Days Of Futures Passed

A podcast with guests who share the grand visions of the future from history and science fiction that inspired them as children.

Host

Theo Priestley

Keynote speaker, fractional CxO, advisor, startup mentor, storyteller, technology evangelist, author, futurist, entrepreneur, gamer, cat slave, sci-fi aficionado.
 
For all speaker enquiries please visit: https://www.theopriestley.com

Keynote Speaker, Fractional CxO

HackerNoon

Winner - Most Read Stories of 2023
Nominated - Contributor of the Year 2022
Nominated - Tech Storyteller of the Year 2022
Nominated - Contributor of the Year 2021

Contributing Writer

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

A comprehensive history of tomorrow, exploring groundbreaking topics including Virtual Reality, AI, Privacy, Education, Economics and the Future of Work.

"The more people that read this, the better the quality of debate and planning going forward. If you have any interest in the shape of the future then this is a must-read!"
 
"This book is a fantastic collation of ideas, insights and analysis on what the future holds. It will challenge you and make you think about how your actions impact the future."

Order the book - now available through Bloomsbury directly, Amazon, Target, Waterstones, and many other international booksellers.

Author - The Future Starts Now

Metanomic

Raised venture capital to build a web3 and video game real-time analytics platform using AI. Led a fully remote, international team to deliver two products in rapid succession (one MVP, one full v1.0), built the client and partner pipeline before handing over to Sales.

Acquired in 2023.

FutureOn

Driving marketing, branding and PR for a unique cloud-based real-time visualization and collaboration platform – FieldTwin – helping Integrated Energy Companies make smarter and faster decisions throughout the lifecycle of a project.

Vice President Marketing

We Didn't Start The Fire

A 13 episode podcast series that covered a multitude of business and technology trends leaving no stone unturned.

CSignum

Ownership of marketing, branding and PR for an offshore engineering company that manufactures patented wireless and cable-free data communications systems for the energy, environmental, transportation and aquaculture sectors.

Rebranded from WFS Technologies following a management buyout.

RawShark Studios

Bootstrapped game design studio working on web3 game projects.

Founder/ Head Of Studio

HTC Vive

Startup Mentor

Please note I no longer use LinkedIn on a regular basis. 
Visit theopriestley.com for contact details, or medium.com/@theo for articles.

You have the metrics. Don't let a broken narrative kill your Series A fundraising.

You've hit $1M+ ARR. You have traction. You're ready to scale.

But when you bring a "Seed Mindset" into a Series A boardroom, you hit a wall.

Seed investors bought your potential. Series A investors are buying your machine.

If you walk in pitching features, technology, and "user love," you get categorized as a nice small business - not a venture-scale asset. This is why founders with great metrics still get flat rounds or polite pass emails from Tier-1 firms.

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THE PROBLEM: The Operator's Curse

As a technical founder, you're too close to the product to see the asset. You're explaining how it works. The VC is trying to figure out how it monopolizes.

That gap between your metrics and your narrative? That's what's costing you valuation.

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HOW I HELP

I built the DX Protocol - a clinical diagnostic that measures Series A readiness across seven dimensions. The same dimensions investors actually evaluate, whether they articulate them or not.

Your DX Score tells you exactly where you stand - and what's blocking your round.

I'm not a coach. I don't do "pitch practice." I don't review slides.

I diagnose the structural positioning underneath your pitch. The stuff you can't see from inside the business.

30 years. Founded 12 ventures. 7 exits. $75M+ raised. I've seen every failure pattern. I know what makes investors say yes.

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THE DX SCORE DIAGNOSTIC

A comprehensive fundability assessment:
→ Pre-diagnostic questionnaire and materials review
→ 2-hour clinical deep-dive across all seven dimensions
→ 25-35 page DX Report with your score and prescription
→ 45-minute report review call

Investment: $3,500

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WHO THIS IS FOR:
✅ Technical founders with $1M - $10M ARR
✅ Teams preparing for Series A (or late Seed extension)
✅ Founders who want precision, not cheerleading

WHO THIS IS NOT FOR:
❌ Pre-revenue or pre-product
❌ Founders looking for investor intros
❌ Anyone who wants a pitch deck review

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NEXT STEP

If you're about to raise - or currently stalling - don't guess. Get your DX Score.

Book a free 30-minute triage call. I’ll ask a few questions to see if you’re a fit - and give you at least one insight about what might be blocking your round, whether we work together or not.


Mash B.

When an investor says “I don’t see the path to $100M” they’re not asking for a bigger TAM slide.

They’re telling you they can’t see how your wedge earns the right to expand.

Your market size is not the problem but your expansion logic is.

This is happening in that moment:

The investor looked at your product and saw a solid solution to a real problem with good metrics and real customers paying real money. There are perhaps even some logos that should make them lean in.

Then they ran the mental math.

And they couldn’t connect how you go from “great tool for X” to “platform that owns the category.”

So they asked for what feels objective - a bigger market, more research, fancier charts.

But that’s not the fix.

The fix is showing why solving problem A gives you permission to solve problem B. Then C. Then D. It’s not about how big the market is but rather about why customers will let you grow with them.

I’ve helped founders raise over $75M and this is one of the patterns I see constantly. Founders with real traction getting passed on because their growth story has a gap in the middle.

The beginning works and the end state sounds exciting. But the bridge between them is invisible.

And investors won’t build that bridge for you. That’s your job.

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If you keep hearing some version of “don’t see the path” - there’s a reason. I find it in 90 minutes.

DM me if you want to know what’s actually blocking your raise.

Mash Bonigala

Series A Deal Auditor | Red Teaming Technical Founders ($1M - $10M ARR). Ex-Founder | 12 Ventures | $75M Raised

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Theo Priestley

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The Battle

Theo Priestley

Mash B.

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Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Mash B.'s LinkedIn Performance

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