Jake founded Serval in April 2024— by Dec 2025 he'd raised a $75M Series B from Sequoia at a $1B valuation.
He didn't look for a "wedge" or a "niche." He looked at ServiceNow—a $160B, 20+ year-old incumbent that everyone IT team relies on—and rebuilt it from the ground up in a YEAR.
In this episode, Jake reveals the audacity behind building a full-platform replacement from Day 1, why he spent months building in the dark with zero revenue, and how he achieved a 50% demo-to-close rate on six-figure enterprise deals.
Why You Should Listen
- How to go from incorporation to a $1B valuation in just 18 months.
- The psychological shift in sales calls that proves PMF.
- How to build a demo so compelling that 50% buy on the spot.
- Why you no longer need to find a small wedge to win post Gen AI.
- The specific question that stops customers from giving you generic feedback.
Keywords
startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, hypergrowth, zero to one, unicorn startup, Sequoia Capital, replacing legacy software, enterprise sales strategy, ServiceNow competitor, Jake Stauch
00:00:00 Intro
00:03:25 Why "Hair on Fire" Problems Matter
00:06:58 Learning What Winning Feels Like at Verkada
00:14:05 100+ Customer Discovery Calls
00:18:12 The One Question That Unlocks Real Pain
00:23:48 Why No-Code Workflows Fail
00:28:45 Taking Risks on AI Model Improvements
00:35:49 From $0 to Six-Figure ACVs in 6 Months
00:39:00 The Strategy to Rip and Replace ServiceNow
00:47:30 The "Rounding Up" Signal of PMF
Send me a message to let me know what you think!
