Gabriella DeFlorio

Y’all gotta know about Gabriella DeFlorio, this girl’s the real deal. She’s a total badass in the startup world, and her story? Holy shit, it’s inspiring. So she’s the CEO and Co-Founder of Prelay, this sick collaborative sales platform that’s been crushing it. She jumped into YC W20, and no surprise, she came out swinging, raising millions and pulling in top advisors from giants like Google Cloud, Dropbox, and Box. That’s not easy, man. It’s a clear sign she knows her shit when it comes to go-to-market strategies and building killer teams early on.

Before all that, she was at Truework, a Sequoia-backed company, and Fountain, the YC W15 alum. Basically, she’s been around the block and learned what it takes to scale startups fast. But what’s super interesting is her background outside of tech, she went to the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and was also a Division 1 cross country and track athlete. She was even an Olympic Trials hopeful, which is nuts considering she went through seven leg surgeries. That takes crazy persistence and grit, not just in sports, but in life and business too.

Gabriella’s leadership style? She’s all about recruiting top-tier technical talent and building aligned, high-performing teams from the ground up. She’s got this knack for rallying people and keeping everyone on the same page, even when the team is remote or dispersed. That’s a huge deal in today’s startup scene, and she’s proven she can do it.

Honestly, her process tells a bigger story, she’s someone who doesn’t back down, no matter what. Whether it’s pushing through injuries that would make most give up, or jumping into YC to turn her vision into reality, she’s all about that hustle. Her experience shows that starting something big isn’t just about having a good idea, it’s about relentless execution, recruiting the right people, and being willing to get your hands dirty.

In short, Gabriella’s the kind of founder you want to watch. She’s built a career on resilience, smarts, and a no-bullshit attitude. She’s shaping the future of sales tech, and honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s just getting started. That’s why she’s a total big change.