Snowflake, No such ventures & Builders - Brutal truths & takeaways; CTO Breakfast - Recap
CTO
1 min
May 12, 2025
We gathered a sharp group of AI SaaS CTOs at Snowflake’s Customer Experience Center, co-hosted with our partners No Such Ventures and Snowflake, to dig into the messy, fast-moving reality of building AI products in 2025.

Intro
Recap
Business idea scope
Forget the slide decks. This was real talk: scaling under pressure, shipping with regulation breathing down your neck, and figuring out where humans still fit in the loop.
The brutal truths
Compliance kills momentum—unless you build with it from day one. Waiting until post-launch? You're already behind.
CTOs are culture architects. Leadership, coaching, team dynamics, none of it’s optional anymore.
AI strategy beats AI hype. It’s not about stacking LLMs, it’s about smart trade-offs: speed vs. accuracy, general vs. specialized, off-the-shelf vs. built-for-purpose.
Fundraising still sucks. Even with AI heat, investors want clarity, conviction, and CTOs who can talk roadmap and risk.
𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝘁:
Building AI products & teams
A hands-on deep dive into what it really takes to scale AI-tooling, team structure, and technical decisions that compound. (Led by Achilleas Buisman)
CTO coaching x Compliance reality check
The dual challenge of leading through change and staying legally sane. Think leadership therapy meets AI Act 101. (Led by Tatiana Petrache)
CTO open discussion: Real-world challenges
No filters. Just CTOs unpacking what’s actually hard right now, from scaling infra to hiring people who get it. (Moderated by Niels ter Keurs)
Big thanks to everyone who showed up, spoke up, and kept it real. These conversations don’t just move ideas forward, they sharpen our instincts as builders. 🖖
And a special shoutout to Snowflake and No Such Ventures for helping make the magic happen.

OUR UNIVERSE
BUILD WITH US
Backing bold founders from day zero — pairing ambition with deep technical leverage, operational firepower to create category-defining companies.
CTO NETWORK
Curated Network for Europe’s to builders — from AI to deep tech. Private events, shared signals, and deep conversations for those who are in it.
OUR UNIVERSE
BUILD WITH US
Backing bold founders from day zero — pairing ambition with deep technical leverage, operational firepower to create category-defining companies.
CTO NETWORK
Curated Network for Europe’s to builders — from AI to deep tech. Private events, shared signals, and deep conversations for those who are in it.
Techno optimist?
Join our CTO NETWORK.
Leverage your deep expertise to craft breakthrough magical solutions.
Got a Venture idea?
Pitch it at Builders.
Are you a future CTO or CEO, sitting on a valuable business proposition for the future of Work and AI? We are here to listen and give the support you need to make it happen.
Join next Investor house event
Builders Investor House brings together operator angel investors involved in the venture studio space.
Side reads

September 29, 2025
Builders, AWS, Borski Fund & DevRev – Coffee, croissants & controversy; CTO Network Recap
We brought together CTOs and technical leaders to dive into the future of AI in the enterprise. From DevRev’s Ahmed Bashir laying out hard truths about adoption, to roundtables that sparked heated debate on AI security and governance, the conversation was anything but polite.

September 22, 2025
AI-native or nothing
We’re backing DevRev because context, not dashboards, wins. For your team, that means permission-aware insights, aligned decisions, and measurable speed.
.webp)
August 27, 2025
5 Questions with Walter Heck, Co-Founder of Helixiora
We spoke with Walter Heck, co-founder of Helixiora, as part of the Builders CTO Network - covering the tools, mindset shifts, and hard-earned lessons that have shaped his 20-year journey from builder to leader.