473. The Future of AI is Vertical, Why Vertical TAMs are Getting Exponentially Larger, and Lessons from the Sector Giants that Lead to Dominance (Alexander Niehenke)
Mar 10, 2025•42 min•Ep. 473
Episode description
Alexander Niehenke of Scale Venture Partners joins Nick to discuss The Future of AI is Vertical, Why Vertical TAMs are Getting Exponentially Larger, and Lessons from the Sector Giants that Lead to Dominance. In this episode we cover:
- Historical Reasons for Horizontal SaaS Success
- Shift Towards Vertical SaaS Solutions
- Unfair Advantages of Vertical AI Solutions
- Lessons for Modern Founders
- Expansion Strategies for Vertical Startups
- Talent Dilution and Competitive Moats
- VC Diligence and Founder Evaluation
- Regulatory Risk and Investment Decisions
- Motivation and Future of Venture Capital
Guest Links:
The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area.
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