It’s still early — the 2020 SaaStrAnnual.com isn’t until March 10-11-12 in the SF Bay Area — but we can already start seeing some of the hottest VC sessions at Annual.
There will be almost 1,000 (!) VCs at Annual and folks will be handing out term sheets!
A bunch of sessions aren’t even up yet — for example, we just added David Wadwanhi, ex-CEO of Appdynamics, now partner at Greylock — so take these trends with a grain of salt. But at a minimum, these sessions are already … fire!
The Next Iteration of “Software is Eating the World” 2020 with Atrium and Andreessen Horowitz
I guess it’s not a total surprise this session is so popular. An update to the iconic Software is Eating the World is tough to pass up. But grab your spot fast!
State of the Cloud 2020 with Bessemer Venture Partner
A core piece of SaaStrAnnual.com content for 4 years straight, the Cloud team at BVP is back to share the latest trends in Cloud for 2020 and 2021!
Equality and Unicorns in 2020: Aileen Lee of Cowboy Ventures and Jason Lemkin of SaaStr
We’re going to do something a little different here, and both catch up on the state of Equality in Venture Capital and Cloud, and also revisit Aileen’s classic pieces in TechCrunch that kicked off the age of the Unicorn. We’ll do a deep dive into the latest metrics on what it takes to build something iconic.
Underserved Markets for SaaS Companies with NextGen Venture Partners, Precursor, Unusual Ventures and Backstage Capital
I’m excited this session is already 60% full. You can absolutely make a ton of money investing in The Obvious. Following the best investors into the most obvious founders. It does work.
But then, the Zooms and Canvas come out of seemingly nowhere and build decacorns and unicorns.
And you can really make a lot of money there, too. Beyond the Obvious.
Product Prioritization – How the Best Companies Choose What to Build and When with Menlo Ventures
You can’t do it all, and figuring our what to build, and what to put it off is one of the most vexxing challenge for founders and SaaS execs. I love this session and am glad it is proving more popular than I’d expected!
Build your SaaS on Customer Cash – a discussion on how to bootstrap, and if or when to use Revenue Financing with Timia Capital
Ok this session started as just a smaller workshop but boy, it’s already packed to capacity! Venture capital is great at all, but if you can avoid the dilution, why wouldn’t you? We’ll make sure we have plenty of sessions on alternatives to venture capital.
Sometimes I wonder if folks really want to hear about more “traditional” venture topics (e.g., going from A to B). Well – THEY DO!! 🙂
It probably also helps this is an all-star panel, with OG SaaStr speakers like Stacey Bishop and incredible cloud investors from USVP, Index and Canvas.
Go to this one.
Growing Product and Engineering Orgs from Zero to IPO with Redpoint Ventures and Looker
Ok this a session is a ringer. Combine ever-popular Tomasz Tunguz with Nick Caldwell, CPO of Looker fresh off their $2b+ acquisition is going to fill the seats, and it already has. The topic is a great one. How the heck to scale your product and engineering teams successfully. Nick has thought about this topic incredibly thoughtfully and personally I will be at this session to hear from him.
The Cadence: How to Turn Your SaaS Startup into an Army with David Sacks
If you follow David Sacks, you know he is one of the top thinkers in SaaS and Cloud. CEO of Yammer and COO of PayPal, he now runs $500m+ Craft Ventures. Here’s here to share how to really get it done.
Avoid the Hyp
ergrowth Quicksand – How to Build a World-Class SaaS Board with Duo Security, NEA and Lead Edge Capital
Ok i am excited for this one. I heard Lorrie Norrington speak at Hubspot’s Founders Day at Inbound, and we reached out if she could put together a session on how to build truly inclusive boards. We’ll hear what she and SaaStr Annual veterans Hilarie Koplow-McAdams and Dug Song have to say on this critical topic.
The Secrets to Not Just Raising Money, But Building a Top-Tier Syndicate with Tribeca Venture Partners, IVP, and NEA
This is another VC session on a topic that is super popular, but I wasn’t sure a ton of folks would go to. I was wrong. This will be an inside look from IVP, NEA and Tribeca Venture Partners on how not just to pick 1 investor, but to build an ideal syndicate. Dysfunctional syndicates can almost wreck a start-up. Learn more.
Fundraising Myths: The Pitfalls of Hype-Driven Fundraising and Other Unsustainable Tactics with Defy Partners
Trae is one of our favorite OG SaaStr Annual speakers and Defy Ventures is on a tear. She’s back to teach us how to avoid the hype and build a sustainable start-up. I’m glad to see it is trending.
Work-Spouse: How to Pick a Co-Founder and Build a Partnership (without Wanting to Kill Each Other)
OK i love this topic and am glad to see it is already pretty popular. Being a co-founder is one of the most unique relationships in the world. It really can be like … a work-spouse. Especially when it works, and when you go long. It’s a nuanced topic and I’m not sure I’d personally use the term “work-spouse”, but it really can be like this — in both good and challenging ways. If you have a true co-founder, you probably get it. Go hear them share how to make it work, and go long together.
Sorry – this isn’t exactly 20. We’ll add and update this list as registration continues to grow.
