How I Raised It - The podcast where we interview startup founders who raised capital.

Foundersuite.com - software for raising capital
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Dec 10, 2025 • 54min

Ep. 315 How I Raised It with David Alvo of Impacta.vc

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with David Alvo of Impacta.vc, a seed fund investing in purpose-driven startups in LATAM. Learn more at https://www.impacta.vc/ In this episode we go deep into the LATAM startup and VC scene. David shares his thoughts on which country produces the best startups, and the differences between Mexican, Columbian, Argentinian and Chilean founders, why LATAM is a great place to invest in startups (hint: lower valuations), what it takes for LATAM startups to raise capital in the USA, his process for raising Fund I and II and how the LP composition has changed, and much more. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Dec 8, 2025 • 45min

Ep. 314 How I Raised It with Naveen Verma of EnCharge AI

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Naveen Verma of EnCharge AI, a startup developing energy efficient analog in-memory-computing AI chips. In addition to being CEO, Naveen is a Professor at Princeton and so we discuss his journey from academia and research to leading a startup to an over-subscribed $100 M Series B. Learn more about EnCharge at https://www.enchargeai.com/ EnCharge most recently raised over $100 million in Series B funding. The round was led by Tiger Global and included participation from Maverick Silicon, Capital TEN, SIP Global Partners, Zero Infinity Partners, CTBC VC, Vanderbilt University, Morgan Creek Digital, and others. Previous investors participating in the Series B round include RTX Ventures, Anzu Partners, Scout Ventures, AlleyCorp, ACVC, and S5V. The round also included strategic investors including Samsung Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Samsung, HH-CTBC, a partnership between Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) and CTBC VC, In-Q-Tel (IQT), the not-for-profit strategic investor advancing technologies for the U.S. national security community and America’s allies; RTX Ventures, the venture capital arm of RTX, a leading manufacturer of aerospace and defense systems and technology solutions; and Constellation Technology Ventures, the venture capital arm of Constellation, the nation’s largest producer of clean, emissions-free, reliable energy. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com a startup developing proprietary analog in-memory-computing AI chips
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Nov 7, 2025 • 47min

Ep. 313 How I Raised It with Max Spero of Pangram

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Max Spero of Pangram, an AI detector tool. We talk about the challenges of AI in the classroom when it comes to plagiarism, and tips for how to use AI the right way to generate good content. Max also shares his journey from the Stanford dormitories to raising $4m from Semil Shah of Haystack Ventures and Kevin O’Connor of ScOp VC. Learn more at https://www.pangram.com/. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Oct 21, 2025 • 44min

Ep. 312 How I Raised It with Rando Rannus of Siena Secondary Fund

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Rando Rannus of Siena Secondary Fund, a firm that empowers early employees and founders by providing liquidity for high-growth startups. Learn more at https://siena.ee/ This episode goes deep into secondaries… essentially, Siena is a fund that buys shares of pre-IPO companies from early investors, founders and employees. It’s an interesting model, so we talk about why the secondary market has exploded recently, and why it’s created an opportunity for a new type of fund. He also shares his strategies for raising the fund from family offices, angel networks, institutional LPs and even sovereign wealth funds. The Fund most recently raised a Fund II totaling €50 million, including a €10 million investment from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Other investors were SmartCap, Isomer Capital and private investors, founders, and employees How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Oct 13, 2025 • 44min

Ep. 311 How I Raised It with Stephen Schenk of Stapelstein

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Stephan Schenk of Stapelstein, a Berlin-based creator of colorful stacking stones and balance boards for open-ended play that encourages movement, balance, and creativity. Learn more at https://stapelstein.com/ In this episode, we explore how the Company has built a successful business in a high-cost market (Germany) while adhering to high eco standards, why Stephan decided to buyout his early investors and convert the company into a "steward-owned" business (similar to Patagonia) to better align with its mission, how he deals with cheap knockoffs, copycats and clones, the unique ROI attributes of raising capital for a steward-owned business, and more. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Oct 10, 2025 • 41min

Ep. 310 How I Raised It with Chaz Flexman of Starday Foods (raised from Slow VC, Equal Ventures)

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for emerging manager VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Chaz Flexman of Starday Foods, AI-driven food innovation company that uses software and data to identify unmet consumer needs. Then Company then fulfills those needs with new products such as the All Day Chickpea Protein Toppers and the Abeya Allergen-Free Sweet Potato Crackers, among others. Learn more at https://www.stardayfoods.com/ In this episode, we discuss how they use market research and AI to identify unmet needs and opportunities in the CPG market, the importance of building an investor funnel of 150+ potential VCs, tips for updating investors on your funding progress to maintain a timeline, and much more. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Oct 1, 2025 • 38min

Ep. 309 How I Raised It with Mark Phillips of 11 Tribes Venture Capital

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Mark Phillips of 11 Tribes, an early stage VC fund that invests in the care and resilience of its founders. Another notable difference is that the fund focuses on businesses and founders that are pursuing profitability within their business model and comfortable seeking exit opportunities between $75M-$250M. Learn more at https://11tribes.vc/ In this episode, we discuss Mark’s journey to getting into VC and how his previous (failed) startup shaped his vision, how he had over 200 Zoom pitches to get to his first yes, why selling the vision and passion worked well for Fund I, how the narrative changed for Fund II, the critical importance of resilience, tips for landing Family Offices, and more. 11 Tribes most recently raised a $46 million for Fund II from 220 HNW investors and Family Offices. That follows a Fund I that was $11 million and largely sourced from around 80 HNW LPs. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Sep 11, 2025 • 42min

Ep. 308 How I Raised It with Andrew Ackerman

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with Andrew Ackerman, a 2x startup founder, professor, investor in 70+ companies, and author of a new book called the Entrepreneur’s Odyssey. Bio: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewbackerman/ We cover a lot of things in this episode including tips for your pitch deck, the art of the ask, prospecting for investors, portfolio company jiu jitsu, term sheet negotiation and more. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Sep 2, 2025 • 50min

Ep. 307 How I Raised It with Woodie Neiss of Crowdfund Capital Advisors

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Sherwood "Woodie" Neiss of Crowdfund Capital Advisors (https://crowdfundcapitaladvisors.com/). In this episode we go deep into crowdfunding… the different types of crowdfunding such rewards-based, equity-based, donation based etc., as well as the differences between Reg CF vs. Reg D vs. Reg A. We discuss some of the leading platforms founders can use, as well as some surprising insider tips for running a successful raise. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com
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Aug 19, 2025 • 35min

Ep. 306 How I Raised It with Nik Talreja of Sydecar.io

Produced by Foundersuite (for startups: www.foundersuite.com) and Fundingstack (for VCs: www.fundingstack.com), "How I Raised It" goes behind the scenes with startup founders and investors who have raised capital. This episode is with with Nik Talreja, CEO of Sydecar.io, a platform that helps investors and founders set up a “Special Purpose Vehicle” or SPV. In this episode we go deep into SPVs… what are they, why you should care, etc. We get into how to set up an SPV to build a track record as an investor, how to use one to create an Opportunity Fund, the difference between an SPV and a Syndicate, the use case for Founders, and much more. How I Raised It is produced by Foundersuite, makers of software to raise capital and manage investor relations. Foundersuite's customers have raised over $21 Billion since 2016. If you are a startup, create a free account at www.foundersuite.com. If you are a VC, venture studio or investment banker, check out our new platform, www.fundingstack.com

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