Startup Theatre Podcast

Sacha Judd , Co-founder and COO of Lume Music , joins Startup Theatre to discuss the future of music, creator monetisation, and building a startup in one of the world’s toughest industries. We explore why the traditional music industry model is failing independent artists, how streaming platforms changed the economics of music, and why creator-owned communities could become the future. Sacha share...

Jamie Beaton , founder of Crimson Education, joins Startup Theatre for a wide-ranging conversation on ambition, AI, education, startups, and the future of New Zealand. Jamie shares his journey from New Zealand student to Harvard and Yale, building Crimson Education into a global company, and why elite universities still matter in an AI-driven world. We discuss: Why top universities are becoming mo...

In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy Hammond and Serge Van Dam sit down with Simon Archer, founder of PolicyCheck, to unpack one of the biggest untapped problems in global fintech: understanding insurance. Simon shares the story behind leaving a successful corporate career to build in the AI era, driven by a simple but powerful realisation. He had already missed one major wave and wasn’t going...

Is software engineering already dead? In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy & Serge sit down with Nik Wakelin the co-founder of Sterling . They unpack what AI is actually doing to engineering, startups, and how work gets done. This isn’t the usual “AI will replace everyone” narrative. Nik breaks down why we’re not seeing job collapse — we’re seeing something far more important: task collaps...

Building a startup isn’t what most people think. In this episode of Startup Theatre, Adrienne & Serge sit down with Martyn Bain to talk about the reality of building a global company from New Zealand — and the moments that nearly break you. From leaving corporate after a defining moment at home, to chasing international deals, to being days away from signing something that could have changed e...

AI is changing how startups are built. In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy Hammond sits down with Toby Cox , founder of Geodde and former Partner & CTO of Paloma (Dovetail), to talk about why he walked away from leading large engineering teams to build an AI startup completely solo. After years scaling companies and managing teams of more than 100 engineers, Toby is now running an experim...

John Mitchell didn’t start in tech. He started with a sewing machine in his parents’ basement. In this episode of Startup Theatre, the Arlo founder shares the full journey from bootstrapped beginnings in Wellington to building a global SaaS platform operating in 70 countries and processing over half a billion dollars in training transactions each year. John talks openly about: • Raising his first...

Alexander Fala is the kind of leader who has seen the best and worst of startup life up close, and learned how to keep moving anyway. In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy Hammond sits down with Alex, former Vend CEO, Rhodes Scholar, ex McKinsey, and a trusted coach to CEOs across Aotearoa. They unpack what happens when the stakes get real: a capital raise nearly collapsing, lawsuits landing mi...

Before the 100th episode of Startup Theatre with Rod Drury, we brought the community together in Queenstown for a live fireside series with founders, operators, investors, and ecosystem builders from across New Zealand. In front of a live audience, we explored what really happens behind the scenes of building companies – from validating an idea and surviving early mistakes, to scaling teams, raisi...

A New Zealand insuretech startup thought they’d cracked the US market, until a Fortune 500 incumbent sued them “out of the blue”. In this episode of Startup Theatre, Serge Van Damme speaks with former Montoux co-CEOs Shelley Cox and Klaas Stijnen about what it’s like to be hit with major IP allegations in the US, how quickly litigation can choke a startup’s ability to sell or raise, and why their...

In our 100th episode of Startup Theatre, we went live in Queenstown for a milestone fireside chat with Rod Drury, founder of Xero. Rod unpacks the behind-the-scenes reality of building a global SaaS company from Wellington: why they IPO’d early, what raising capital actually takes, and how to build teams that can scale without losing pace. We also get into founder PR, working on the business vs in...

Goodnature CEO Dave Shoemack has had one of the more unusual startup careers you will hear about. From big beer at Heineken HQ, to helping turn VanMoof into the “Tesla of e-bikes” in Amsterdam, to leading Wellington trap-maker Goodnature and living with a founder at home through natural perfume brand Abel. In this episode of Startup Theatre, Troy and Serge sit down with Dave to talk about building...

From AngelList to OnDeck to Blackbird, David has spent a decade designing the connective tissue between people, products, and ideas. NZ's own David Booth now joins a16z as Partner and Head of Ecosystem. His mission: make a16z the F1 pit crew of venture, where network power compounds and every founder gets faster. David helped build one of the world’s most impactful founder communities through...

In this episode of Startup Theatre , host Troy Hammond sits down with serial founder and engineer Nimo Naamani —a man who’s lived through the chaos of founding blockchain companies, building developer tools, getting acqui-hired by Twitter, and now taking on one of the hardest industries of all: healthcare. Nimo shares wild stories—from building Horizon State , to selling his startup to Twitter , t...

What happens when a broke Kiwi founder and his team fly to San Francisco with only $15,000 left, sleep in a basement, and end up playing poker with the investor who changes everything? In this episode of Startup Theatre , Troy Hammond sits down with Alistair McLeay , co-founder and co-CEO of Grw AI, one of New Zealand’s most ambitious artificial intelligence startups. Alistair shares how a chance...

In this episode of Startup Theatre , Troy Hammond sits down with Michael "Koz" Koziarski , a veteran software engineer, startup founder, and open source contributor, to talk about the messy, real, and rewarding side of building software and leading teams. From his early work in Ruby on Rails and open source to his leadership roles at Vend and Southgate Labs, Koz shares the honest truths...

In this episode of Startup Theatre , we sit down with Sam Kidd , co-founder and CEO of Lawvu , the pioneering legal operations platform that's transforming how in-house legal teams operate around the globe. Sam shares the journey of turning a bold idea from Tauranga, New Zealand in to a global SaaS company trusted by enterprise legal departments worldwide. We dive into: The pain points in lega...

Ever wondered what your colleagues really think about you? In this episode, we sit down with Aaron Ward , co-founder and CEO of Huckleberry , the global startup turning workplace feedback on its head. Aaron isn’t new to shaking up the world of work. He previously co-founded AskNicely , a customer feedback SaaS that grew to Series B and raised over USD $50m, helping companies around the world rethi...

In this episode, we chat with "Global growth exec" Chris Teeling . For two decades, he has held global leadership roles in high-growth technology companies, where he has built and led world-class teams, shaped strategy, scaled internationally, and delivered lasting results. 🚀 At Xero, he had the privilege as a member of the global ELT to help drive the company’s global expansion, scalin...

In this episode of Startup Theater, host Serge Van Dam engages in a dynamic conversation with female founders Irina Miller from Daisy Lab and Mrinali Kumar from Eat Kinda . These amazing founders are pioneering the alternative protein sector in New Zealand. On this episode, you will hear them discuss their journeys, the challenges of scaling their startups, and the importance of innovation in the...

In this episode, host Serge van Dam engages in a deep conversation with Axton Pitt from LitMaps and David Moide from Foundry Lab. They explore the intersection of science and entrepreneurship, discussing how science-based startups can drive innovation and have a positive impact. Axton shares how LitMaps accelerates scientific research by helping users navigate academic papers. David discusses Foun...

With the amazing Electrify Aotearoa conference behind us, we wanted to share some of the amazing people who presented and attended. In this special episode of the Startup Theatre podcast, we shine a spotlight on the remarkable women who are leading the charge in entrepreneurship. Recorded live at the Electrify Aotearoa event, this episode features insightful conversations with inspiring female fou...

Angie Judge is a prominent figure in New Zealand’s technology industry, and she currently serves as the CEO of  Dexibit , a cutting-edge analytics platform for visitor attractions. Judge’s entrepreneurial journey has been characterised by innovation, leadership, and a profound understanding of data-driven decision-making. In 2015, Judge founded Dexibit, a company that has transformed analytics for...

Nick Lissette is the founder and CEO of Black Pearl Group , a New Zealand-born SaaS company generating over $12.5M in ARR from the US market and he’s just getting started. With a relentless drive and a famously no-BS approach to business, Nick has been scaling startups since he was 24 , when he bought his first company for $1 , walked into an office with a server, a car park, and no clue what he w...

Ben Gracewood is one of those rare tech leaders who’s done the whole arc—starting in low-level code, scaling product and engineering teams at Vend through to a $400 million exit, and now leading in a world where AI is rewriting the playbook. With a deep background in software development and executive leadership, Ben has built teams, shaped product strategy, and helped grow one of New Zealand’s mo...