Sean Ellis is the OG growth hacker who built growth engines for Dropbox, Eventbrite, LogMeIn, and two other unicorns—shares the frameworks climate tech founders actually need to scale sustainably. Learn the one question that predicts product-market fit (his famous 40% rule), why 80% organic growth beats paid acquisition, how to architect your initial growth engine in 6 months, and the critical mistake that kills startups: scaling before PMF. Perfect for climate tech founders, VCs, and operators who want actionable growth strategies and pattern recognition from someone who's taken five companies from zero to billion-dollar valuations.

Connect with Sean: seanellis.me | seanellis.substack.com

Work with Sera: Founders seeking PMF, growth strategy, and fundraising guidance — conscioustechventures.com

Resources

Chapters 📖

[00:00:00] Introduction: Meet the OG Growth Hacker

[00:02:15] From Budapest to 5 Unicorns: The Unconventional Path

[00:08:30] Why "Growth Hacking" Became a Movement

[00:15:45] Product-Market Fit: The 40% Rule

[00:23:20] The Lookout Story: 7% to 60% in 6 Months

[00:28:10] Freemium Strategy: The $4.3B LogMeIn Playbook

[00:35:40] How Dropbox Hit $1B Faster Than Any SaaS

[00:42:15] Growth Systems vs. Growth Hacks

[00:48:30] North Star Metrics: Avoiding Vanity Data

[00:55:20] When to Scale (And When to Wait)

[01:02:45] AI for Early-Stage Growth Teams

[01:08:00] Chemistry with Founders & Conscious Building

[01:13:15] Where to Find Sean

Become a sponsor: team@conscioustechventures.com

Your Startup Needs a Growth Systems Architect: Sean Ellis on Dropbox, Eventbrite & Unicorn Growth