Founder Spotlight: Max Buchan

Valarian is a London-based enterprise software company that allows organisations to make the communication tools they already use compliant with data sovereignty, protection and privacy laws across jurisdictions worldwide. Valarian’s resilient, scalable platform can be deployed into any environment and easily integrates with existing business collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams and WhatsApp, harmonising compliance, security and efficiency.

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How did you get interested in the cyber sector initially?

In 2017, I joined a tiny fintech startup, where I was the first employee, reporting straight to the co-founder and CEO. Watching this startup explode from zero to $50 million+ revenue in just 18 months with no external funding and no VC money really impacted my outlook.

This wild ride showed me the crazy potential of hitting a sweet spot with the right business at the right time; and I knew my next move had to be me taking the lead. Moreover, because that first opportunity was at a fintech company, I had first-hand experience with how difficult it can be to communicate with your colleagues in highly regulated environments. How do compliance teams capture and secure the conversations their colleagues have with clients; and how do multinational companies collaborate with people in challenging geographies?

We started Valarian (originally called Worldr) thinking we'd solve cross-border communication headaches with a secure messenger. But then reality hit: people love their usual platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and WhatsApp, and convincing companies to switch gears would be close to impossible.

So, we made a significant pivot. Instead of building a whole new platform, we created a game-changing compliance and data protection layer. Now, organisations can safeguard their data and follow data sovereignty laws worldwide while continuing to use their favourite collaboration tools. It's like giving them the best of both worlds.

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It’s great to see Josh McLaughlin join your team who I worked for when he was at Palantir!

I’m thrilled that Josh McLaughlin has come onboard as Chief Operating Officer. I’m excited to see how his experience and vision will help Valarian achieve the next level in our growth. He’s already come in and had a ton of impact – particularly by building out his own team of critical hires across marketing, legal, people ops, and finance. I also want to give a big shout-out to you, Will, for making the introduction to Josh happen. The most helpful and impactful investors do more than allocate funds: they also make the key introductions that help the company grow, both internally and commercially. Let's be real — once the investment deal is sealed, the journey is just beginning; and your hands-on support has been game-changing.

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As you reflect on your fundraising activities, what do you look for most in an investor?

We're genuinely fortunate to be backed by a fantastic group of investors and advisors. Most of these folks aren't just writing checks and calling it a day; they're in the trenches with us, sharing their wisdom and expertise and continually pushing us forward. What sets them apart is their commitment to staying engaged and actively supporting Valarian every step of the way.

I really appreciate investors who are out there tapping into their networks to help us bring in top-notch talent and introduce us to potential customers who can truly benefit from our product.  

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How have Valarian’s target markets grown or changed since you founded the company?  

When we kicked things off, our target market felt a bit like the Wild West — vast and unpredictable-  as such we've done a lot of in-depth, rigorous exploration and fine tuning to land on the best application for our technology. And once we narrowed in on that fit-  enabling digital sovereignty for allied countries – we executed an entire rebrand to reflect our more refined positioning. We wanted to tell our story compellingly while incorporating marketing intelligence and feedback from prospective customers. Indeed, once we transitioned to digital sovereignty, we found ourselves helping organisations in all sorts of industries eliminate regional silos and communicate on their favourite platforms while ensuring compliance with data jurisdiction laws.

And the best thing is that the more we grow, the more our playbook keeps expanding, and the more ways we find to make a real impact.  

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How do you see your product giving an edge to allied National Security?

It’s simple: Valarian delivers a resilient communication infrastructure with an emphasis on autonomy, trust, and interoperability.

More specifically, our mission is all about providing an isolated, encrypted channel for communication, which ensures secure and confidential data flow for sensitive information exchange in even the most austere environments. As you well know, in the world of national security, secure and fast information sharing is mission-critical. We're talking about letting agencies and private players communicate while preventing interference from malicious actors.

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Find out more: www.valarian.com