Building the Foundation
How having less brings out more. The currency of belief. Selling the PlayStation to file a patent, building in secret next to a magazine, and the birth of a bigger dream.
The book
100
The audio startup that turned the volume all the way up.
PublisherSXSW Books, an imprint of Advantage Media Group
HardcoverISBN 979-8-90299-005-5 · US $29.99
eBookISBN 979-8-90299-006-2
Release2026
What if the constraints holding you back were actually the forces propelling you forward?
I was a twenty-something from urban Amsterdam with no investors, no industry connections, and no budget when my brother and I invented a speaker technology that would catch the attention of the biggest names in audio. Six years later, Sonos acquired our company for $100 million.
100 is the story behind that journey. From selling flowers picked off municipal fences to demoing prototypes for global executives — how scarcity became our greatest advantage, and what it actually takes to turn an impossible idea into an unstoppable company.
Part startup memoir, part practical guide for anyone chasing a dream they can't let go of: negotiating from nothing, surviving rejection, protecting your ideas, and holding your ground. If you've ever believed you have something worth building, this book will show you how to go all the way up.
"Not just how to succeed through scarcity, but how to succeed because of it."— From the introduction
Inside the book
Three parts. One volume knob.
Survival Mode
Excitement versus need. Negotiating from nothing. Melting prototypes, collection letters, a binding term sheet signed with no money in the bank — and the composure to hold it all together.
The Acquisition
Opportunities in disguise. Momentum: setting up something inevitable. Best of CES, the road trip to Santa Barbara, and a $100 million deal signed at the notary — paid in cash.