Welcome back to The SaaS CFO Podcast! In this episode, we're excited to welcome Nicolas Christiaen, CEO and co-founder of Donna, the AI assistant revolutionizing the lives of field sales teams. Ben Murray sits down with Nicolas Christiaen (introduced as Nicolas in the episode) to dive into Donna's journey from inception in late 2023 to its rapid growth and latest $5 million seed round. You'll hear how Donna leverages AI to boost sales rep productivity, seamlessly integrates with CRMs, and is gaining traction across verticals like medical devices, CPG, manufacturing, and insurance. 

Nicolas Christiaen reveals their data-driven approach to finding ideal customer segments, lessons learned from fast-paced fundraising, and why partnerships with global consulting firms like Deloitte and PwC are fueling their go-to-market strategy. If you’re keen to learn about what’s driving growth for AI-powered SaaS, how to balance vertical focus, and why healthy SaaS margins are still possible with AI, this conversation is packed with insights you won’t want to miss. Tune in to find out how Donna is scaling up in 2026 and what’s next for this ambitious SaaS startup! 

Show Notes: 

00:00 "Sales, Efficiency, and Acquisition" 

05:05 "Adapting AI for Industry Needs" 

06:45 "24/7 AI Assistant Support" 

10:14 "Global Launch Leads to Growth" 

14:59 "Early Success with Partners" 

19:18 "Outbound Strategy with Multi-Channel Approach" 

22:08 AI Costs Will Decrease Over Time 

23:50 AI Companies Will Streamline Operations 

Links: 

Nicolas Christiaen’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolaschristiaen/ 

Donna’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/donna-by-dealside 

Donna’s Website: https://www.askdonna.com/ 

To learn more about Ben check out the links below: 

Subscribe to Ben’s daily metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe 

Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page 

SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ 

Join Ben’s SaaS community here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/offers/ivNjwYDx/checkout 

Follow Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benrmurray