Bessemer Venture Partners

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 serves as both a eulogy for the legacy cloud and a celebration of the current AI Cloud moment. ☁️ In this report, we focus entirely on the 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 deemed most relevant to the AI Cloud by our global team of investors and the implications for the thrilling years we predict are headed our way. 𝐖𝐡𝐲? AI is all we can think about. In 2023, our enthusiasm for AI was underscored by our committed $1 billion in funding. A year later, we have total conviction in the promise of AI — we’ve backed multiple new investments in AI startups and the broad adoption of LLM technology in nearly every portfolio company roadmap. It’s rare to find a cloud company these days that isn’t, at some level, an AI company. Dive into this year's report, where we share our deep dive analysis, top predictions, spicy takes, and behind-the-scenes conversations with our investors. ☁️ 📈 🎥 https://lnkd.in/gTS4-kKX

✨ Get a head start on our latest Atlas Newsletter: 🎤 Multimodal models & AI agents 🔐 Cybersecurity hiring tips 🌟 Bessemer news & highlights Read: https://lnkd.in/gEAuDdvV Subscribe: https://lnkd.in/g7fUBrm7

𝐅𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐬 — 𝐚 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞 ⤵️ 🔓 𝟏. 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐚 𝐜𝐲𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 — Establish a firm-wide cybersecurity culture early. — Encourage all employees to be vigilant and participate in security efforts. — Integrate security best practices into team building and daily operations. — Hire security experts early and assess cybersecurity knowledge during interviews. — Leverage existing tools and processes and build security by default. — Plan for cyber threats and document responses to improve future handling. 🔓 𝟐. 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 — Secure digital identities, as 80% of cyber attacks leverage identity-based attacks. — Use single sign-on (SSO) and multi-factor authentication (MFA) from the start. — Treat your office network as a remote environment to enhance security. 🔓 𝟑. 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 — Embrace the shared responsibility model of cloud security. — Use tools to monitor, detect, and remediate risks in the cloud. — Adopt infrastructure-as-code (IaC) principles and log all security events. — Integrate automated security checks into the software development pipeline. 🔓 𝟒. 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 — Keep an inventory of sensitive and critical data. — Monitor data access and ensure compliance with regulations like GDPR, PCI, and HIPAA. — Maintain data hygiene to prevent breaches and costly data security incidents. 🔓 𝟓. 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝-𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 — Take inventory of third-party dependencies and rank them based on risk. — Establish minimum data access and permissions for third parties. — Monitor third-party activities and manage dependencies proactively. Embedding security into your company's operations from day one is crucial to navigating the complexities of a cloud-first world. By following these five principles, growth companies can build a robust cybersecurity program that scales with them, ensuring long-term security and success. ✨ 𝐆𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 — 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐭𝐥𝐚𝐬 >>> https://lnkd.in/giuJ65Sw Link to the article in the comments.

When should you bring on a finance leader? When the business becomes more complex. That looks like: 🗺 Expanding into new geographies 📈 Selling additional products and services 📄 Establishing more corporate entities 🏗 Needing more production sites Some leaders find business complexity happens as early as the $5M to $10M ARR mark—but many startups manage without an in-house finance lead until closer to $20M ARR. When did your company decide to hire a finance leader? Sign up for our free SaaS Finance Course: https://lnkd.in/gt8guB8b

CISOs are in demand. Why? 🔓 A founder knows building real traction for their business means cybersecurity and data protection are table stakes—and if you implement protections from day one, your business may avoid the tough reality of becoming a headline. Unfortunately, getting hacked isn’t a question of “if” but “when.” Today's news cycle is rife with high-profile data breaches and geopolitical conflict, a near-daily reminder of the reputational and bottom-line risks businesses face when it comes to protecting digital products and customers’ personal information. Jason Chan, Operating Advisor at Bessemer and Netflix's former InfoSec leader, offers early-stage founders six "green flags" to look out for when hiring and building cybersecurity teams that truly make an impact. https://lnkd.in/gRfKWiER More reading in the comments!

It's 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒌 for cybersecurity. One thing remains true: No matter the business, cybersecurity is at the top of every tech CEO's agenda. 🔓 Michael Droesch, Amit Karp, and Yael Schiff uncover the five most pertinent trends impacting innovation and investments in cybersecurity and offer advice from the best Chief Information Security Officers in SaaS. Trend 1: Consolidation of the cyber market continues Trend 2: Cybercriminals exploit AI tools for malicious attacks Trend 3: AI counterattacks fraud and deep fakes Trend 4: Growing importance of identity, and bringing the PAM, AuthN, and AuthZ solutions to the cloud Trend 5: CISOs go “back to basics” Dive into our 2024 trends report ⤵️ https://lnkd.in/g9RVvekd

Join us in welcoming our newest Partner Lauri J. Moore! A product manager by training, Lauri brings deep operator expertise to early-stage data and infrastructure investing. "Bessemer has not only built a best-in-class platform but has also fostered an impressive culture of excellence that has been sustained over decades," said Lauri. "I'm delighted to be part of the team and look forward to supporting the exceptional founders of our generation." https://lnkd.in/dBmTeePe

Pricing is a CEO's growth lever. 📈 It's time you find the best monetization strategy for your SaaS or AI startup. Unlock the full e-book when you sign up for Bessemer's Pricing Course 🔓 https://lnkd.in/gmzAPeMf

Last year's Cloud 100 list by the numbers: ☁️ 📊 $6.6B: average 2023 company valuation 📈 26x ARR: Average multiple 🚀 55%: Average YoY ARR growth 🌟 95: Centaurs ($100M ARR) by year-end '23 We're counting down to the next Cloud 100! What's in store for 2024? Be the first to get this year's report— Subscribe to Atlas today: https://bvp.com/subscribe

Really looking forward to participating as a judge in the upcoming Crew Capital Enterprise Tech Pitch & Showcase on Tuesday, July 23. This event is set to bring together over 100 of NYC's brightest tech minds in Enterprise tech and AI for an evening of networking, pitches, and product demos.   Hope to meet you there, Learn more about the event here: https://lnkd.in/eFbn9vAh