one than their VCs for operational advice? Mallory explains the unique psychology that makes it hard for founders to admit uncertainty to their investors and why angel investors often provide more operational value than institutional funds.

We also discuss key survey findings, including the evolving AI landscape, the benefits of accelerators, and how lean teams are reshaping what’s possible in a startup. 

Whether you’re building your first company or gearing up for the next funding round, this episode offers actionable insights and a fresh take on founder dynamics in today’s startup ecosystem.

Subscribe now to Fund/Build/Scale and learn how to turn your idea into a sustainable business.

(2:19) A brief overview of Mercury and Mercury Raise.

(3:42) Mallory describes a day in the life of Mercury’s Community team.

(6:18) Do mature startups worry about the same things as seed-stage teams?

(8:41) “ We have a pretty good pulse on what people are talking about and what people are struggling with.”

(9:26) Nearly a quarter of all survey respondents applied to accelerators but were rejected.

(11:05) Why founders are more likely to get advice from this podcast than their VCs.

(13:39) “ The peer connection that founders have is almost trauma bonding.”

(15:02) “ We're seeing founders and investors giving the advice to be much more constrained in spend management.”

(17:43) Mallory describes different founder archetypes who are attracted to Mercury Raise.

(21:07) “ AI investments now are a lot more calculated than they were in the last couple of years.”

(24:45) For AI founders, building in a hype cycle “ can be simultaneously demoralizing and exciting.”

(27:17) How Mercury Raise creates value through community.

(29:54) Mercury’s Investor Connect program helps founders sharpen pitches.

(32:54) “Fundraising in general is just a black box.”

(36:13) Vibe check: “solo founders are actually becoming a little bit more common and a little bit more accepted.”

(37:19)  ”Co-founder breakups — it's worse than the real thing.”

(38:02) Mallory’s advice for founders who are planning to fundraise in 2025.

📓Substack: https://fundbuildscale.substack.com

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/

📥 LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.

In October 2024, New York-based Swell VC announced its second fund with $11.5 million in commitments. 

Co-founded by general partners Jay Patil and Rusty Ralston in 2011, the firm now manages two seed-stage funds and a special purpose vehicle with $19 million in assets.

Compared to larger firms, they’re small potatoes — but that’s intentional. Swell VC is all about being hands-on: helping founders with critical early hires and go-to-market strategies.

I invited them on Fund/Build/Scale to discuss their investment thesis, why diversity matters for building innovative teams, and how to know when it’s finally time to stop thinking about your startup idea and start building.

(1:36) Rusty explains how he and Jay met.

(4:08) “ People determine the outcome of a company.”

(5:36) “ You start the search when you're ready to hire. And then you build momentum.”

(8:27) When Swell VC gets involved with founders, where they’re looking to invest.

(11:24) Jay talks about the firm’s portfolio strategy and its second fund.

(14:38) When it comes to early hiring, “ over the last 15 years, we've codified like all of our learnings.”

(17:16) Where do  founders make the most mistakes in the hiring/interview process? 

(21:43) “A  big blind spot is thinking diversity is just about hitting certain metrics.”

(23:15) “ We're all about finding founders to live on what we call ‘the edge of the inside.’”

(26:39) “ No solo founder can do everything forever.”

(29:14) “ You don't need to build a full team right away. Your network is kind of your first line.”

(31:55) Signals that indicate a founder’s ready to take the leap into entrepreneurship.

(34:40) Why Swell VC is looking for category-creating startups to invest in.

(37:34) Questions Jay and Rusty expect founders to ask during the discovery meeting.

(40:25) How they prefer to be pitched.

📥 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

📓 Substack: https://fundbuildscale.substack.com

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/

Thanks for listening!

If a team hasn’t built a minimum viable product, secured paying customers, or demonstrated strong unit economics, what exactly are seed-stage investors betting on?

To get some answers, I sat down with Nnamdi Iregbulem, a partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, to discuss what drives seed valuations, the traits of successful founders, and his perspective on AI startups.

“A lot of the pitches that I get are basically two people, a PowerPoint deck, and their dog,” Nnamdi told me during our conversation in October 2024.

Nnamdi shared his journey from coding as a kid to investment banking at JP Morgan, growth-stage investing at Iconiq Capital, and now helping early-stage founders at Lightspeed. He explains why seed valuations often reflect the opportunity cost of the founding team more than traditional factors like interest rates or public market comps, and highlights the rising costs of GPUs and AI talent as critical considerations.

We also explored the traits that set exceptional founders apart — like strong domain expertise, adaptability, and demonstrated excellence — and why inference-based AI startups may have an edge over those focused on training new models.

For aspiring VCs, Nnamdi offers practical advice on developing domain expertise, building a network, and honing the skills needed to evaluate companies effectively. Whether you’re a founder, investor, or simply curious about the startup ecosystem, this episode is packed with actionable insights.  

(2:24) “ I was the first-born son of two Nigerian immigrants who really badly wanted me to be a doctor.”

(6:17) “ I was sort of like, ‘what do I know about early-stage companies?’ I never worked in a startup.”

(8:50) The day-to-day work Nnamdi does with the founders in Lightspeed’s portfolio.

(11:13) He explains why seed valuations aren’t valuations.

(13:31) “ The only characteristic… that had any real predictive value was the opportunity cost of the founder.”

(16:43) “ Coming from a large and stable big tech company is not the positive signal that it used to be.”

(17:32) The weights and measures he uses to assess seed-stage founders.

(19:33) When domain expertise is (and is not) useful.

(20:53) How he evaluates technical vs. non-technical founders.

(24:16) “A lot of the pitches that I get are basically two people, a PowerPoint deck, and their dog.”

(25:18) How to pitch Nnamdi directly.

(26:21) Setting valuations is “ more driven by the founders than it is by us.”

(29:33) His advice for anyone who wants to break into venture capital.

📥 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

📓Substack: https://fundbuildscale.substack.com

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fundbuildscale/

Thanks for listening!

In the startups I worked at, we never had spare laptops. 

When we hired someone, we’d order their laptop that day. That’s Startup Cashflow 101: don’t spend money until you have to.

The same principle applies to your leadership team. Hiring a CMO before product-market fit? Too soon. 

And a CEO can handle COO duties for a while. Most seed-stage companies don’t need a full-time CFO either. 

A good controller can handle day-to-day finances, while a fractional CFO can plan future fundraising and create investor-friendly forecasts — all without reducing your runway.

To understand why a fractional CFO might be the smarter move, I spoke to Dan DeGolier, founder of Ascent CFO Solutions.

(1:44) Dan explains Ascent CFO Solution’s origin story.

(4:53) Why so many founders hire full-time CFOs before they actually need to.

(6:33) A list of specific value-adds a fractional CFO can provide.

(7:29) “We might be two days a week or three days a week. But we are very much a part of that team.”

(8:57) Inside Dan’s client onboarding process.

(12:44) “Part of it is getting a handle on cash flow and spend.”

(15:24) “Understanding what the risk factors are to your runway is really critical.”

(18:39) Which stats and KPIs are most important to share with the entire company?

(20:51) If you want cash flow to break even, “be capital efficient to begin with.”

(23:31) Clients “often supplement a VC round with a venture debt round so they can extend that runway a little bit further.”

(25:09) How to interview a CFO if you don’t have an entrepreneurial background.

(26:08) Resources Dan recommends for founders seeking financial discipline.

📥 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7249143254363856897/

📓Substack: https://fundbuildscale.substack.com

Thanks for listening!

– Walter.