"As annoying as competition is, it totally makes us better, and it's way better for the customer."
@TrustVanta CEO Christina Cacioppo (@christinacaci) has gotten used to newer startups talking a big game as the new 'Vanta 2.0'
Her advice for handling big-talk: send a Slack message or one-pager to your leaders breaking down what's new, what's worth watching, and what to do about it.
What she won't do, she tells The Upstarts Podcast, is mention the competition by name, even when they're scandalous.
"I subscribe to the 'never let them see you blink' school of thought. Maybe I have to blink somewhere else, but yeah, that's not here."
"This is not a product category." "They're not actually going to work on this." "They're going to acquihire themselves to somebody."
When Christina Cacioppo (@christinacaci) first pitched her startup in 2018, investors couldn't believe anyone would want to build compliance software.
Eight years later, @TrustVanta works with 16K+ customers from Lovable to Icelandair, earning a $4.2B valuation.
Now, she faces the opposite question: With AI, can't anyone build this? How does Vanta stay ahead of a new wave of hype-y startups?
"I subscribe to the 'never let them see you blink' school of thought, she tells me.
On The Upstarts Podcast, Cacioppo shares how she created value in a sleepy category; how she prioritizes “infinity things” as a startup unicorn CEO; and why when it comes to good security hygiene, we could all spend more time brushing our teeth.
Plus, she shares her Upstart Moment: working to re-think, and future-proof, Vanta's software business in the face of powerful AI models.
This season is presented by @Rippling 🫡
CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 1:39 What Vanta does 5:26 Selling to other startups 9:28 How AI agents change ‘pretty much everything’ 14:06 Christina’s *real* founder origin story 16:23 Underdog fundraising and gaming VCs 18:59 The problem with startup valuations 24:08 Turning LinkedIn ‘cringe’ into customer traction 26:41 Reinventing Vanta with AI 33:43 Whether AI could clone Vanta 35:23 ‘Never let them see you blink’ 37:24 Avoiding burnout with ‘infinity things’
