The Kimberly Cloud Show LLC featuring Dave Saunders

Dave Saunders is an early internet pioneer who helped build the infrastructure that connected the world online. He was part of the startup that developed the first commercial internet software for Macs and PCs, served as product line manager for the company that built the access concentrators connecting people to dial-up internet worldwide, and managed the team at Lucent Bell Labs that created the first commercial Wi-Fi hotspot.

Over the next three decades, Dave brought 40+ products to market across dramatically different industries: software, hardware, early AI technology, SaaS platforms, medical devices, surgical robotics, and green tech. He co-founded Galen Robotics, where he raised $25.5M in Series A funding and secured FDA De Novo clearance for the world's first cooperatively controlled microsurgical robotic assistant. He built the company from concept to clinical trials, managing an IP portfolio of 35 granted patents and establishing partnerships with six Fortune 500 medical technology companies.

Dave has also led multiple startup turnarounds and restarts as an outside consultant, helping stalled companies unstick themselves through better systems, clearer numbers, and smarter execution. His experience spans technology transfer, regulatory strategy (FDA 510(k) and De Novo pathways), product commercialization, and operational infrastructure building.

After spending a decade working in Silicon Valley's startup ecosystem, Dave rejected the unicorn mythology and hustle culture that burns out founders. He now helps bootstrap-first entrepreneurs, stalled founders, and corporate refugees build sustainable, revenue-generating businesses without the hype.

Through his book "Founders Who Finish," his premium newsletter "The Build," and strategic consulting, Dave teaches founders to focus on three numbers (revenue, costs, runway), eliminate bottlenecks, and build companies that work without them. His positioning is direct: "I help founders build real businesses without the burnout or the bullshit."

He lives in Baltimore with his family and continues to work with early-stage surgical robotics and green tech companies.