Ajay Kulkarni, CEO of Timescale: $180 Million Raised to Redefine the Database Category

In today's episode of Category Visionaries, we speak with Ajay Kulkarni, CEO of Timescale, an open source time series SQL database that's raised over $180 Million in funding, about why, as computers get more powerful and data storage gets cheaper, the future of our digital transformation lies in better databases. With a market offering optimized for data intensive applications which capture large volumes of information for use in enterprise decision making, but faster, cheaper and better than current market offerings, Timescale is set to make a massive impact on the way data affects all of our daily lives.

We also speak about how perseverance kept Ajay in the startup space even after less than successful attempts at first, why he believes the success in any business is the grind, the pros and cons of starting a business during tough economic times, and how Timescale’s early PLG strategy was built on the strength of their community.

Topics Discussed:

• Ajay’s first forays as a founder, and why he feels he learned a lot but never quite got the formula right until now
• Why Ajay believes that when it comes to business success, there’s nothing more essential than the grind
• The competitive aspect of a commercial enterprise, and why every founder needs a bit of faith in themselves and their idea
• How constant development in the data collection and storage capacity of our devices makes better databases and essential tool for the economy of tomorrow
• Why Timescale’s faster, cheaper, better model for data intensive applications is leaving the competition behind
• How building a community helped give Timescale’s PLG strategy a head start

 

Favorite book: 

The Alchemist: A Fable About Following Your Dream