Contrary Research Rundown #17
Building a category leader, and new memos on Netskope, Webflow, and more
Research Rundown
In the technology world, people often talk about building "category leaders." That title, while difficult to award when there can be so many competitors in any one space, often comes from becoming seen as a ubiquitous part of the category you operate in. This week, we unpacked a number of "category leaders," and some of the common characteristics they share.
We explored Zapier, and how the world of low-code / no-code is rapidly evolving. Zapier bootstrapped their way into becoming the de facto automation tool for the long-tail of users. Zapier's ecosystem of API integrations has become an integral part of making most SaaS applications interoperable. This week, we also released a new memo on Webflow. The combination of tools like Airtable, Webflow, and Zapier make up no-code stacks for building applications (known as the "AWZ stack"). While Zapier has become ubiquitous with the automation world, they are, by no means, alone. Their dominant position is being threatened by the rise of in-house integration tools like Alloy Automation, Tray.io and Airtable. To learn more about Zapier, their market opportunity, and some risks ahead, read our full memo here.
In the world of fintech and payments, we shared a thread on Brex, including some of the most important lessons the founders learned in their early days before reaching a $12B valuation. Speaking of competitive industries, there's no shortage of competition in the world of expense management. Not only are there established players competing directly, like AmEx, Expensify, or Ramp, but you also have newer entrants like Rippling expanding into the space. If you missed our full memo on Brex, read it here.
Sometimes, companies enter a market and become ubiquitous. Other times, they effectively help invent the market. The health and fitness industry has a number of sub-segments, but there weren't a lot of tech companies historically tackling the sleep industry, despite the fact that the market for sleep technology is expected to grow from $15 billion today to $67 billion by 2030. Companies like Eightsleep are using technology to improve the way people sleep. We explored their evolution in a thread outlining how the product is mapping to consumer demand. You can also read our full memo on Eight Sleep.
Another example of a company that largely helped usher in their own approach to a less-than-innovative market is Guild Education. Reskilling has been a buzzy topic for years, but few companies have captured the sector with as much relevance as Guild has.
Finally, the discussion around generative AI and LLMs doesn’t seem to be abating in 2023. Foundation models were born in natural language processing (NLP) and have transformed that space in areas such as customer support, and sales & marketing. Companies like Cohere are building core foundational models in NLP and, while a number of companies are playing a critical role in this space, Cohere is certainly a big part of that story.
MoonPay allows users to more easily convert their fiat currencies into digital assets, accepting all major payment methods including debit and credit cards. To learn more about the business, read our full memo here.
Autograph is a platform for iconic digital collections. It enables celebrities and athletes to create unique digital collections and experiences. To learn more about the business, read our full memo here.
Netskope is a network security platform that offers secure remote access, and cloud-hosted application protection, based on zero trust principles. To learn more about the business, read our full memo here.
Webflow is a platform that allows web designers to create responsive websites using drag-and-drop features, without writing any code. To learn more about the business, read our full memo here.
Cresta offers AI-based tools for real-time coaching, automating workflows, and agent performance management & analysis. To learn more about the business, read our full memo here.
Tracy Young, the co-founder of TigerEye, shared some important lessons from different failure points that can be common in the journey growing from $5M to $100M in ARR.
Brendan Wallace at Fifth Wall explores the latest trends happening within the world of climate tech. If you missed our thread on all the climate tech companies we’ve written about, you can check it out here.
Fortune talked to some leading investors to unpack the top trends in fintech for 2023 including the rise of CFO tools, and the intersection of AI + fintech.
Mitch Lasky and Blake Robbins, investors at Benchmark, are teaming up to launch the Gamecraft Gaming podcast. Gamecraft will be a limited series about the modern history of the video game business. Contrary Research has written about gaming companies like Epic Games and Niantic.
Bloomberg explores Adobe’s early attempts at acquiring Figma before the deal happened in 2022. Bobby Pinero, Founder of Hey Equals, also shared the model behind Figma’s self-serve business.
Lattice was one of the latest tech companies to undergo layoffs, cutting 15% of their employees. Jack Altman, Lattice’s CEO, shared some thoughtful perspective as a company focused on helping to make work meaningful. Affected employees can leverage StartupSearch to help fine new roles. To learn more about recent trends in HR tech and Lattice’s business, you can also read our full memo on the company.
Aidan Gomez, CEO & Founder of Cohere, wrote a reflection about the company’s progress in 2022. He also unpacked some thoughts on the year that AI had as a whole, with some meaningful leaps forward and some exciting breakthroughs ahead.
Patrick O'Shaughnessy began a new interview series called Screenshot Q&As. The first edition of the series was published where Buck, a popular account on FinTwit, shares 12 insights into the core fundamentals of software investing.
Contrary Research Fellowship
At Contrary Research our vision is to cover hundreds of companies. We can't do it alone, nor would we want to. We focus on bringing together a variety of different perspectives.
That's why we're opening applications for our Research Fellowship. In the past we've worked with software engineers, product managers, consultants, and more. If you're interested in researching and writing about tech companies, apply here!