How to find a Killer Idea worth $40B | Co-founder of Snowflake, Benoit Dageville

Summary

Benoit Dageville, co-founder of Snowflake, shares the journey of creating the company with co-founder Thierry Cruanes. Initially not aiming to start a business, they focused on building a revolutionary cloud-based data and AI access product. Emphasizing simplicity and trust, Dageville highlights the importance of dreaming big, fostering open communication, and trusting team members from day one. He discusses the challenges and strategies in developing Snowflake, ultimately leading to its success as a transformative solution in the data industry.

Takeaways

• 😀 Simplicity is the hallmark of an amazing product; it should be easy to use without extensive knowledge.
• 🌟 The founders of Snowflake, Benville and Cherry, initially aimed to create a revolutionary product rather than a startup.
• 🛠️ Snowflake's inception was rooted in the idea of leveraging cloud technology to simplify data access, which was traditionally complex.
• 💡 The concept of 'fast in the cloud is free' was a pivotal realization, allowing for speed without increased cost to customers.
• 🚀 Snowflake's growth was organic, with a focus on trust and empowering employees to speak up and contribute to the product's development.
• 🔧 The importance of hiring trustworthy individuals is emphasized, as trust is foundational to a company's growth and success.
• 🤔 Trust-building in the US starts at 100% and can be reduced if necessary, contrasting with the European approach of starting from zero and building up.
• 🗣️ Encouraging open discussion and disagreement is seen as a key driver of innovation and creativity within a company.
• 🎯 Focusing on a few key features and personas is more effective than trying to appeal to everyone, which can dilute the product's impact.
• 🌐 Benville's background in database systems and his drive to create led him from France to the US, where he found the opportunity to innovate.
• 🔗 The transcript also mentions Paragon, an embedded integration platform that helps B2B SaaS companies streamline their integration processes.

Q & A

Who are the co-founders of Snowflake mentioned in the transcript?

The co-founders of Snowflake mentioned in the transcript are Benville and Cherry Cranes.

What was the initial goal of the co-founders when they started Snowflake?

The initial goal of the co-founders was to build an amazing product, not necessarily to start a company or a startup.

What does the speaker emphasize as the number one quality of an amazing product?

The speaker emphasizes simplicity as the number one quality of an amazing product.

How does the speaker describe the importance of conflict and disagreement in building amazing technology?

The speaker describes conflict and disagreement as essential for building amazing technology, as they lead to discussions that result in consensus and better products.

What is the significance of the saying 'go direct' at Snowflake?

The saying 'go direct' at Snowflake signifies the importance of being able to speak up and express disagreements in a secure environment, which encourages creativity.

What is the speaker's advice on hiring when it comes to growing a company?

The speaker advises to hire someone that you trust from day one, as trust is critical in allowing employees to do their best work without micromanagement.

What is the difference in trust-building between the US and Europe as described by the speaker?

In Europe, trust is built gradually, starting from zero, whereas in the US, trust is given 100% from the start and then adjusted if necessary.

What was the main challenge the speaker faced when building integrations for their previous company, Polymail?

The main challenge was the exhausting process of building integrations with third-party apps and the never-ending maintenance that followed.

What is Paragon and how does it help engineering teams?

Paragon is an embedded integration platform that allows engineering teams at B2B SaaS companies to ship native integrations seven times faster by focusing only on business logic.

What was the 'killer idea' behind Snowflake that the co-founders believed could revolutionize the industry?

The 'killer idea' was leveraging the cloud to create a data access solution that was simple to use and could operate significantly faster without costing more for customers.

How did the co-founders approach the challenge of explaining Snowflake's revolutionary nature to potential customers?

They used familiar concepts and terminology from the traditional data systems to make Snowflake's revolutionary features more approachable and understandable.