The Startup Leap Podcast

Growth isn't dead—but the playbook might be. In this episode of The Startup Leap , former Pinterest, Meta, and Descript growth leader Sandy Diao shares practical lessons from building growth at some of the world's most influential technology companies. From why viral loops fail to how founders should rethink monetization, retention, and AI-first distribution, this conversation offers a fresh persp...

How did 4 MIT students build a $60 billion company that sold to SpaceX in just 4 years? This is the story of Cursor the AI coding tool that started as a pivot, turned down OpenAI's acquisition offer, and just sold to SpaceX in one of the biggest tech exits ever. In this episode of The Startup Leap, Maria Rotilu breaks down: ✅ How Cursor started (hint: it wasn't an AI coding tool) ✅ The 3 reasons...

Most business books teach you how to win. Eric Ries' Incorruptible asks a different question: What happens after you do? In this episode, we review the #1 New York Times Bestseller and explore why founders lose control of their companies, why missions drift over time, and how companies like Costco and Cloudflare use structural safeguards to stay true to their values. Whether you're raising capital...

Big tech is spending over $560 billion on AI infrastructure this year, bigger than the entire global venture capital industry in a normal year. And everyone outside the room is calling it a bubble. After assessing 7,000 companies and investing in 70+ startups, Maria breaks down the math behind today's AI valuations, and explains why the "bubble" framing misses what's actually happening.

This week, Eric Ries joins us for a conversation about the hidden cost of startup success. From mission drift and shareholder pressure to governance structures and long-term thinking, Eric explains why many companies lose the very thing that made them great once scale enters the picture. This episode challenges some of Silicon Valley’s deepest assumptions and offers a new framework for founders wh...

Most founders think they’re being rejected. They’re not—they’re being misaligned. This episode unpacks the hidden mechanics behind investor decisions—why most “no’s” happen before your deck is even opened, and how structural filters like stage, mandate, and portfolio conflicts quietly shape outcomes. Yvonne and Maria break down how to stop chasing the wrong investors—and start targeting the ones a...

OpenAI just acquired Tomoro, a 2-year-old Scottish AI startup that raised zero venture capital. It's the first move in a $4 billion wave most founders haven't seen coming. Maria breaks down the acquisition, the new OpenAI Deployment Company, and the one question every AI founder must answer this week.

A 16-month-old startup. One pre-seed round. €9M raised. Then SAP shows up with a €1 BILLION commitment. That’s not startup luck. That’s strategic engineering. In this episode, Maria breaks down the real playbook behind one of the most fascinating AI acquisitions in Europe right now — from cap tables that quietly shape exits, to open-source positioning that turned a startup into infrastructure SAP...

Mukund Jha shares how Emergent scaled at unprecedented speed, without a marketing or sales team, by focusing on product excellence and engineered distribution. They built early credibility by ranking #1 on a global benchmark before launch, creating immediate trust in the market. At the core of it all was a relentless focus on feedback loops and customer success, treating user outcomes as the prima...

The traditional startup playbook is being rewritten. In this episode of The Startup Leap, Yvonne and Maria explore the rise of AI-native businesses—where a single founder can operate what used to require entire teams. From real-world examples of solo founders achieving massive exits to a nuanced discussion on whether to scale with capital or stay lean and profitable, this episode unpacks a critica...

We’re back with our first episode of 2026—and this one feels like a startup heist. Mattias Scheek, Co-founder and former CEO of Mayht, shares the story behind one of the most unconventional startup journeys—building breakthrough speaker technology in complete secrecy, choosing not to launch a product, and ultimately selling the company to Sonos for $100M. This episode explores the strategic decisi...

2025 was the year of resilience. After 27 episodes and hours of deep dives with the world's most innovative founders, we’ve distilled our favourites episodes of 2025. "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, learn from those who already did." From the grit of African fintech to the precision of global FemTech, Maria and Yvonne share their top 3 moments on episodes featuring; 1. Be...

In this episode, Miishe Addy-Asare co-founder, and CEO of JetStream Africa, shares her journey from working at Bain to raising over $21 million for JetStream. Miishe discusses the challenges and misconceptions of building a business in Sub-Saharan Africa, the importance of specific skill sets for navigating the logistics and fintech sectors, and her evolving entrepreneurial mindset. She offers adv...

What happens when a former record label founder applies the logic of venture studios to celebrity brand building? In this episode, David Olusegun , founder of Creative Control Ventures , reveals how he’s transforming the way talent and culture converge to create purpose-driven consumer brands. From his early career at Viacom to co-creating ventures with leading celebrities, David unpacks the frame...

🐾 Meet Hedda Båverud Olsson, Founder & CEO of Lassie — the startup transforming pet insurance and pet health. From McKinsey & EQT Ventures to raising €50M+ and now also crossing €70M+ in annual revenues , Hedda’s journey is packed with bold moves, big lessons, and surprising insights into the booming pet industry. In this episode: ✅ How Lassie rewards pet owners for keeping their pets he...

Welcome to Startup Leap! In this episode, we dive deep into the journeys of student founders from undergraduates to PhDs who have turned their academic projects, wild ideas at university into industry-transforming startups. Join us as Maria and Yvonne bring real stories from founders like the co-founder of Shazam, fintech innovators, and graduates who took the bold step to build their companies ev...

In this episode of The Startup Leap , Maria and Yvonne sit down with Tessa Clarke , co-founder of Olio , the mission-driven app turning surplus food into community sharing. With over 7 million users in 60 countries , OLIO is tackling the global food waste crisis while proving that purpose-driven businesses can scale. Tessa shares: ✅ Her journey from senior leadership at Dyson to startup founder...

Join us in this riveting episode as we dive into the extraordinary journey of Benjamin, the founder and CEO of NALA, one of the fastest-growing fintech companies focused on building infrastructure for emerging markets. From humorous encounters with the police to the hustle of raising funds after a major co-founder setback, Benjamin's story is one of resilience, innovation, and faith. Discover how...

In this episode of The Startup Leap, we sit down with Coen, the founder of Tyme Bank, to discuss the incredible journey of building a digital bank in Africa and expanding into Southeast Asia. Coen shares the challenges of creating a bank without traditional elements like paper, cash, or ATMs, and how they achieved profitability in just five years despite raising initial capital from over 250 poten...

In this special episode we dive into the journeys of two exceptional entrepreneurs: Riham Satti, an Oxford Neuroscientist turned founder of MeVitae an AI startup bringing fairness to the workplace, and Dhiraj Mukherjee, co-founder of Shazam, one of the world's first music recognition apps, 2billion downloads, acquired by Apple for $400m+ in 2018. Hosted by Maria and Yvonne, this episode explores t...

In this episode, we hear from Dare Okodjou, founder of Onafriq, Africa’s largest digital payments network, formerly MFS Africa. 500 million wallets across 42 countries, over $300m raised in funding. This episode is drenched in depth of experience. Perfect for founders whether early or later in their journey. Dare shares his entrepreneurial journey from working at MTN Group, leading mobile money in...

Join us in this compelling episode as we sit down with Josh Sandler, co-founder of Lori and Founder and CEO of TruTax. Josh shares his transformative journey from building Lori, an on-demand logistics and trucking company in East Africa, to founding TruTax, a venture leveraging AI to optimize tax compliance. Learn about his entrepreneurial lessons, personal growth, and the critical mistakes that s...

Join us for an insightful conversation with Victor, the founder and CEO of Raenest, as he shares his inspiring journey from a self-taught software developer in Nigeria to leading a pioneering Fintech company powering remote African workers, that recently raised a $10M Series A round led by QED. Discover how Victor's background in engineering and his unique perspective on the challenges faced by Af...

Join us in this episode of Startup Leap as we sit down with Ida Tin, co-founder and chairwoman of Clue, a revolutionary women's health app that has empowered over 10 million users worldwide. Ida shares her extraordinary journey from a struggling entrepreneur with no coding skills to building a groundbreaking company in the $60 billion femtech industry. Discover how Ida turned her frustrations with...

In this episode, experienced entrepreneurs share insightful advice they would give to their younger selves. They emphasize trusting your instincts, asking for help, believing in yourself, and the importance of small, achievable goals. Real-world experiences highlight the significance of resilience, execution over strategy, and the importance of maintaining personal well-being while navigating the...