🚀 Why Patents Matter in Deep Tech 🧠📜 | Erik Braund | Raise & Exit Podcast Ep 29 

🎙️ In this episode of the Raise & Exit Podcast, we go deep into a conversation most founders avoid: patents and intellectual property and why that’s a mistake.

 For the first time on the show, a former client steps out from under NDA to share the real, unfiltered journey of building a deep tech company where invention, not hype, is the foundation. Edgar sits down with Erik Braund, Founder of Katmai, to unpack what it truly takes to turn a bold vision into defensible technology and how patents can become a real moat when you’re taking on global markets. We explore: 

📜Why patents are often misunderstood and dangerously underused by founders 🧪The difference between idea-driven startups and invention-driven companies 🛡️How IP changes investor conversations when raising capital 
🌍What it means to build technology that enables the future of remote and hybrid work 
👥Why availability, presence, and culture matter more than endless Zoom meetings 
📈Lessons from five years of building, filing, failing, and finally scaling deep tech.

 This is a technical, commercial, and strategic conversation about raising capital, protecting innovation, and building companies that last. If you’re a founder, investor, or operator thinking about defensibility, moats, and real innovation, this episode is for you. 

🔔 Subscribe for more conversations on raising, scaling, and exiting meaningful companies. 

Most founders don't fail at raising capital because their idea is bad, they fail because they approach the wrong people in the wrong way; when it comes to family offices, fundraising isn't about sending the same pitch to hundreds of email inboxes, it's about understanding who's on the other side of the table, what matters to them, and how they actually make decisions.

🎙️ In this episode of The Raise & Exit podcast, we sit down with Colten Ratz, founder of Family Office Factory, to unravel what founders often do wrong when approaching family offices and what really works.

🔍 We explore:
🤝 Why relationships are more important than presentations
🚩 How to spot red flags and fake family offices
⏳ Why “patient capital” doesn't mean “slow capital”
🧬 How generational wealth redefines timelines, expectations, and decision-making.

This conversation is about doing your homework 📚, showing who you are as a person 🙋‍♂️, and building trust long before asking for a check 💼.

💬 Now we want to hear your opinion:
Have you ever pitched your project to a family office? What surprised you the most?
⚠️ In your opinion, what is the biggest mistake founders make when raising funds?
🧠 Do you think relationships are more important than traction when raising capital?
👇 Leave your comments and join the conversation
🎧 Subscribe to Raise & Exit to hear real conversations about fundraising, exits, and the human side of capital.

Referrals are often treated as a transactional growth lever, set a commission, wait for leads, and scale.
But in practice, that mindset is exactly what breaks most referral programs.
In this episode of The Raise & Exit Podcast, we sit down with Andrew Brown to unpack why the most effective referral strategies are rooted in human relationships, not payouts. Backed by research across 600+ organizations, Andrew explains how referrals are driven by a dynamic mix of trust, readiness, and motivation and why those drivers change over time.
We dive into:
-Why money is rarely the primary driver of referrals.
-The real difference between channel programs and managed referral programs.
-How referral mismanagement can quietly damage reputation and customer trust.
-Why fewer, well-supported referral partners often outperform scaled partner networks.
-The role of human connection in a go-to-market world increasingly shaped by AI.
This episode is designed for founders, operators, and revenue leaders who want to build sustainable, high-conversion growth without relying solely on paid acquisition or overly scaled partner programs.

Most founders believe startup success is about growth, traction, and eventually… an exit. But here’s the reality: thinking about the exit too early can quietly destroy the value you’re trying to build. In this clip from The Raise & Exit Podcast, Nitin Kumar, serial entrepreneur, former M&A leader, and operator across SaaS, AI, and enterprise tech shares hard-earned lessons from 30 years of building, scaling, and exiting companies.                                 

💡In this conversation, Nitin breaks down:               

• Why not all revenue is good revenue 
  
  
• How the wrong customers hurt scalability and valuation 
  
  

-Why cash flow can become a dangerous trap 

• The difference between real traction and fake traction 
  
  
• What actually drives valuation in SaaS and AI companies 
  
  

His key message?
Great companies aren’t built by chasing growth at all costs.

They’re built by focusing on quality  of customers, revenue, and product usage.                                                                                   
👉🏻Subscribe for more real conversations about startups, valuation, and exits.        💬  Comment below: What’s the hardest “no” you’ve had to say as a founder?   

🎙️ Episode 25 is live! This time we sit down with Dan Sperring, founder and CEO of Align ICP, to explore how companies can scale revenue predictably by focusing on the right customers.

If you’re building or scaling a SaaS or tech company, this episode is packed with actionable insights on aligning your go-to-market strategy with your ideal customer profile (ICP) and avoiding common pitfalls that compromise growth.

What we cover:

1. Why ICP matters more than ever – Most companies waste energy acquiring customers who aren’t the right fit, undermining predictable revenue growth.
2. Churn isn’t just death or divorce – Learn how to identify when customers fall outside your ICP and how that impacts retention and expansion.
3. Revenue efficiency frameworks – How to measure pipeline quality, LTV:CAC ratios, and net revenue retention to maximize scalability.
4. Segmentation strategies – Tips for analyzing revenue bands, verticals, and customer lifetime value to make smarter growth decisions.
5. Founders vs. sales leaders – Understanding what to systematize in early stage sales organizations and when to shift to specialized leadership.

🎧 Tune in for a candid discussion on creating predictable, scalable revenue growth and how to build a business that’s attractive to investors and acquirers.

🎙️ Episode 24 is live! This week, we sit down with Steven Valentor of Polynomial VC to unpack what it takes for startups to raise money, defend valuations, and position themselves for successful exits.

If you’re building or backing a tech venture, this episode is packed with actionable insights on strategy, finance, and growth.

What do we cover?

1. Raising capital is harder than it looks. Steven shares why even a creative, differentiated thesis doesn’t guarantee success and how to communicate value to investors effectively.
2. The Polynomial approach. Learn how benchmarking against industry standards, identifying operational gaps, and using empirical data can defend your valuation and attract investors.
3. Exit planning and long-term strategy. Steven highlights why understanding your market, customer, and competition is critical for a profitable exit.
4. Lessons from scaling companies. From aerospace electronics to venture capital, Steven walks through the growth, consolidation, and sale challenges small and medium-sized companies face.
5. Revenue, market fit, and traction. Key takeaways for startups on proving your product is wanted, profitable, and scalable.

🎧 Tune in for an insightful discussion on turning technical genius into investable, fundable, and exit-ready companies.

🎙️ Episode 23 is live! This week, we sit down with Jalak Jobanputra, founder and managing partner of Future Perfect Ventures, to unpack how she identifies opportunities in emerging technologies and backs companies shaping the next internet.

If you’re building or investing in crypto, AI, IoT, or other deep tech, this episode is packed with actionable insights on spotting potential, navigating uncertainty, and timing your exits.

What do we cover?

1. Investing in nascent sectors: Early-stage crypto, blockchain, and AI require founders who are nimble, resilient, and able to tune out market noise.
2. Competitive landscape & technological longevity: Why understanding competitors and building moats in fast-moving tech is critical.
3. Missed opportunities & old mind viruses: Lessons from the past decade on underestimating global demand and emerging technologies.
4. Exit strategy & founder alignment: How to balance long-term growth with personal and fund goals.
5. New investing hypotheses: Funding deep tech without a fully formed business model and the rise of AI acqui-hires.

🎧 Tune in for a candid discussion on positioning startups for growth, funding, and successful exits.

🎙️ Episode 22 is live! This time, we sit down with Bob Gillespie, a three-time founder, accelerator veteran, and “cap table expert,” to unpack the critical but often overlooked mechanics of equity, ownership, and investment structures.

If you’re building or backing an early-stage company, this episode is packed with actionable insights to help you avoid costly mistakes, structure your cap table properly, and prepare for funding or exits.

What do we cover?

1. Cap tables aren’t just paperwork. Bob explains why your cap table is a living, breathing document that requires diligence and ongoing updates—and what can go wrong if you neglect it.
2. Founder and early employee equity. Learn the importance of vesting, cliffs, share classes, and options to prevent “dead equity” and ensure fair ownership distribution.
3. Navigating accelerators and early-stage investors. Bob shares his insider perspective on setting clear goals, understanding option pools, and managing equity while scaling.
4. Avoiding the road to hell paved with good intentions. Missteps in equity allocation, informal promises, and friend-and-family investments can create long-term headaches. Bob breaks down professional approaches to safeguard your company’s structure.

🎧 Tune in for a candid, highly practical discussion on cap tables, founder dynamics, and professional approaches to raising capital.

🎙️ Episode 21 is live! This time we sit down with Anthony Ronga, startup founder, advisor, and pitch deck strategist, to talk about what really happens behind the curtain when preparing for a successful raise — and why your vendor ecosystem is your secret fundraising weapon.

Anthony shares how to shift from selling your product to selling an investment opportunity, what most founders get wrong in their first 20 pitch decks, and how to craft a story that gets investors to the table in just 90 seconds.

What do we cover?

The 90-second rule: Your pitch deck’s only job is to earn the next meeting — not tell your entire story. Simplicity wins.

Three stories that matter: Opportunity, financials, and credibility — nail these and you’ll stand out from 100 other decks.

Evolving your deck: How to mature your messaging from pre-seed to Series A, shifting from confidence-building to showing your “machine” that turns $1 into $10.

Building your ecosystem: Why early founders need financial, legal, and strategic advisors to make faster, smarter decisions.

Investor love match: How to qualify the right investors — and avoid wasting time with ones who were never going to cut a check.

Anthony also shares why founders should spend their first dollars talking to customers, not just coding, and how learning faster than your competition is the ultimate advantage.

🎧 Tune in for a sharp, practical breakdown on storytelling, strategy, and the real work it takes to raise capital with confidence.

🎙️ Episode 20 is live! This time we sit down with Paige Wiese, founder of Tree Ring Digital, to unpack how digital assets are reshaping M&A and what business owners need to know to protect—and maximize—their value.

If you’re preparing your business for an exit, this episode is packed with actionable insights on the critical—but often overlooked—role of digital profiles, social presence, and technical assets in modern deal-making.

What do we cover?

1. Digital hygiene is deal hygiene. Ownership of domains, social profiles, and analytics isn’t optional—it’s critical for a smooth transfer and maintaining long-term growth.

2. Value lost (or gained) in digital assets. From Google reviews to AI-driven visibility, Paige shares examples where digital mismanagement cost deals hundreds of thousands—or where proactive management unlocked premium valuations.

3. Founder dependence vs. company independence. How to position your business so it runs seamlessly without you, preserving relational and digital equity through a sale.

4. The rise of AI and M&A. Learn how AI is changing valuation considerations and why foundations like SEO and structured digital assets are more important than ever.

🎧 Tune in to get a complete playbook on preparing your digital assets for M&A, avoiding valuation pitfalls, and maximizing your exit potential.