We only take on 4 clients per month. Join our October cohort. 1 spot left.
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Russell Spitler, CEO & Co-Founder of Nudge Security, a SaaS security platform that’s raised $17 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
Before committing to a product, Russell and his team spoke with 200 industry professionals to confirm the market need. The takeaway: Talk to potential customers early and often. Hearing consistent pain points from real people ensures you're solving a relevant problem and reduces the risk of building in a vacuum.
A key challenge with PLG in cybersecurity is the long time-to-value typical for security products. Russell's approach at Nudge Security was to reduce this dramatically, delivering meaningful insights to users within two hours of onboarding. When implementing PLG, ensure your product can show immediate value, especially in industries with slower adoption cycles.
Russell dispelled the myth that stealth mode is about protecting your idea from being stolen. Instead, it's about execution speed. Nudge Security launched less than three quarters after raising its seed round, prioritizing fast iteration and customer feedback. The lesson: Don’t wait for perfection — get your product into users’ hands as soon as possible.
Nudge’s content marketing strategy focuses on educating potential customers about security challenges, rather than simply pitching its product. Russell believes this approach builds trust, which leads to long-term customer relationships. Founders should prioritize educational content that adds value and builds credibility, instead of just pushing sales messages.
Russell noted that many cybersecurity companies hide their product behind demos and sales calls, but Nudge takes a different approach. By making the product visible and accessible on their website, they build transparency and trust. This approach can be especially effective in technical markets — showcase your product and let users explore on their own terms.
CEO of Glasswall
Danny Lopez CEO of Glasswall: $60+ Million Raised to Make the Content Disarm and Reconstruction (CDR) Category Mainstream
CEO of Clear Skye
John Milburn, CEO of Clear Skye: More Than $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Identity and Access Governance
VP of Marketing of Shift5
From the Pentagon to B2B: Colby Proffitt’s Journey and ABM Insights
Founder and CEO of Onyxia
Sivan Tehila, Founder and CEO of Onyxia: $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cybersecurity Performance Management
CEO & Co-Founder of Cloaked
Arjun Bhatnagar, CEO of Cloaked: $25 Million Raised to Build the Future of Data Privacy
CEO and Co-Founder of IriusRisk
Stephen de Vries, CEO and Co-Founder of IriusRisk: $40 Million Raised to Build the Future of Threat Modeling
CEO & Co-Founder of Monad
Christian Almenar, CEO of Monad: $19 Million Raised to Solve the Cybersecurity Big Data Problem
CEO of CrowdSec
Philippe Humeau, CEO of CrowdSec: $21 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cyber Threat Intelligence
CEO and Founder of Gomboc
Ian Amit, CEO & Founder of Gomboc: $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cloud Security Remediation
CEO & Founder of Trusona
Ori Eisen, CEO & Founder of Trusona: $38 Million Raised to Power the Future of Account Takeover Prevention
CEO & Co-Founder of Huntress
Kyle Hanslovan, CEO of Huntress: $160 Million Raised to Build the Future of Managed Security
CEO of Nisos
David Etue, CEO of Nisos: $33 Million Raised to Build the Future of Managed Intelligence
CEO and Co-Founder of CalypsoAI
Neil Serebryany, CEO & Co-Founder of CalypsoAI: $38 Million Raised to Power the Future of AI Security
CEO & Co-Founder of Cyrebro
Nadav Arbel, CEO & Co-Founder of Cyrebro: $51 Million Raised to Build the Future of ML-Backed MDR
CEO and Founder of XONA
Bill Moore, CEO and Founder of XONA: $30 Million Raised to Build the Future of OT User Access
CEO and Co-Founder of Prelude
Spencer Thompson, CEO and Co-Founder of Prelude: Over $30 Million Raised to Build the Future of Continuous Security Testing
CEO and Co-Founder of Anjuna
Ayal Yogev, CEO and Co-Founder of Anjuna: $42 Million to Build The Future of Confidential Computing
CEO & Co-Founder of ElastiFlow
Robert Cowart, CEO & Co-Founder of ElastiFlow: $8 Million Raised to Power the Future of Network Performance and Security Analytics
CEO and Co-Founder of Cleafy
Matteo Bogana, CEO & Co-Founder of Cleafy: $12 Million Raised to Build the Future of Online Fraud Prevention
CEO of Beyond Identity
Tom “TJ” Jermoluk, CEO of Beyond Identity: $200 Million Raised to Build the Future of Multi-Factor Authentication
CEO and Founder of HacWare
Tiffany Ricks, CEO and Founder of HacWare: $2.6 Million Raised to Build the Future of Security Awareness
CEO & Founder of VU Security
Sebastian Stranieri, CEO & Founder of VU Security: $24 Million Raised to Build the Future of Digital Identity & Fraud Prevention
CTO & Co-Founder of Vali Cyber
Austin Gadient, CTO & Co-Founder of Vali Cyber: $15 Million Raised to Build the Future of Linux Security
Marketing Director of Right-Hand Cybersecurity
Rodrigo Leme, Marketing Director at Right-Hand Cybersecurity: Standing Out in a Crowded Market – Niche Targeting and Customer-Centric Approach
CEO & Co-Founder of Vaultree
Ryan Lasmaili, CEO of Vaultree: $16 Million Raised to Build the World’s First Fully Functional Data-in-Use Encryption
CEO of Qohash
Jean Le Bouthillier, CEO of Qohash: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Data Security
CEO and Founder of Strata Identity
Eric Olden, CEO and Founder of Strata Identity: $42 Million Raised to Build the Identity Orchestration Category
CEO of Allure Security
Josh Shaul, CEO of Allure Security: $6 Million Raised to Help Businesses Win the Battle Against Online Scammers
CEO and Founder of Dropzone AI
Edward Wu, CEO & Founder of Dropzone AI: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of AI SOC Analysts
CEO & Co-Founder of Vicarius
Michael Assraf, CEO of Vicarius: $29 Million Raised to Build the Future of Vulnerability Prioritization
Chief Marketing & Alliances Officer of DataDome
Aurelie Guerrieri, Chief Marketing & Alliances Officer at DataDome: 20 Years in Silicon Valley – Insights on the Evolving Tech Landscape
CEO and Co-Founder of Perygee
Mollie Breen, CEO and Co-Founder of Perygee: $6.4 Million Raised to Build the Future of IT/OT Security
Founder & CEO of Hivewatch
Ryan Schonfeld, CEO of Hivewatch: $25 Million Raised to Build the OS of Physical Security
CEO of ForAllSecure
David Brumley, CEO of ForAllSecure: $38 Million Raised to Build the Future of Security Testing
CEO and Co-Founder of OneLayer
Dave Mor, CEO and Co-Founder of OneLayer: $15 Million Raised to Protect Private Cellular Networks
CEO and Co-Founder of Tamnoon
Marina Segal, CEO & Co-Founder of Tamnoon: Over $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cloud Security
CEO & Co-Founder of Entro Security
Itzik Alvas, CEO & Co-Founder of Entro Security: $24 Million Raised to Build the Future of Non-Human Identity Management
Founder of Sweepatic
Stijn Vande Casteele, Founder of Sweepatic: $4.4 Million Raised to Build the Future of External Attack Surface Management
CEO and Co-Founder of Gem Security
Arie Zilberstein, CEO and Co-Founder of Gem Security: $34 Million Raised to Power the Future of Cloud Detection and Response
CEO of SolCyber
Scott McCrady, CEO of SolCyber: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Managed Security
CEO and Founder of SecurityPal
Pukar Hamal, CEO and Founder of SecurityPal: $21 Million Raised to Power the Future of Customer Assurance
CEO of SnapAttack
Peter Prizio Jr, CEO of SnapAttack: $8 Million Raised to Power the Future of Threat Management
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Permiso Security
Jason Martin, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Permiso Security: $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Cloud Security
CEO and Co-Founder of VISO Trust
Paul Valente, CEO and Co-Founder of VISO Trust: $17 Million Raised to Build the Future of Third-Party Cyber Risk Management
CEO & Founder of Chainguard
Dan Lorenc, CEO & Founder of Chainguard: $250 Million Raised to Power the Future of Software Supply Chain Security
CEO & Co-Founder of Dasera
Ani Chaudhuri, CEO & Co-Founder of Dasera: $21 Million Raised to Build the Future of Data Security
CEO & Co-Founder of Hush
Mykolas Rambus, CEO & Co-Founder of Hush: $7.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Data Privacy
CEO and Co-Founder of Opal Security
Umaimah Khan, CEO & Co-Founder of Opal Security: $32 Million Raised to Build the Future of Identity Security
CEO, Co-Founder of Strike Graph
Justin Beals, CEO of Strike Graph: $12 Million Raised to Build the Future of Automated Security and Compliance
Founder and CEO of Calamu
Paul Lewis, CEO of Calamu: $20 Million Raised to Build the Cyber Storage Category