Startup Reverse Merger

Interesting fundraising jujitsu move I found recently: Company A = a tech startup with a next generation technology for textile materials. No revenue; couldn’t raise capital in this tough funding environment. Company B = an old-school textile manufacturing business with steady cashflow but not much growth Company A does a reverse merger with Company B … Continue reading Startup Reverse Merger

UI Can Be A Game Changer

Founders: UI can be a game changer. Sometimes we see late entrants becoming market leaders with a re-imagined UI. (Examples include Gmail, Tinder, and Slack). But remember, what it takes isn’t just pretty pixels, it’s the whole user experience. One time, we asked teams to test-run a few different SaaS software so we can decide … Continue reading UI Can Be A Game Changer

Startup Culture

For early stage founders who want to set up a strong company culture: 1/ Be consistent about your decision making. Someone said culture is how people behave when their managers are not around. In early stage startups, the founder constantly makes small and large decisions; over time, how the founder thinks and makes decisions becomes … Continue reading Startup Culture

What If AI Came Out First

It’s a good thought experiment to imagine (a service category) didn’t exist today, AI came first, and you’re now thinking about creating a new service that serves a specific purpose using the power of AI. For example, what if Salesforce didn’t exist today, AI somehow came first, and you’re imagining creating a software that brings … Continue reading What If AI Came Out First

No Regret

I recently met a founder who had to shut down his company, and asked what he regrets the most. He said – absolutely nothing. Because he knows he did his absolute best. He poured in 120% of effort every single day, 24/7. He put everything on the field. Along the way, he learned so many … Continue reading No Regret

스타트업 스토리텔링

개인적으로 올해 발견한 서비스중 가장 감동적이었던 서비스중 하나는 (노범준 대표의 소개로 알게 된) Mill.com이라는 회사였다. 기본적으로 스마트 음식 쓰레기통인데, 음식물을 하루만에 분해해주고, bin이 분해물로 가득 차면 수거해가는 서비스도 제공하고 있다. 한달에 $45를 내는 (bin이 포함된 가격) 월정액 서비스이다. Nest의 cofounder인 Matt Rogers가 만든 회사이다. 기술 자체는 얼마나 뛰어난지 모르겠지만, 홈페이지에 한번만 들어가 보면 곧바로 convince가 … Continue reading 스타트업 스토리텔링