Are you struggling to convince enterprise buyers to trust your early-stage cybersecurity startup? Wondering how to differentiate technical innovation in a crowded market? Curious about how device identity and hardware-bound credentials can change the sales conversation? In this exciting episode, we dive deep into device identity and discuss what it takes to build trust and credibility for a new security standard—directly from a finalist of the RSA Conference Innovation Sandbox.

In this conversation we discuss: 

👉 The challenges and opportunities of tying access controls to hardware for higher security and easier enterprise adoption
👉 How Smallstep’s collaboration with Google led to a new security standard that major vendors like Apple are adopting
👉 Lessons for founders on selling to Fortune 500s and scaling enterprise relationships from the ground up

About our guest:
Mike Malone is the CEO and founder of Smallstep, a device identity platform company. With a background in engineering and extensive experience in standards development (including collaborations with Google, Apple, and more), Mike shares real go-to-market stories and hard-earned lessons from building in cybersecurity.

Summary:
Don’t miss this episode if you want actionable insights on enterprise go-to-market, security innovation, and emerging standards. Mike Malone reveals both the promise and pain points of championing a new protocol in cybersecurity—and how to “celebrate the wins” as your startup drives adoption with the largest enterprises. Tune in now to hear how Smallstep is paving the way for hardware-bound device identity!

Learn more and connect:

• Mike Malone on LinkedIn
• Smallstep Website
• Book a strategy session with Andrew Monaghan

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