Stadium this week Deck Teardown comes to you from the PCB-laden confines of CES in Las Vegas. Today, we’re looking at a slide deck offered by a video analytics company Cortex Used to raise $10 million in seed round. Qortex uses AI to help brands, media companies and creators identify the right moments in a video to insert an ad and drive engagement, so this is going to be fun.
So, without further commercial interruptions or preamble, let’s get to it.
We’re looking for more unique presentations, so if you want to submit your own, here’s how.
Slides in this surface
Qortex has shared its entire 13-slide deck, redacting only its customer list.
As you can see from the list below, the set is missing a fair number of slides that you would expect to find in a fully completed set. There are no “Ask” or “Use Funds” slides, no problem statement, no go-to-market strategy, no business model or pricing slide, among other things. To be honest, I’m a little surprised that the company was able to raise money at all through this presentation, but the fact that it managed to raise $10 million is a good reminder that the presentation is only one piece of the puzzle. The conversations you have and the collateral you share outside of the group itself are part of the fundraising process.
The slide surface consists of:
- Slide cover
- Mission statement
- Team segment
- Market size segment
- Interslide: “Focus on the Media Sector”
- Solution slide
- Product segment
- Traction chip
- Future plans slip
- Advisor segment
- How does the chip work?
- Access to the connected TV space segment
- Customers
Three things she loves
Besides the above-mentioned omissions, the Qortex lineup has some weak chipsets as well. I had to dig deep to find things I really liked or liked in this collection, but I found some slides worth celebrating:
Excellent team of advisors
A big part of the fundraising process involves answering questions about cases and scenarios, and even the most experienced founders can feel a little stuck. That’s where it helps to have an extraordinary list of resources you can draw on — and your board, whether it’s an advisory board or a board of directors — is a good group of people you can keep in your back pocket.
Qortex has certainly put together an impressive collection here:
[Slide 10] That’s how the advisory board works! Image credits: Cortex
Qortex is strategic by highlighting the media expertise on its board, particularly the former head of ABC Television and ABC Studios. It’s not just about showing off the industry giant’s support; It’s a clear sign that Qortex has access to invaluable insights and strategic guidance.
This list appears prominently on Slide 10, and underscores the company’s skill at fostering high-level confidence in its vision. This advisory board also includes the minds behind Universal Sports Network and other seasoned startup advisors, making for a real brain trust.
In fact, it can be a powerful competitive advantage to be able to say: “I have access to a great group of people who have done this before, and I have a big Rolodex of connecting us with the right people.”
The biggest takeaway from this slide is that you don’t have to do it all yourself. Fill in the gaps in your knowledge and experience with the board, and rely on it to tell the right stories.
Show, don’t tell
![](https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/pdt-79-10-million-seed-qortex-slide-6-of-13.png)
[Slide 6] Showing your product in action makes for powerful storytelling. Image credits: Cortex
Qortex proves it knows how to get a story across by quietly leveraging the power of video to showcase its cutting-edge product. It’s a masterstroke in visual storytelling, showcasing not once, but three times, the capabilities of its video analytics technology.
Slide 6 contains a video that provides a real-time glimpse into how the company recognizes audience engagement and designs marketing strategies accordingly. Slide 7 raises expectations with another video, this time demonstrating the seamless integration of ads into the user experience. Slide 12 features another video that reinforces Qortex’s commitment to revolutionizing the intersection of technology and marketing.
Is it a little too much? Maybe, but it effectively answers many questions about how well the product works and what use cases it addresses.
Rising tide. . .
![](https://techcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/pdt-79-10-million-seed-qortex-slide-4-of-13.png)
[Slide 4] No one wants to invest in shrinking markets, so Qortex has done a good job of showing that its market is growing. Image credits: Cortex
Qortex does a good job of showing that the global video analytics market is growing and can be profitable. This is important: All VCs want to see that the startup is operating in a space full of opportunities.
It’s unfortunate that the company is only telling part of the story here. Yes, the market is growing, but Qortex is ignoring some important parts: how much of that market it can expect to capture, and what the company’s growth trajectory could look like.
In the remainder of this analysis, we’ll look at three things Qortex could have improved or done differently, along with their full presentation!
Three things that could be improved
Above, you noticed the conspicuous absence of several key slides that investors typically want to see in a presentation. But with this collection, it’s not just about what’s missing; The current chipsets are in dire need of improvement as well. Let’s take a look at how Qortex has revamped some of these chipsets to take their offering to the next level.