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Feb 7, 2022 · 21m · top-founders

Security SaaS Hits $1m ARR, $70m+ valuation on $15m Series A

Andrew Maloney · 13m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this interview with Nathan Latka, Query.ai co-founder and COO Andrew Maloney explains how the cybersecurity startup navigated early product iteration, scaled to nearly $1M in ARR, and secured a $15M Series A. Maloney outlines the company's decentralized security control plane, analyst-based pricing model, and aggressive expansion roadmap targeting $15M in ARR.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 33.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 3.7 Guest teaching 2.0 Guest disagreement 0.8 Nathan pushing back 2.5
05100:0010:0020:000:41–2:55 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 Introducing Query.ai and the Security Control Plane Latka opens with exploratory questions asking Maloney to define the company's core product category. Maloney explains the shift from legacy centralized SIEM data models to decentralized security control planes in plain terms.2:56–5:53 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Company Launch, Initial Funding, and Founder Partnership Latka digs into the founding story and pushes on the equity split between Maloney and his technical co-founder. Maloney diplomatically deflects exact cap table percentages while confirming equal partnership status.5:53–10:27 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Customer Milestones, Capital Stack, and Growth Strategy Latka calculates implied revenue multiples and questions how the company secured a $15M Series A without severe dilution. Maloney outlines the target growth path and board composition strategy.10:30–16:38 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Sponsor Message: Electric IT Support Following the sponsor break, Latka pushes on whether locking early customers into annual multi-year contracts creates an expansion liability. Maloney explains the strategic necessity of referenceability over immediate upsells.16:38–19:01 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Team Expansion and Sales Quota Architecture Latka asks about quota setup and team composition, translating annual quotas into monthly closing expectations. Maloney openly shares their ramp timelines, rep quotas, and engineering headcount targets.19:01–21:27 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 The Famous Five and Interview Summary The conversation concludes with the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions and a concise recap by Latka of Query.ai's core metrics.0:41–2:55 · Guest teaching 3/10 Introducing Query.ai and the Security Control Plane Latka opens with exploratory questions asking Maloney to define the company's core product category. Maloney explains the shift from legacy centralized SIEM data models to decentralized security control planes in plain terms.2:56–5:53 · Guest teaching 1/10 Company Launch, Initial Funding, and Founder Partnership Latka digs into the founding story and pushes on the equity split between Maloney and his technical co-founder. Maloney diplomatically deflects exact cap table percentages while confirming equal partnership status.5:53–10:27 · Guest teaching 2/10 Customer Milestones, Capital Stack, and Growth Strategy Latka calculates implied revenue multiples and questions how the company secured a $15M Series A without severe dilution. Maloney outlines the target growth path and board composition strategy.10:30–16:38 · Guest teaching 3/10 Sponsor Message: Electric IT Support Following the sponsor break, Latka pushes on whether locking early customers into annual multi-year contracts creates an expansion liability. Maloney explains the strategic necessity of referenceability over immediate upsells.16:38–19:01 · Guest teaching 2/10 Team Expansion and Sales Quota Architecture Latka asks about quota setup and team composition, translating annual quotas into monthly closing expectations. Maloney openly shares their ramp timelines, rep quotas, and engineering headcount targets.19:01–21:27 · Guest teaching 1/10 The Famous Five and Interview Summary The conversation concludes with the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions and a concise recap by Latka of Query.ai's core metrics.0:41–2:55 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Introducing Query.ai and the Security Control Plane Latka opens with exploratory questions asking Maloney to define the company's core product category. Maloney explains the shift from legacy centralized SIEM data models to decentralized security control planes in plain terms.2:56–5:53 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Company Launch, Initial Funding, and Founder Partnership Latka digs into the founding story and pushes on the equity split between Maloney and his technical co-founder. Maloney diplomatically deflects exact cap table percentages while confirming equal partnership status.5:53–10:27 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Customer Milestones, Capital Stack, and Growth Strategy Latka calculates implied revenue multiples and questions how the company secured a $15M Series A without severe dilution. Maloney outlines the target growth path and board composition strategy.10:30–16:38 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Sponsor Message: Electric IT Support Following the sponsor break, Latka pushes on whether locking early customers into annual multi-year contracts creates an expansion liability. Maloney explains the strategic necessity of referenceability over immediate upsells.16:38–19:01 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Team Expansion and Sales Quota Architecture Latka asks about quota setup and team composition, translating annual quotas into monthly closing expectations. Maloney openly shares their ramp timelines, rep quotas, and engineering headcount targets.19:01–21:27 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five and Interview Summary The conversation concludes with the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions and a concise recap by Latka of Query.ai's core metrics.0:41–2:55 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Introducing Query.ai and the Security Control Plane Latka opens with exploratory questions asking Maloney to define the company's core product category. Maloney explains the shift from legacy centralized SIEM data models to decentralized security control planes in plain terms.2:56–5:53 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Company Launch, Initial Funding, and Founder Partnership Latka digs into the founding story and pushes on the equity split between Maloney and his technical co-founder. Maloney diplomatically deflects exact cap table percentages while confirming equal partnership status.5:53–10:27 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Customer Milestones, Capital Stack, and Growth Strategy Latka calculates implied revenue multiples and questions how the company secured a $15M Series A without severe dilution. Maloney outlines the target growth path and board composition strategy.10:30–16:38 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Sponsor Message: Electric IT Support Following the sponsor break, Latka pushes on whether locking early customers into annual multi-year contracts creates an expansion liability. Maloney explains the strategic necessity of referenceability over immediate upsells.16:38–19:01 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Team Expansion and Sales Quota Architecture Latka asks about quota setup and team composition, translating annual quotas into monthly closing expectations. Maloney openly shares their ramp timelines, rep quotas, and engineering headcount targets.19:01–21:27 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 The Famous Five and Interview Summary The conversation concludes with the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions and a concise recap by Latka of Query.ai's core metrics.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 38.6% · guest 61.4%0:00 · Nathan 38.6% · guest 61.4%3:00 · Nathan 16.3% · guest 83.7%3:00 · Nathan 16.3% · guest 83.7%6:00 · Nathan 33.4% · guest 66.6%6:00 · Nathan 33.4% · guest 66.6%9:00 · Nathan 67.8% · guest 32.2%9:00 · Nathan 67.8% · guest 32.2%12:00 · Nathan 34.3% · guest 65.7%12:00 · Nathan 34.3% · guest 65.7%15:00 · Nathan 11.3% · guest 88.7%15:00 · Nathan 11.3% · guest 88.7%18:00 · Nathan 19.9% · guest 80.1%18:00 · Nathan 19.9% · guest 80.1%21:00 · Nathan 95.5% · guest 4.5%21:00 · Nathan 95.5% · guest 4.5%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 13:11 Defending Early Multi-Year Deals

Maloney rejects the host's premise that multi-year lock-ins are a sales liability, arguing that customer success and referenceability outweigh immediate short-term expansion.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 13:00 Challenging Annual Deal Architecture

Latka directly confronts Maloney by asking if annual contracts with no in-year expansion are a massive liability when customer usage increases monthly.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 1:40 Explaining the Security Control Plane

Maloney provides a concise breakdown of how modern cloud data sprawl made legacy SIEM centralization obsolete, framing their decentralized solution.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 7:26 Calculating Implied Series A Multiples

Latka demonstrates deep SaaS financing knowledge by breaking down dilution math and noting the implied 100x ARR multiple on their Series A round.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Introducing Query.ai and the Security Control Plane 2301 Latka opens with exploratory questions asking Maloney to define the company's core product category. Maloney explains the shift from legacy centralized SIEM data models to decentralized security control planes in plain terms.
Company Launch, Initial Funding, and Founder Partnership 3123 Latka digs into the founding story and pushes on the equity split between Maloney and his technical co-founder. Maloney diplomatically deflects exact cap table percentages while confirming equal partnership status.
Customer Milestones, Capital Stack, and Growth Strategy 6214 Latka calculates implied revenue multiples and questions how the company secured a $15M Series A without severe dilution. Maloney outlines the target growth path and board composition strategy.
Sponsor Message: Electric IT Support 5325 Following the sponsor break, Latka pushes on whether locking early customers into annual multi-year contracts creates an expansion liability. Maloney explains the strategic necessity of referenceability over immediate upsells.
Team Expansion and Sales Quota Architecture 4202 Latka asks about quota setup and team composition, translating annual quotas into monthly closing expectations. Maloney openly shares their ramp timelines, rep quotas, and engineering headcount targets.
The Famous Five and Interview Summary 2100 The conversation concludes with the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions and a concise recap by Latka of Query.ai's core metrics.

Statements from this episode (12)

Disclosure
Query.ai ASP is under $100k, forecasting $125k in 2022
“Our ASPs today are just under a hundred K. We're planning on growing those to a one 25 and our 20, 22 forecast plans.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 2:39
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Query.ai aims to reach $200k average contract values per customer
“And I think realistically we can get into the 200 K range pretty easily on our average customer.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 2:45
Disclosure
Query.ai maintains lean operations using in-house developers based in India
“Operations have been very lean and a lot of our development is out of India, which keeps our costs down, but they are query kind of employees.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 4:09
Insight
Modern security requires decentralized data access rather than central aggregation
“The real market problem that we saw and aligned to as we really started to kind of test and validate is the need to do this across decentralized platforms because no one again has all that data in one place, which kind of an obvious aha moment looking back as …”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 4:45
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Query.ai secured just under 10 enterprise customers by late 2021
“We have just under 10 customers today with a couple more. We hope to get done in the last couple of weeks, always down to crunch time in the year.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 5:59
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Query.ai targets $15M in ARR by the end of 2023
“We'd like to be at, or as close to fifteen million in ARR by the end of 20, 23, as we can be, which would make us, you know, hyper growth kind of company.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 8:36
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Query.ai targets $4M in ARR by the end of 2022
“22 would be collectively about four million.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 8:47
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Query.ai employees maintained over 50% equity ownership following Series A
“We have maintained over 50% employee equity in the company and still have room for new investments as we go forward.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 9:47
Disclosure
Query.ai signed first customer in July 2020 on a multi-year contract
“We closed our first customer in July of 20 and that was actually a multi-year paid annual deal, right? So there was no upsell opportunity until the third year of that contract.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 12:46
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Query.ai reached just over $100k in total revenue entering 2021
“End of 20 20 coming in 2021, we would have been just north of a hundred day in revenue.”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 14:37
Disclosure
Query.ai prices sales in tiers of three analysts up to 15
“Currently we try to keep the pricing model as simple as possible. It's all based on tiers and it's all based on number of analysts for our kind of direct sales go to market strategy. So it's like one to three analysts will be our first tier. And then the upsel…”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 15:40
Disclosure
Query.ai plans a product-led freemium tier rollout by late 2022
“We're even looking at a product like growth strategy that can enable us to give a freemium model away, to get more people leveraging the product and seeing these kinds of very unique capabilities. That is something that we're looking at for kind of the end of …”
Andrew Maloney Feb 7, 2022 ▶ 16:13
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