In this episode, Sasha Orloff speaks with Usman Gul, founder and CEO of Metal, about building an AI-driven operating system for fundraising backed by Y Combinator and Andreessen Horowitz that helps founders avoid wasting 80% of their investor meetings by using data-driven insights to identify the most likely investors based on historical funding patterns, industry benchmarks, and relationship intelligence across over 500,000 venture rounds.

SPONSORS:

Notion

Boost your startup with Notion—the ultimate connected workspace trusted by thousands worldwide! From engineering specs to onboarding and fundraising, Notion keeps your team organized and efficient. For a limited time, get 6 months of Notion AI FREE to supercharge your workflow. Claim your offer now at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://notion.com/startups/puzzle⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Puzzle

📈 No more waiting for month's end. No more manual reconciliations, just financials that keep up with you. Puzzle is leading a new movement with an AI first ledger, built for speed, automation, and real time decision making. Join today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://puzzle.io/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

RECOMMENDED IN THIS EPISODE:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gulsf/

http://www.metal.so

X/SOCIAL:

@usmangul (Usman)

@sashaorloff (Sasha)

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Preview

(00:44) Intro

(01:28) Meet Usman Gul from Metal

(01:59) Genesis of Metal

(04:32) Metal's AI-driven fundraising solutions

(08:08) Common fundraising mistakes and solutions

(13:24) Sponsors: Notion | Puzzle

(14:15) Importance of modern tools for startups

(21:40) Metal manifesto

(24:35) Key indicators for successful fundraising

(25:53) Telling the right story to investors

(26:44) Challenges and insights from previous ventures

(27:13) Evolution of investor targeting

(28:38) Predictive intelligence and the future of Metal

(30:41) Current state of fundraising tools

(36:53) Building Metal with minimal capital

(39:19) Advice for founders on fundraising

(47:29) Wrap