a16z Podcast
Elena Burger is joined by a16z’s Andy McCall and Joe Schmidt to break down two very different ways AI startups can go to market: the lighthouse and the landgrab. Should founders win a handful of marquee customers whose credibility unlocks an entire industry, or move quickly across a broad market where the ROI already speaks for itself?
Drawing on Joe’s Lighthouse or Landgrab framework and Andy’s experience building sales organizations at Samsara and Meraki, they explore how founders can determine which strategy fits their market, when social proof matters more than math, and why the current rush to adopt AI has created a rare window for startups to sell big software again.
They also get tactical on POCs, pricing and ACV, hiring early sales teams, moving from mid-market to enterprise, and why founders shouldn’t spend too much time perfecting their GTM strategy before talking to customers. As Andy puts it: spend 1% of your time on strategy and 99% executing.
Â
Resources:
Read Joe Schmidt’s “Lighthouse or Landgrab”: https://a16z.com/lighthouse-or-landgrab-how-to-pick-your-ai-sales-strategy/
Follow Andy McCall on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amccall/
Follow Joe Schmidt on X: https://x.com/joeschmidtiv
Follow Elena Burger on X: https://x.com/VirtualElena
Stay Updated:
Find a16z on YouTube: YouTube
Find a16z on X
Find a16z on LinkedIn
Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify
Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts
Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg
Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
a16z Podcast: The Future Of Decision-Making—3 Startup Opportunities
As companies digitize, they change the way they make decisions: decisions are made lower in the organization, based on data, and increasingly automated. This creates opportunities for startups creating new ways to collect and analyze…
-
a16z Podcast: So You Wanna Build a Software Company in Healthcare?
with Jorge Conde (@JorgeCondeBio), Julie Yoo (@julesyoo), and Hanne Tidnam (@omnivorousread) Building a software company in healthcare is hard — and comes along with unique challenges no other entrepreneurs face. In this conversation, a16z bio…
-
a16z Podcast: Inside Apple Software Design
Join longtime Apple software engineer Ken Kocienda in conversation with a16z Deal and Research operating partner Frank Chen for an insider’s account of how Apple designed software in the golden age of Steve Jobs, spanning…
-
a16z Podcast: Fintech for Startups and Incumbents
In this episode of the a16z Podcast — which originally aired as a video on YouTube — general partner Alex Rampell (and former fintech entrepreneur as the CEO and co-founder of TrialPay) talks with operating…
-
a16z Podcast: A Podcast About Podcasting
with Nick Quah (@nwquah), Connie Chan (@conniechan), and Sonal Chokshi (@smc90) It’s a podcast about podcasting! About the state of the industry, that is. Because a lot has changed since we recorded ”a podcast about…
-
a16z Podcast: How Many Taps in the Apple (Plus) Tree?
with Benedict Evans (@benedictevans) and Steven Sinofsky (@stevesi) What does Apple’s recent event — in which a range of new services was announced, from Apple News Plus to Apple TV Plus to the Apple card…
-
a16z Podcast: Incenting Innovation Inside, Loonshots to Moonshots
with Safi Bahcall (@safibahcall), Vijay Pande (@vijaypande), and Sonal Chokshi (@smc90) A ”moonshot” is a destination (like going to the moon, quite literally) — but nurturing ”loonshots” (which often involves a number of stumbles along…
-
a16z Podcast: For the Billions of Creatives Out There
with Brian Koppelman (@briankoppelman), Marc Andreessen (@pmarca), and Sonal Chokshi (@smc90) The writer-showrunner is a relatively new phenomenon in TV, as opposed to film, which is still a director-driven enterprise. But what does it mean,…
-
a16z Podcast: Lessons Learned from Chinese Education Startups
When people talk about trends in education technology, they often focus on how to disrupt higher education in the U.S., whether it’s about breaking free of the ”signaling” factor of elite educations or how to…
-
a16z Podcast: What’s in the Water at the George Church Lab?
with George Church (@geochurch) and Jorge Conde (@JorgeCondeBio) Renowned scientist George Church is known for his groundbreaking work and methods used for the first genome sequence, and for his work in genome editing, writing &…