How LaderaAI Uses Forecastr To Raise Capital and Build a More Confident Plan for Growth

Dave Goulden isn’t new to startups. In fact, he’s helped build eight of them—four as a founder. So when he launched LaderaAI, a generative AI platform that acts as a virtual data analyst for mid-sized businesses, he brought a wealth of experience with him. But this time, Dave wanted to do things differently: move faster, plan smarter, and build a stronger financial foundation right from the start.

LaderaAI solves a real problem for growing companies: making sense of their data. Teams can ask practical, business-driving questions—about sales performance, customer behavior, or operations—and get clear answers pulled from across their tech stack. It’s a powerful solution for businesses that don’t have the resources for a full-blown data team but still need reliable insights to make informed decisions.

To bring that vision to life and raise outside capital for the very first time, Dave knew he needed more than just a spreadsheet. He needed a financial model that was fast to build, easy to understand, and built to withstand investor scrutiny.

From Spreadsheet Pain to Investor Confidence

Like many experienced founders, Dave Goulden began his financial planning with a spreadsheet. It had all the usual complexity—hiring plans, intricate formulas, and multiple tabs filled with assumptions.“It worked, but it was a pain,” Dave admitted.

That someone was Faisal, a Forecastr analyst who quickly became a key part of the LaderaAI team. Dave could easily share assumptions or business updates, and Faisal would turn them into a clean, professional financial model, ready to present to investors. Often, it only took a few hours. 

When LaderaAI’s go-to-market strategy shifted, updating the entire revenue forecast didn’t take days or weeks—it took about an hour.

Forecastr didn’t just provide a modeling tool; it gave Dave a finance professional on his team who helped him pressure-test assumptions, compare growth paths, and ultimately land on a strategy that felt both ambitious and realistic. “We started with the typical VC model—$100M in five years. Then we reassessed. We built a seed-strapped scenario: $35M in five years, cash flow positive. That’s the one I can stand behind.”

With Faisal’s support, Dave created a model he could confidently share with investors. He walked them through key metrics, fielded follow-up questions with ease, and presented a financial narrative that felt clear, structured, and credible. That level of preparedness stood out, especially for a company still in its early stages.

Just as importantly, Forecastr made it easy to switch between different growth scenarios—whether Dave was showing an aggressive scale-up or a more conservative, resource-efficient plan. That adaptability helped him tailor his pitch depending on the audience. “I shared the model with an investor just last week. It was visualized, structured, and easy to explain. That makes a huge difference.”