When I first signed up for the Hero's Program, I thought it was all about startups. Boy, was I wrong. This experience isnโt just about launching ventures; itโs about discovering the hero within, pushing your limits, and thriving in the face of challenges. ๐ช
Picture this: 130 kilometers of walking and hiking in just four days, mixed with swimming, rowing, and running. Survival week, curated by US Navy SEALs, was a true test of grit, blood, sweat, and yes, tears. This journey was designed to build not just physical endurance, but the mental toughness to tackle any challenge with enthusiasm, energy, and a healthy dose of fun! ๐
Iโm beyond grateful to have been part of this once-in-a-lifetime experience, alongside 110 heroes from 37 countries. Draper University isnโt about being spoon-fed; itโs about being thrown into the deep end (sometimes literally, like treasure-hunting in San Mateo at 4 AM and jumping into a freezing pool in the early morning!) and getting the job done. The spontaneity of pitching to Tim Draper while strolling through the streets ofย #SanMateo or sleeping under the stars in Northern California Wilderness pushed me beyond my comfort zone in the best possible way. ๐
If you are fundraising in 2024, then you should read this post.
Recently attended a startup event "Fundraising for Startups" as a panelist. As the only startup founder among the VC panelists, it was interesting to hear their perspectives and provide my own. The event was organized by HSBC in collaboration with eChai Ventures.
1. Dry powder money is still there and startups with clear vision and execution are getting funded. 2. The time for due diligence has increased and therefore, having enough runway is important before fundraising. 3. AI as a use case is certainly a favorite area but not the only one attracting funding. 4. College degrees are not that pertinent anymore as long as you have a solid business understanding and team (Lots of non-IIT and non-IIM founders are emerging) - alumni network may open doors but wonโt convert only on basis of college.
Money flows where the innovation is and India now has the 3rd largest startup ecosystem in the world. In Q1 2024, Indian startups raised a total of $2 billion fund and added three unicorns to its fleet in 2024 so far - fintech SaaS Perfios, Bhavish Aggarwal's AI venture Krutrim and Logistics startup Porter. While overall investor sentiment has been cautious, the funding winter scenario is a bit milder than expected as the growth of the Indian economy encourages investment in new ventures.
Overall, lots of new learnings with old and familiar faces. Thanks to Jatin for bringing us all together to share our learnings and network with fellow founders, investors, and industry leaders. Looking forward to more such events in the future.
Amazing sharing an open conversation on "Basics Of Startup Fundraising" with Samson, Angad, Nivin, and all the incredible folks who joined us at Draper Startup House.
Our resident entrepreneurs got to pitch their hearts out, and the feedback they received was pure gold. The energy was unreal!
But it wasnโt just about funding. What made this week extra special were the amazing backstories these VCs sharedโfrom an Airforce veteran turned VC, to a DJ turned VC, to a super young college grad already making waves in the venture world. These stories were pure inspiration, especially for anyone thinking about starting their journey in VC.
We also hosted two panel events with these incredible VCs, attracting nearly 200+ attendees! It was a blast and a huge success for our community.
During his recent visit to the US, Ankit Kedia was invited to join an insightful panel at "๐๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐-๐๐ฝ๐: ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ ๐๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป," held on Monday earlier this week at Draper University, San Mateo.
The event, which drew a diverse audience of over 45 ๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข 20 ๐๐๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐จ, featured a dynamic conversation between investors and founders, providing invaluable insights into the intricacies of fundraising.
Hosted by eChai Ventures and Draper Startup House, the event featured a dynamic panel conversation with investors and founders, offering valuable insights into the complexities of fundraising. Ankit and fellow speakers Abhishek Kaushik, WeCP and Abhinav Das shared their Entrepreneurial experiences and success stories to guide start-ups on their fundraising journeys.
Closing the event with a networking session, Ankit engaged in meaningful conversations with a diverse array of start-ups and founders.
Events such as this play a crucial role in fostering connections, knowledge exchange, and collaborative growth across international boundaries, empowering entrepreneurs in driving their ventures forward.
When Last-Minute Plans Create Unforgettable Moments with Draper Startup House and eChai Ventures.
Sometimes, the best things happen on a whim! What started as a spontaneous Friday evening VC meet with Pranav Sanghvi from Merak Ventures turned into a powerhouse session of insights, pitches, and breakthroughs. ๐ก
In just 2 minutes, each startup had the chance to showcase their visionโand they delivered big time! From game-changing feedback to invaluable validation, every founder walked away with something that could propel their journey forward. ๐ฑ
The energy was electric, the ideas were bold, and the takeaways? Pure gold. โจ
Huge kudos to all the founders who stepped up to pitch and to Pranav for dropping some serious knowledge bombs. This is what the startup ecosystem is all aboutโlearning, growing, and supporting each other!
๐ฅ Want to catch more of these epic events? Hit that follow button and stay in the loop!
๐ฆ Thank you for joining us in the eChai Ventures Fundraising for Startups meetup at Draper Startup House Koramangala, Bengaluru! ๐
I'm glad that Jatin Chaudhary was onboard when I said I'd curate and moderate a women-only panel for this subject. It wasn't a women-only event. Everyone was welcome. But the fact that I had these amazing women speakers from the world of venture capital spend their Saturday evening with us made it a wholesome gathering!
Sharing some snippets here -
Aditi Sinha believes she and her team at IndiaQuotient don't just invest in a startup but marry them! They grow together, brainstorm, pivot if need be and go beyond the boardrooms to show up in the journey. ๐ฐHeavy on India SaaS owing to the growth potential ๐ฐ Highlighted portfolio company FRND for their tightly knit tech team and immense learnings on consumer behaviour and power users ๐ฐInteresting investments this year include Utsav App in the spiritual tech space and kim.cc ๐ฐRecommends listening to The 20-minute VC by Harry Stebbings ๐ฐHiring: For founder office roles in Series A and Series C startups in her portfolio companies
Ashna Agarwal believes growing up in a Marwari family fuelled her curiosity since childhood. So she'd not just visit a restaurant for a family outing but also ask questions around how'd they make money to run that business. ๐ฐIn her work at Jungle Ventures, they invest in seasoned entrepreneurs and write a cheque size that's relatively bigger at that funding stage ๐ฐInteresting investments this year include NIC Icecreams and Atomberg Technologies ๐ฐRecommends reading The Economic Times and Inc42 Media that covers a large chunk of news without burning a hole in your pocket with all the paid subscriptions ๐ฐHiring: For a D2C startup in her portfolio company - Brand marketer with 7+ years of work experience
Vaishvi Bansal and her friends ran a Shark Tank style competition in college. From conceptualisation to execution, it was a three-month long rigorous learning that led to a total of eight startups raising around 25 Lacs! That was her first taste of what it takes to raise funds and "once you taste the blood, it's difficult to not go back to it", she quips. ๐ฐ In her work at Marwari Catalysts, they are mostly the first ones to write a cheque for the startups and bring co-investors with them ๐ฐJust the way founders look for a product market fit, they look for a founder market fit to ascertain that it's a good match! ๐ฐHighlighted her portfolio company Turms (Bigphi Technologies Pvt. Ltd.) which has MS Dhoni promoting it ๐ฐHiring: Her portfolio companies are hiring. You can visit the company's website for details
We โค๏ธ the elevator pitches from founders along with some thoughtful questions from the audience!
Sunday Cheer: Share a picture with your pet in the Comments! The last pic has Nivin Joseph's Paris ๐ถย
The event drew a diverse audience of over 45 attendees from 20 different countries, featuring a dynamic conversation between investors and founders, providing invaluable insights into the intricacies of fundraising.
Closing the event with a networking session, the audience engaged in meaningful conversations with a diverse array of startups and founders.
Events such as this play a crucial role in fostering connections, knowledge exchange and collaborative growth across international boundaries, empowering entrepreneurs to drive their ventures forward.
This event wouldn't have been possible without the support of Karan Bahadur and Jatin Chaudhary. Special thanks to Waleed Arshad and Mohammad Mustafa Hassan for their encouragement and support throughout the event.
Here's to many more successful collaborations and impactful events!
See all those consumer products behind us. What if I told you that all these can be created using AI?
Imagine a world where products are no longer solely developed based on intuition and market research, but rather a world where AI becomes the driving force behind the creation of consumer packaged products. This idea is not a distant dream but a reality taking shape as we speak and Ai Palette is at the forefront of it.
At Ai Palette, we are passionate about leveraging the power of Generative AI to transform the traditional CPG Industry and drive innovation. With this recent investment, we are poised to take our disruptive technology to new heights and expand our reach into exciting new verticals.
๐ Entering the Beauty and Personal Care Sector: Building on our success in disrupting traditional CPG markets in F&B, we are thrilled to announce our expansion into the dynamic world of Beauty and Personal Care. This move represents a strategic leap forward as we continue to push boundaries and deliver cutting-edge solutions to meet evolving consumer needs.
๐ก Transforming the Industry with AI: Our proprietary Generative AI technology enables us to create unique, data-driven insights and develop personalized products that resonate with consumers on a deeper level. By harnessing the power of AI, we are unlocking new possibilities in product development, marketing, and customer engagement, setting new standards for innovation within the industry.
As we embark on this exciting new chapter, we remain committed to our vision of shaping the future of the CPG landscape on a global scale. With our innovative approach and strategic partnerships, we are well-positioned to drive meaningful change and create value for consumers, brands, and investors alike.
Thank You to all our well-wishers and supporters: None of this would be possible without the unwavering support of our customers, investors, and dedicated Paletteers. We are immensely grateful for your belief in our vision and your commitment to our success.
Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to disrupt and innovate in the CPG industry! Together, we are shaping the future of consumer goods with AI-driven solutions that inspire, delight, and transform.
Exciting news from Meet the Drapers Season 6 Finale - BonV Aero emerged as the champion, securing a whopping $1.6 million in funding! ๐
I had the opportunity to be part of the selection panel along with Devesh Ramchandani, Dr. Barada Prasad Panigrahy and Sarika Batra, we witnessed more than 300+ Startups from across India, Srilanka and the MENA region, and least mention the Sri Sri University, Bhubaneswar, certainly was tough call to pick one startup to be represented from each region.
BonV Aeroโs groundbreaking mission to transform critical logistics with innovative electric aerial vehicles, tailored for demanding terrains, has garnered them well-deserved acclaim from our distinguished panel of judges.
This season witnessed a total investment of $2.8 million, underscoring the extraordinary promise and commitment of our contestants to propel innovation and change.
If you're convinced your startup can make a significant impact, seize the opportunity to apply for Season-7 of Meet the Drapers. Embark on this journey to leave your imprint on the global entrepreneurial landscape. https://lnkd.in/gWuVsvJF
Founders, Investors, Enablers- Who are you listening to?
Over the last few weeks I've been constantly trying to rediscover learning through podcasts and here are some of them that are on my radar-
๐ Seed to Scale by Accel - A podcast series highlighting the journey of various founders while launching a 2 podcast series with the Accel team from across the globe - Jim Swartz, Anand Daniel, Sameer Gandhi, Harry Nelis, Mahendran Balachandran celebrating their 40 years in the VC industry in 2023
๐Blume Ventures podcasts - Season 1 on XUnicorns followed by Season 2 focusing on Power of Compounding where Karthik B. Reddy hosts founders like Peyush Bansal, Raamdeo Agrawal who have excelled at compounding from the last decade to almost half a century
๐Matrix Moments by Matrix Partners India - Highlighting human capital while also discussing trends of 2023 and 2024 hosted by Rupali Sharma ranging to over 180 episodes over different seasons and topics
๐DesiVC by Akash Bhat - Candid conversations with leading investors from across India with insights from Akash's journey as a founder and investor having spoken to 127+ people. This one has been on my list for over 3 years now
๐Indian Silicon Valley podcast by Jivraj Singh Sachar- Intricate conversations with founders, investors, and enablers in the Indian start-up ecosystem spanning 161 episodes and more. Jivraj has been closely associated with the start-up and investment ecosystem bringing out his unique perspective through the questions he asks his guests
VCs have extensive insights and access to diverse information. They have access to insights ranging from an industry understanding brought together by cumulative team experiences, in-depth sector focus, and access to real-time information through their portfolio companies. Often these insights stay unshared or when shared, undiscovered by some of us. This year I'm on a mission to uncover some of the most insightful podcasts and will keep sharing as I keep listening.
So what are you listening to, to stay up to date? Drop startup and investing podcast recommendations in the comments. I'm sharing links to the ones I've mentioned above in the comments too.
eChai Partner Brands
eChai Ventures partners with select brands as their growth partner, helping them expand market reach, drive revenue growth, amplify brand visibility, and strengthen hiring efforts.
