Initiatives

Putting the Annual ‘25 Jigsaw Together

Time changes perspectives. In 2024, I was brought on as a consultant to work on SaaSBoomi’s annual event on a two-month trial period. It was chaotic, but strangely enough, there was order and music. The commitment of volunteers, usually founders at rapidly scaling companies, was unparalleled. Everyone pitched in and tried to generate value for all the attendees. 

From the outside, it looked like a large family coming together. This camaraderie inspired me to take the plunge and join SaaSBoomi. A year on, the family analogy isn’t far from the truth. The Annual is often described as the big fat Indian SaaS wedding, and it is very much that. Even now, the energy of the volunteers is awe-inspiring. 

But the more time I spent, the more I realised that SaaSBoomi’s elemental construction differed from others. Events are hosted for the benefit of the founders, to empower them, and to equip them with knowledge and a support network. The speakers aren’t selected based on the sponsors but on their knowledge and expertise.

For me, the task was cut out. I had to play a role in growing our flagship event to be even larger. I spent a lot of time on the word larger. In a country like ours, large is often interpreted as more people, space, and noise. However, I interpret it as impact and the prospect of offering a more profound delivery of insight and opportunities related to networking.

With that in mind, we’ve curated this Annual for founders and the SaaS community to use as a springboard to explore beyond the horizon. We are on the brink of a significant transformation that will impact humanity’s future. A new age is emerging, where founders who effectively combine artificial intelligence, industry knowledge, software advancements, and a focus on human-centred services will establish leading and thriving enterprises.

However, I want to address a core issue. From numerous conversations with early-stage founders, we understand that they’re apprehensive about the looming threat of AI. It threatens to upend business models and technology. Founders fear that the train may have left the station, and that’s the mindset we want to change. While the train is pulling out, we believe that our event can allow founders to catch up and overtake this train by using the SaaSBoomi Annual as their vehicle. 

With this in mind, this time around, we’ve curated the Annual as a two-and-a-half-day event. We want to help founders:

  • Prepare for the SaaS to AI Pivot: Highlight how forward-thinking companies—big and small—are navigating the shift from traditional SaaS products to AI-powered offerings and processes.
  • Embrace AI Product & Tech: Move beyond the AI hype to showcase the real-world engineering and product design efforts driving innovative, AI-powered solutions.
  • Tap Vertical AI Opportunities: Explore real-world challenges and opportunities in sectors like manufacturing, energy, and life sciences. Foster collaboration between SaaS/AI founders and leaders from industrial sectors to solve these challenges.
  • Sustain Growth for Scaled Startups: Create an exclusive forum for established founders to exchange insights, learn from one another’s journeys, and craft forward-looking strategies to stay ahead in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
  • Build Bridges: Offer founders the opportunity to connect with VCs and industry leaders, forge strategic partnerships, explore funding avenues, and gain valuable industry insights.

We believe founders need all the help they can get, so in addition to access to volunteers who are scaled founders and senior operators at SaaS companies or even VCs, we have also added leaders from ITES companies, product and engineering leaders who have built products and live and breathe innovation and a new cohort we call friends of SaaS—people who work closely with technology companies and have deep insight into the trends affecting our industry. The idea is to gain knowledge from non-traditional sources. 

So, this is my invitation to the founders. This is your opportunity to find direction, insight, and invaluable connections. We’re all at a crossroads; let’s chart a course together. 

Here you’ll find more information about our event. 

Here is where you can sign up. 

And here is a deep dive into how our industry is changing. 

I hope to see you all soon! 🙂

About the author

Keerthi Madhu

COO, SaaSBoomi