From military logistics to Startup Battlefield 2025 champion with Glīd founder, Kevin Damoa
Build ModeShow Notes
Glīd CEO and founder Kevin Damoa shares what it takes to win Startup Battlefield 2025 and build a company solving real infrastructure problems. Fresh off his victory, De reveals how a veteran's perspective on logistics led to an autonomous solution bridging congested roads and underutilized rail. Plus, he shares how mindfulness, mission-driven culture, and $70M in early customer commitments positioned Glīd for success.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
01:13 What Glīd does: Autonomous transloading explained
02:40 From military logistics to founding Glīd
04:05 Moving containers: The versatility of TEUs
04:47 $70M in commitments and five railroad partnerships
05:01 Why Glīd launched three products at once
08:47 The Startup Battlefield experience and preparation
12:15 Pitching on stage: Nerves, preparation, and execution
15:32 The camaraderie among Startup Battlefield competitors
19:47 Veteran founders and mission-driven companies
25:01 Post-win momentum: Customers, investors, and talent
27:15 Hiring on vibes: Glīd's culture of God, family, self, and commitment
28:25 Kevin's advice: Meditate, don't freak out
29:00 Tips for aspiring Startup Battlefield applicants
New episodes of Build Mode drop every Thursday. Isabelle Johannessen is our host. Build Mode is produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience Development is led by Morgan Little. And a special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.
More from Build Mode
Venture capital is more concentrated than ever, making it increasingly difficult for early-stage founders to land their first check. So what does it actually take to stand out to investors?
For years, crowdfunding had a reputation as the place founders went when they couldn’t raise venture capital. Kickstarter CEO Everette Taylor thinks founders should look at it very differently.
Ashley Tyrner-Dolce spent more than a decade building FarmboxRx without taking a single dollar of venture capital and ultimately exited the company while still owning the majority of it.
Building flying taxis takes billions of dollars. So instead of relying on traditional venture rounds, Archer Aviation went public just a few years after it was founded.
Robotics is having an AI boom, but don’t expect it to have a ChatGPT moment.