Justin Gordon (@justingordon212) talks with Patrick Utz (@PatrickUtz), Co-Founder & CEO of Abstract, the premier platform and database for working with California state & local legislation that’s bringing lobbying and advocacy into a new era by increasing government transparency. Abstract streamlines how you research and track bills, organize notes, brief stakeholders, and collaborate over legislation in real-time. More than just a bill tracker, Abstract provides the tools necessary to influence legislation and keep stakeholders aligned, all in one place.
Abstract is a VITALIZE portfolio company that recently raised $2.5M from several notable investors, on their thesis of becoming the gateway for understanding messy government data.
Website: https://www.abstract.us/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-utz/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PatrickUtz
Show Notes:
0:00 How Abstract is increasing government transparency
1:08 Abstract’s origin story as a university senior project
4:33 The evolution of Abstract’s product development
6:45 Leaning into their mission to get an alumni from their university to build Abstract’s front-end for free
9:04 Early customer acquisition through cold outreach
10:49 Determining their ideal customer base and what Patrick would have done differently
12:33 Securing funding after 60+ rejections: all while still attending university
14:37 Defining their early north star metric
16:23 How they run pilot programs to construct a product road map
18:10 Structuring Abstract’s business model and the dark art of pricing
19:32 The huge market opportunity for Abstract
20:55 What puts Abstract above their competition
22:54 Hiring to elevate not to delegate, and leveraging their mission to win over tech talent
26:53 What’s next for Abstract
28:29 The decision to build a mobile app
31:45 The big vision for Abstract
34:11 Where to connect with Patrick and Abstract
More about us:
VITALIZE Venture Capital was formed in 2017 as a $16M seed-stage venture fund and now includes both a fund as well as an angel investing community investing in the future of work. VITALIZE has offices in Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.
The VITALIZE Team:
Gale - https://twitter.com/galeforceVC
Caroline - https://twitter.com/carolinecasson_
Justin - https://twitter.com/justingordon212
Larissa - https://twitter.com/LarissaInsogna
Vick - https://twitter.com/vahram_sf
VITALIZE Angels, our angel investing community open to everyone:
https://vitalizeangels.com/
