Startups Decoded is a podcast that provides real-world insights into startup strategy and growth, featuring expert-led content, insider stories, and actionable takeaways for founders and investors.
We bridge the gap between theory and practice, offering practical lessons to help entrepreneurs thrive in today’s fast-paced ecosystem. More than just a podcast, it's a resource for innovators who dive deep into the strategies behind building and scaling successful startups.
Site
RSS
Apple
Data updated on 04/08/2026
Recent rankings
Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.
Shared links between episodes and podcasts
Links found in episode descriptions and other podcasts that share them.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, Andy Walsh talks with Charlie Hills, a global leader in LinkedIn growth strategy.
AI is rewriting LinkedIn, and Charlie Hills has the receipts. In 466 days, he went from zero to 100k+ followers and ranked #1 worldwide for LinkedIn Growth. We break down the exact AI-led playbook: repeatable content systems, scroll-stopping visuals, audience targeting, repurposing loops, and lead-magnet funnels that turn attention into revenue.
If you want your LinkedIn to stand out and convert in 2025, this is the blueprint.
Charlie Hills is the Founder of Linked Agency and a global leader in LinkedIn growth strategy.
In 2024, he scaled his following to 50k+ in under one year, and by early 2025, he surpassed 100k+ followers in just 466 days. Ranked #1 worldwide for LinkedIn Growth, Charlie blends AI tools with proven content frameworks to help brands and individuals grow faster, engage deeper, and convert more effectively.
Linked Agency helps founders, executives, and creators dominate LinkedIn using AI-powered content strategies. Through bespoke content plans, engagement systems, and visual optimisation, Linked Agency enables clients to scale their reach, build authority, and drive inbound opportunities without spending countless hours on content creation.
Algorithms are wringing creators dry. In this inspiring S2 episode, Linktree co-founder & CCO Nick Humphreys ($167M raised; 70M+ users) lays out the new playbook: AI that amplifies your voice, owning your audience over chasing vanity metrics, and revenue that holds when the feed goes quiet.
If you’re rebuilding your 2025 content stack, start here.
Subscribe now
Nick Humphreys is the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Linktree, one of the world’s fastest-growing tech platforms enabling creators, brands, and businesses to connect their audiences to everything they offer, on one simple, customizable page. With a background in digital strategy and design, Nick has been instrumental in shaping Linktree’s distinctive brand and product experience, used by over 50 million users globally.
Launched in 2016, Linktree pioneered the “link in bio” category, transforming how people share content and monetize their presence online. From musicians and creators to global enterprises, Linktree empowers users to unify their digital ecosystem with clarity, creativity, and control. Linktree has raised approximately $167 million USD in total across its funding rounds.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Linktree and Its Impact
01:52 The Early Days of Linktree
06:19 Navigating the Startup Landscape
11:03 Product Evolution and User Insights
17:12 Understanding User Needs and Prioritization
21:05 Monetization Strategies and Future Directions
25:24 Navigating Audience Ownership and Monetization
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
S2E1: How Billion-Dollar Companies Get Built. Mike Jones - Liquid Death, Dollar Shave Club, Science Inc.
In the Season 2 opener of Startups Decoded, host Andy Walsh sits down with Mike Jones, General Partner at Science Inc., the venture studio and fund behind household names like Dollar Shave Club, Liquid Death, and PlayVS.
With more than $1.3 billion in exits and angel investments including Scopely, GoodReads, and Maker Studios, Mike has seen what separates billion-dollar companies from the ones that stall out.
From his early days founding Userplane, CEO of MySpace, to building Science into one of the most successful venture studios in the world, Mike shares the hard truths about brand, product, team dynamics, and the role of instinct versus data. This episode dives into how breakout companies really get built, the future of venture studios in a world transformed by AI, and why some startups endure while most fade.
If you want a candid look at what it takes to scale a company that actually lasts, this conversation is a must-listen.
Mike Jones is the General Partner of Science Inc., the venture fund and studio behind brands like Dollar Shave Club, Liquid Death, and PlayVS. Since launching Science in 2011, Mike has led it to over $1.3 billion in exits, shaping household names through a unique blend of venture investment and hands-on company building.
Fund, develop, and advise companies focused on solving the everyday problems of modern living. Science is a unique platform where talent, resources, and financing are brought together in a bid to nurture and develop ideas, arm emerging businesses with the strategy, expertise, and capital they need to grow, and to transform existing internet ventures, injecting them with new talent and innovation.
Music Credit:
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#33: The Real Cost of Venture Capital in the AI Era - Joseph Lee.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, I sit down with Joseph Lee, founder and CEO of Supademo, to talk about the real founder’s journey behind raising capital and the tradeoffs that come with it. Joseph shares how past experiences with over-capitalization shaped the way he thinks about growth today, and why staying true to vision matters more than chasing VC expectations.
We dig into what it means to build on your own terms: scaling with AI, defining success beyond vanity metrics, and keeping customers at the center of the story. For any founder navigating fundraising or rethinking their growth playbook, this conversation offers a candid blueprint for balancing capital, conviction, and clarity.
Joseph Lee is the Co-Founder and CEO of Supademo, an AI-powered platform revolutionizing how teams create and share interactive product demos. Since its inception in April 2023, Supademo has empowered over 50,000 professionals in marketing, sales, and customer success to enhance product adoption and close more deals.
A serial entrepreneur with a passion for building zero-to-one products, Joseph has been creating since the age of 15. His approach emphasizes organic growth, community engagement, and delivering tangible value. Under his leadership, Supademo has achieved significant milestones, including being recognized as G2’s #5 fastest-growing software product in 2025.
Joseph is also a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and a Techstars alum. He actively shares insights on startup growth, product development, and founder experiences through his personal LinkedIn and Twitter profiles.
Supademo is an AI-powered platform that helps teams create high-converting interactive product demos in minutes, without code or design work. Used by over 60,000 professionals across sales, marketing, and customer success, Supademo enables faster onboarding, higher product adoption, and more effective storytelling through intuitive, step-by-step walkthroughs. With features like dynamic personalization, AI-generated voiceovers, multi-language support, and advanced analytics, it’s become a go-to tool for modern teams looking to scale product education and conversion without relying on traditional video or live demos.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#32: A Logo is Decoration. A Brand Is Survival. Startups Fail When They Ignore It. With Malcolm Buick.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, host Andy Walsh sits down with Malcolm Buick, Partner & Chief Creative Officer at Athletics and a seasoned creative director, to unpack how design drives startup growth.
From his journey through music and branding to building global identities for brands like IBM, Nike, Google Chrome, Major League Soccer, and MoMA, Malcolm explores how storytelling, community, and culture shape lasting companies.
Great startups don’t just build products, they build meaning. Malcolm reveals how founders can turn design into a strategic advantage: expressing vision, earning trust, and scaling smarter. The conversation highlights the importance of authenticity, flexibility in brand systems, and creating collaborative environments that bring a brand to life.
Too often, founders underinvest in design early on. This episode reframes design as a growth lever, helping startups tell better stories, attract the right users, and build cultures that endure.
Malcolm Buick is a seasoned creative director and partner at Athletics, a Brooklyn-based brand studio. With over 25 years of experience in design and branding, his career began in London during the mid-1990s, focusing on music branding. He later moved to Burlington, Vermont, to serve as Creative Lead at JDK, where he contributed to evolving Burton Snowboards into a global lifestyle brand. Subsequently, he became Creative Director at the renowned branding agency Wolff Olins in New York. Since joining Athletics in 2014, Malcolm has led major projects for clients including IBM, Nike, MLS, and MoMA.
Athletics is a Brooklyn-based brand studio that transforms opportunity into beautifully usable identities, websites, and tools. Guided by a shared reverence for purposeful design, we partner with ambitious organizations—from startups to global icons—to build brands that are as strategic as they are striking.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#31: Your Digital Strategy Is Already Obsolete! Here’s How to Fix It with Jay Erickson.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, Andy Walsh sits down with Jay Erickson, Chief Innovation Officer and co-founder of Modus, to explore why most digital strategies are already outdated, and how to fix them.
They dive into emergent strategy: a flexible, human-centered approach to navigating today’s breakneck pace of change. Drawing on systems thinking, design, and culture, Jay shares how resilient teams can adapt in real time, address bias, and build strategies that evolve as fast as the world around us.
Jay Erickson is a digital strategist, product leader, and purpose-driven entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience guiding organizations through innovation and transformation. As Chief Innovation Officer and co-founder of Modus, he brings a human-centered approach to digital strategy, helping mission-driven companies design impactful products and experiences. Jay is passionate about ethical innovation, team culture, and using technology as a force for good.
Modus is a global digital consultancy that partners with organizations to unlock growth through innovation, strategy, and design. With expertise across product development, UX, engineering, and transformation, Modus helps companies—from ambitious startups to Fortune 500s—build digital experiences that matter. The firm is known for its collaborative, purpose-led approach and commitment to delivering lasting impact in complex environments.
Takeaways
Digital strategy must evolve rapidly due to technological changes.
Design thinking is a timeless framework for innovation.
Understanding human behavior is crucial in digital product design.
SMBs face unique challenges compared to larger corporations.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#30: Future-Proofing Products in 2025: Startup Lessons from Orgo’s Zoya Lehrer
In this episode of Startups Decoded, host Andy Walsh speaks with Zoya Lehrer, founder of Orgo, about the challenges and opportunities in the startup landscape, particularly in the realm of product development and parenting logistics.
Zoya shares her personal journey from immigrating to the U.S. to launching her business, which aims to streamline the logistics of youth sports for parents. The conversation delves into the importance of community feedback, the need for future-proofing products in a rapidly changing market, and the balance between innovation and consumer needs.
Zoya Lehrer Zoya Lehrer is the co-founder and CEO of Orgo, a family scheduling and logistics app that helps busy households streamline calendars, travel, and coordination. Born in Ukraine and raised in Brooklyn after immigrating to the U.S. in 1993, she holds a Computer Science and IT degree from Rutgers University and spent 20+ years in executive roles in digital innovation, fintech partnerships, and strategic planning.
Frustrated by the complexity of managing her own family’s schedule, Zoya built Orgo to combine calendar management, navigation, and communication in one seamless platform, reducing chaos and saving families time.
About Orgo Short for “organization on the go”, Orgo is a mobile app for family time management, offering advanced calendar features, prep time tracking, travel estimates, and caregiver coordination. With smart notifications and turn-by-turn directions, it’s the “Waze for family schedules”, giving parents clarity, control, and peace of mind.
Takeaways
Zoya Lehrer immigrated from Ukraine and has a tech background.
The challenges of parenting and sports logistics inspired Orgo.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#29: The Post-Product Market Fit Playbook: Scaling, Systems, and Survival - with Adrian Fagerlund - Linkby
In this episode of Startups Decoded, Andy Walsh sits down with Adrian Fagerlund, Co-Founder and CRO of Linkby, a performance PR platform connecting advertisers with premium publishers. They explore Adrian’s unconventional path, the evolution of content commerce, and the systems Linkby used to scale globally without breaking.
From team building and capital efficiency to culture and market expansion, this is a practical playbook for the messy middle—what happens after product-market fit and before true scale.
Adrian leads global growth and publisher partnerships at Linkby. With a background at Nine and Pedestrian.tv, he’s built a career at the intersection of media, affiliate innovation, and storytelling. A regular speaker at DealMaker AU and PI LIVE, Adrian is reshaping how brands and publishers collaborate.
Linkby connects brands with top-tier publishers to create native, shoppable content—briefed in real-time, paid only on results. Trusted by over 1,500 brands and 250 publishers, Linkby turns product features into meaningful media moments, blending affiliate economics with brand storytelling.
Most startup advice focuses on product, pitch, and traction. But there’s one skill that fuels them all: trusted relationships.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, Andy Walsh sits down with David R. Homan, master connector, strategic advisor, and author of Orchestrating Connection, to explore how founders build the kind of trust that drives real outcomes.
We cover:
How to network with intent (not desperation)
Why AI might make human connection stronger, not weaker
How to build a community that opens doors at scale
David shares the mindset shift that helped him grow a global network of 2,100+ founders, VCs, and family offices, and what most startup leaders get wrong about influence.
Plus: Insights from his platform SOAR, and how to create value-driven asks that actually get answered.
David R. Homan – LinkedIn David is the founder of Orchestrated Connecting and a trusted relationship broker to some of the world’s most influential leaders across business, media, philanthropy, and public policy. With a background in classical music, nonprofit leadership, and strategic advisory to family offices, startups, and impact funds, David helps people unlock transformative opportunities through curated, values-driven introductions rooted in trust and shared purpose.
In this conversation, David Homan shares his journey from being a musician to becoming a connector and community builder. He emphasizes the importance of building authentic relationships, resilience in the face of challenges, and the role of technology in facilitating connections. David discusses the principles of purposeful networking and how to navigate the complexities of human relationships in a world driven by social media and superficial interactions. He advocates for a mindset of generosity, curiosity, and vulnerability in networking, and highlights the significance of community in achieving personal and collective goals.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Ep#27: The Secret to Raising Capital? Tell Your Story, Don’t Sell - Dr. Ankur Pathak.
Discover how effective storytelling captivates investors and builds a compelling personal brand.
Join us as we unpack the strategies founders and leaders use to craft narratives that drive investment and inspire action. Whether you're looking to secure funding, attract customers, or refine your startup’s story, this episode is packed with actionable insights to elevate your brand and make a real impact.
Founding Principal at London Real Ventures, the first media-powered investment firm blending media and finance. After transitioning from medicine, Ankur led investments in Web3 and AI projects like Shrapnel, Story Protocol, and NAYMS. Leveraging London Real’s platform of 5M+ subscribers, he connects founders and investors, offering strategic insights, media exposure, and capital. Ankur’s focus is on building long-term, value-driven relationships across AI, blockchain, and the metaverse.
Invests in cutting-edge Web3, AI, and Metaverse companies, offering more than just capital. They leverage their global network of 5 million subscribers to rapidly build brand visibility, drive customer acquisition, and foster partnerships.
Their process includes:
Production: A custom, high-definition interview with the CEO/Founder to promote the brand and secure funding.
Distribution: Broadcasting the interview and clips to a global audience, creating media buzz.
Connection: Linking companies with influential guests from various industries for strategic opportunities.
Expansion: Providing capital and continuous support to grow the business until exit.
Expert insights and proven strategies from Australia's top investors. Build your wealth.
Related Shows Based on Content Similarities
Discover shows related to Startups Decoded, based on actual content similarities. Explore podcasts with similar topics, themes, and formats, backed by real data.
In this episode of Startups Decoded, host Andy Walsh engages in a deep conversation with Dr. Ankur Pathak, exploring the significance of storytelling in startups, the journey from healthcare to investment, and the role of media in amplifying founder narratives.
Dr. Ankur shares insights on personal branding, the importance of building relationships over mere transactions, and the long-term value approach in investing. The discussion also delves into crafting and communicating compelling stories that resonate with investors and audiences alike, emphasizing the human element in the investment process.
Takeaways
Storytelling is crucial for startups to connect with audiences.
Dr. Ankur transitioned from healthcare to investment, emphasizing the importance of financial literacy.
The media platform plays a vital role in amplifying startup stories.
Investors are more likely to support founders they have a relationship with.
Personal branding is essential for founders to stand out.
Documenting the entrepreneurial journey builds trust and engagement.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Storytelling in Startups
03:44 Dr. Ankur Pathak's Journey from Healthcare to Investment
