MongoDB: The Database Platform

This episode is brought to you by:

Tegus. Much of the foundational prep for these episodes starts with research on the Tegus platform. With Tegus, you can learn everything you’d want to know about a company in an on-demand digital platform. Investors share their expert calls, allowing others to instantly access more than 20,000 calls on Coinbase, Hinge Health, Farfetch, or almost any company of interest. All you have to do is log in. If you're ready to go deeper on any company and you appreciate the value of primary research, head to tegus.co/breakdowns for a free trial.

MIT Investment Management Company. As the endowment office of MIT, MITIMCo searches for investment firms that are focused on achieving exceptional long-term investment returns. MITIMCo's goal is to create long-term relationships. They will partner with firms as early as Day 1 and do not ask for general partner economics in return. Visit www.mitimco.org to learn more about their unconventional emerging manager approach, including examples of managers they have backed.

[00:03:51] - [First question] - What MongoDB is, what they do, and their scale today

[00:05:03] - The functions of a database and why they’re important

[00:07:37] - The unmet market need that led to founding MongoDB and the history of the space leading up to today

[00:11:13] - What big data means and how it applies to MongoDB

[00:12:42] - Things that would lead customers of Oracle to leave them for MongoDB

[00:13:42] - The technology stack behind a company like weather.com

[00:14:52] - Types of companies and services that couldn’t exist without MongoDB

[00:16:40] - State of the database marketplace today and where they fit into it

[00:17:51] - How big the new market of big data is and current competitors

[00:19:22] - What makes MongoDB so distinct and why they’re winning

[00:21:34] - The most important metrics and numbers for the business

[00:23:28] - Gross margins and why they spend so much on sales and marketing

[00:24:55] - How investors can justify a company spending a lot on marketing

[00:26:19] - The P&L and unit economics of the business

[00:26:47] - How a customer grows after they’ve been acquired

[00:27:21] - Distinctively clever ways that MongoDB spends and uses their resources

[00:29:26] - Different types of open source models and how they use it to their advantage

[00:31:22] - One thing MongoDB does exceptionally well and something they could improve

[00:34:19] - What MongoDB has managed to get so right compared to their competitors

[00:36:04] - Their unique go-to-market strategy and why it worked

[00:37:15] - The things that would have to go right for MongoDB to compound over a decade

[00:39:00] - Market factors that may impact their future growth and potential M&A opportunities

[00:40:27] - Biggest risks that may affect MongoDB’s growth trajectory over the next few years

[00:41:01] - What allows them to exist in a world dominated by Google and Microsoft

[00:42:34] - Lessons for builders and investors when studying MongoDB’s story

[00:44:17] - Why changing their CEO was necessary and helped the company recover and thrive