VC10X
Founder10x - From $500M Exit to Reinventing Software - Shay Levi, Co-Founder & CEO, Unframe
VC10X
•November 11, 2025•41 min
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VC10X•Nov 11, 2025
Why It Matters
Unframe’s outcome‑based pricing and AI‑driven speed could disrupt the $500 billion enterprise software market, forcing incumbents to rethink value delivery models. Investors see the model as a scalable, capital‑efficient play on custom software demand.
Key Takeaways
- •Unframe builds custom software free, payment upon impact.
- •AI accelerates development to days, not months.
- •$50M funding backs Unframe's stealth launch.
- •Pricing aligns incentives, customers pay only for results.
- •Founder leverages $500M exit experience for new venture.
Pulse Analysis
Serial entrepreneurship is reshaping the software landscape, and Shay Levi’s latest venture exemplifies this trend. After steering Noname Security to a $500 million acquisition by Akamai, Levi identified a persistent pain point: enterprises still endure lengthy, costly custom‑software projects. Unframe’s proposition—delivering a working solution at no upfront cost and charging only upon verified impact—directly addresses this friction, offering a compelling risk‑reversal that aligns provider incentives with client outcomes. This model taps into a growing appetite among CEOs for predictable spend and measurable ROI.
The engine behind Unframe’s promise is a sophisticated AI stack that automates large portions of the development workflow. By integrating large‑language models, code generation tools, and rapid prototyping frameworks, the platform can produce functional applications in days rather than months. This acceleration not only reduces time‑to‑value but also lowers labor overhead, allowing Unframe to maintain a lean cost structure while still delivering enterprise‑grade quality. The AI‑first approach also creates a defensible moat: proprietary prompts, data pipelines, and a modular building‑block architecture make it difficult for competitors to replicate the speed and cost advantages.
Backed by a $50 million Series A round, Unframe is poised to challenge traditional software consultancies and low‑code vendors. Its early go‑to‑market strategy focuses on high‑impact use cases where rapid delivery and outcome‑based billing are most persuasive, such as internal tooling and customer‑facing MVPs. If the model scales, it could catalyze a broader shift toward outcome‑centric software contracts, prompting larger players to adopt similar pricing structures or invest in AI‑driven development platforms. For investors and industry watchers, Unframe represents a test case for how AI can fundamentally alter the economics of custom software creation.
Episode Description
After selling your company for half a billion dollars, what do you do next? Our guest, Shay Levi, decided to start all over again with an even more ambitious mission.
Shay previously co-founded the API security giant Noname Security, which was acquired by Akamai for a staggering $500 million.
Now, he's back with Unframe, a company taking on the entire software industry with a radical promise: they'll build your custom software for free, and you only pay if it delivers a real impact.
Today, Shay walks us through his incredible journey, the contrarian thinking behind his new venture, and how Unframe is using AI to build working solutions in just a matter of days.
⭐ Sponsored by Podcast10x - Podcasting agency for VCs - https://podcast10x.com
VC10X website - https://VC10X.com/
Unframe website - https://unframe.ai
Shay Levi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaylevi2
🎙️ Hosted by Prashant Choubey
Follow Prashant on X - https://x.com/ChoubeySahab
Follow Prashant on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/choubeysahab
Timestamps:
(00:00) - Introduction to Unframe's business model and value proposition
(01:07) - Shay Levy's background and Noname Security's $500M exit
(02:52) - Founding story of Noname Security
(04:51) - Difficult moments and challenges during the Noname journey
(07:05) - Learning from failures and improving processes
(08:22) - Decision to start Unframe after successful exit
(11:38) - How Unframe's business model works in practice
(14:44) - Pricing structure and customer alignment
(17:14) - Managing client expectations and feature requests
(19:24) - Using AI tools for building solutions quickly
(21:45) - AI models and developer tools used at Unframe
(22:34) - Team structure for building solutions
(23:45) - Building blocks approach and platform architecture
(24:00) - Early days GTM strategy and customer acquisition
(25:39) - Emerging from stealth with $50M funding
(27:54) - Fundraising experience and investor reactions
(30:41) - Positioning Unframe as a foundational platform
(32:21) - Product-market fit indicators for Unframe
(34:06) - Building a moat and competitive advantages
(37:40) - Lessons learned from Noname Security
(38:40) - Biggest learning as a founder: the importance of hard work
(41:24) - Closing remarks
For sponsorship or guest appearance requests, write to prashantchoubey3@gmail.com
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