453: StackAI: From MIT PhD to 7-Figure Enterprise AI Platform - with Bernard Aceituno
Bernard Aceituno went from PhD research at MIT to founding StackAI, a no-code AI platform that's now generating 7-figures in ARR with over 100 enterprise customers and $16M raised.
In this episode, Bernard shares how he pivoted from academia to entrepreneurship, why his first product wasn't solving the right problem, and how a perfectly-timed MVP launch on Hacker News created overnight demand. He explains the painful lessons of chasing too many customer segments before finding focus with enterprise IT teams.
You'll learn:
What signals showed Bernard it was time to pivot from dataset management to workflow automation
Why chasing too many ICPs nearly derailed the company and how they found focus
How posting a scrappy MVP on Hacker News created 20 customer meetings in just two days
Why attempts at reseller channels failed and what Bernard learned from waiting too long to hire sales
How focusing on enterprise IT unlocked large contracts and steady expansion inside customer accounts
Full show notes → saasclub.io/453
This episode is brought to you by:
💖 Gearheart → Book a free strategy session + get 20% off select services
Get weekly SaaS lessons and new founder stories → saasclub.io/email
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452: Proof: SaaS Growth Lessons from $0 to $100M ARR - with Pat Kinsel
Pat Kinsel went from years of painful struggle at Notarize to building Proof, a SaaS platform approaching $100M ARR with 230 employees and $260M raised.
In this episode, Pat explains how a notary error during his first startup exit sparked the idea, why he validated demand with a simple landing page before building, how he endured years of slow traction and false signals, and what changed when he expanded beyond notarization to transaction security.
You’ll learn:
- How Pat validated demand with a landing page and Google ads
- Why losing money on every transaction nearly killed the company
- What really happened when COVID demand spiked 100x overnight
- How he spent years pushing to make online notarization widely accepted
- Why many COVID-era enterprise signups never activated and what that taught about real product-market fit
Full show notes → saasclub.io/452
This episode is brought to you by:
💖 Gearheart → Book a free strategy session + get 20% off select services
📫 Mailtrap → Get 20% off with code THESAASPODCAST
Get weekly SaaS lessons and new founder stories → saasclub.io/email
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451: Pendo: From Two Failed Startups to $200M ARR SaaS Success - with Todd Olson
Todd Olson went from two failed startups to building Pendo, a SaaS platform now generating $200M ARR with 880 employees and nearly $500M raised.
In this episode, Todd reveals how early mistakes shaped his obsession with product-market fit, why he refused to hire salespeople until he validated the sales motion himself, and how creating an entirely new category forced him to abandon inbound marketing for manual outreach.
You’ll learn:
- Why Todd waited until $500K ARR before hiring salespeople
- How raising prices 10x overnight changed Pendo’s trajectory
- What two failed startups taught him about product-market fit
- Why category creation required a bold go-to-market approach
- The counterintuitive product strategy that made Pendo stand out
Full show notes → saasclub.io/451
This episode is brought to you by:
💖 Gearheart → Book a free strategy session + get 20% off select services
📫 Mailtrap → Get 20% off with code THESAASPODCAST
Get weekly SaaS lessons and new founder stories → saasclub.io/email
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450: Lindy: Pivoting a $50M Startup to Build AI Agents - with Flo Crivello
Flo Crivello is the founder and CEO of Lindy, a no-code platform for building AI agents to automate workflows.
👉 This episode is sponsored by Mailtrap. Try it at Mailtrap.io — use code THESAASPODCAST for 20% off
Show Notes: https://saasclub.io/450
Join Email List: Get weekly SaaS learnings, new podcast episodes, and actionable insights right in your inbox: https://saasclub.io/email/
Join Community: SaaS Club is the community for early-stage SaaS founders and entrepreneurs: https://saasclub.io/join/
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449: Fathom: Why Fixing Retention First Was the Key to Hitting $1M ARR - with Richard White
Richard White is the founder and CEO of Fathom, the #1 rated AI note-taking app that automatically captures and summarizes meetings.
👉 This episode is sponsored by Mailtrap. Try it at Mailtrap.io — use code THESAASPODCAST for 20% off
Show Notes: https://saasclub.io/449
Join Email List: Get weekly SaaS learnings, new podcast episodes, and actionable insights right in your inbox: https://saasclub.io/email/
Join Community: SaaS Club is the community for early-stage SaaS founders and entrepreneurs: https://saasclub.io/join/
Sobre The SaaS Podcast - SaaS, Startups, Growth Hacking & Entrepreneurship
The SaaS Podcast - In-depth interviews with proven entrepreneurs and startup founders. Actionable insights to help you build, launch and grow your SaaS business
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