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Amin: Ideal go-to-market delivers solutions without artificially manufacturing user desire

Kareem Amin · Clay’s Unusual Path to Building a Multi-Billion Dollar Company · Invest Like The Best · Jun 16, 2026 · at 45:18

Kareem Amin, co-founder and CEO of Clay, discusses his philosophy on sales, marketing, and go-to-market strategy.

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“What is the ultimate version of sales? You need to, or like marketing or customer success. That's why it's called go to market in my opinion. It's just like, how do I take the thing that I made and give it to you when you need it? And that's the, I, if I really truly was like, Hey, what's the idealized form of this? That's what it is. Yeah. It's raining. I bring an umbrella. You were like, great, thank you. And that's what you actually want to get to, and I think there's a place where, you know, I made something, especially as people make so many new things, and you happen to need it, and it's very niche, and I'm able to find you and give it to you, and without necessarily manufacturing that desire in you”

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