From Engineer to Storyteller: Building Trust in Cybersecurity Products

🔐 What does it take to build trust in a product users hope they never have to use? In this episode of They Said, host Lihong Hicken sits down with Ashish Malpani — Head of Product & Alliance Marketing at Corelight — a rare blend of cryptography patent holder, published novelist, and cybersecurity PMM. Ashish shares how he went from applications engineer → product management → product marketing, and why big-picture storytelling is the secret weapon in enterprise tech. They dive deep into the future of AI-powered user feedback, the challenge of building B2B products users actually trust, and why getting candid customer truth is harder than it looks. 💡 What you'll learn: Why cybersecurity marketing has been destroying customer trust for years How to collect meaningful B2B product feedback at AI speed The difference between knowing what users do vs. why they do it When AI interviewers are better than humans (the data will surprise you) Why agentic systems aren't about saving money — they're about spending time on what matters ⏱️ Timestamps: 00:00 – Welcome & Ashish's background: engineer, novelist, cybersecurity PMM 01:49 – Why cybersecurity vendors have eroded user trust 03:11 – The 300-million record breach at Progress (MOVEit) 06:15 – How to build feedback into your product, not bolt it on 11:15 – The skill gap, AI mandate & focusing on high-risk threats 14:23 – Corelight's UX challenge: too much data, too complex 19:26 – Designing for both power users and novices 20:53 – AI's role in gathering & analyzing qualitative feedback 25:18 – Why B2B usability testing is a black box 28:00 – Should AI interview your customers? (Honest take) 33:13 – 75% of people prefer AI interviews — here's why 38:27 – Rapid fire: most honest feedback channels right now 42:53 – The magical wand: frictionless, automated customer truth 46:53 – AI agents: it's not about saving money 48:21 – The most fulfilling part of the job: big-picture storytelling 🌐 Visit They Said: https://theysaid.io If you found value in this episode, *like, subscribe, and leave a comment below — we'd love to hear how your team collects user truth!* 👇

What is UX Stories Podcast?

If you want to understand your customers more deeply and unlock growth that doesn't rely on guesswork, this series is for you. Founders, operators, and product leaders tune in to learn how real conversations shape better products, better decisions, and better outcomes.

In each episode of UX Stories Podcast, you'll explore how fast-growing teams uncover meaningful insights using smarter feedback loops and authentic user conversations. Inspired by the approach behind TheySaid, this show digs into why traditional surveys fall short and how modern teams gather richer, more actionable signals that drive real business impact.