Explore · The library
Every resource founders actually use, in one library.
The essays, videos, podcasts, books and tools behind every answer across eChai's hubs, from starting up to go-to-market, D2C, founder money and AI, each with a note on why it is here.
What founders use most, ranked by how many answers lean on it.
- This is the trigger checklist, spelled out: it names the exact moments that force incorporation (bringing on a co-founder,... Capbase Article · 10 min read · Starting Up When Should My Startup Incorporate? Capbase
- The side-by-side an Indian founder actually needs: a compliance matrix and a 5-year cost table for both entities, written from... IncorpX Article · 18 min read · Starting Up US LLC vs India Pvt Ltd for Indian Founders: Tax and Compliance Comparison IncorpX
- This is the single checklist that tells a first-time founder every recurring ROC and MCA filing a Pvt Ltd owes each year and in... ClearTax Article · 15 min read · Starting Up Annual Compliance Checklist for Startups ClearTax
- Founders conflate two very different things: non-competes while employed (usually enforceable) versus after you quit (usually... Anirudh Associates Article · 10 min read · Starting Up Section 27 and Post-Termination Non-Compete Clauses: How Far Can Employers Go? Anirudh Associates
- This is the canonical explainer on the exact mechanism that closes your ownership gap: founders assign pre-incorporation IP to... Stripe Atlas Article · 20 min read · Starting Up Equity for Founders Stripe Atlas
- This is the one checklist that names the exact triggers, not just the list of registrations. It spells out EPF at 20+... MPVD & Associates (Chartered Accountants) Article · 12 min read · Starting Up Compliance Checklist After Company Registration in India MPVD & Associates
- For the US side of a two-entity setup, this is the canonical founder-facing reference on the EIN (your federal tax ID), federal... Stripe Article · 20 min read · Starting Up Business taxes: A Stripe Atlas Guide Stripe Atlas
- This is the India-specific FEMA reality check almost every cross-border founder gets wrong. It is written by a practicing CA... CA Abhinav Gulechha Article · 18 min read · Starting Up Indian Resident Individual Planning to Incorporate in US? Ensure Compliance with Indian FEMA Law Abhinav Gulechha
- This is real India data, not a US survey with an Indian byline: 46 percent of Indeed India postings disclosed salary in 2023,... Indeed India (Hiring Insights) Article · 10 min read · Starting Up The Importance of Pay Transparency in India Indeed Editorial Team
- Elaine Wherry posted a fake engineer profile, got hit by 382 recruiters, and dissected every message, so this is a real... First Round Review Article · 20 min read · Starting Up The Inside Story of How 382 Recruiters Pursued an Imaginary Engineer First Round Review
- This is the single best playbook for the exact call you are dreading: the candidate has a bigger offer and you have to close... First Round Review Article · 18 min read · Starting Up Make Stronger Offers to Engineering Candidates and Boost Your Closes Adil Ajmal (CTO, LendingHome), via First Round Review
- This is the mechanics-and-speed piece: it makes the case that your unfair advantage against a big company is turnaround time,... Gem Article · 15 min read · Starting Up Startup Hiring 101: A Founder's Guide, Part 19, Selling and Closing Gem (recruiting team, drawing on Y Combinator talks)
- This is the operational manual, not a theory piece: it lists the exact paper trail Indian courts look for (appointment letter,... Corrida Legal Article · 18 min read · Starting Up Probation and Confirmation Policy for Indian Companies: A Practical Drafting Guide for Employers Corrida Legal
- A plain-language read on the legal footing itself: it explains that a probationer has no lien on the job, so termination during... IndiaFilings Article · 10 min read · Starting Up Understanding Probation Period in Employment Services IndiaFilings
- Section 8 (Flubbing the onboarding process) names the exact failure mode in the question: founders assume a strong hire is a... a16z Article · 18 min read · Starting Up 10 hiring mistakes early stage founders make (and how to avoid them) a16z crypto talent team
- Written for the Indian startup reality where most onboarding stops after day one and the hire quietly checks out in weeks two... Springworks Article · 14 min read · Starting Up Employee Onboarding Best Practices: What Actually Works for Growing Indian Startups Springworks
- A serial founder makes the exact call you should make for your first seats: hire generalists until product-market fit, because... Mean CEO (STARTUP POV) Essay · 14 min read · Starting Up Generalists vs. Specialists: Which Should You Hire First in Your Startup? Violetta Bonenkamp
- A ready-to-use question bank grouped by the traits that separate a generalist first hire from a specialist: adaptability,... DigitalOcean Article · 15 min read · Starting Up 40 Startup Interview Questions to Ask Potential Hires DigitalOcean
- Lemkin gives you the exact sequencing this question needs: close 10 to 20 customers yourself first, then hire two reps (not... SaaStr Article · 6 min read · Starting Up Dear SaaStr: When Should a Startup Hire its First Sales Person, and What Should Their Profile Look Like? Jason Lemkin
- Your early rep has to hunt cold, not coast on warm inbound, and this piece hands you the concrete tells: the true hunter chases... Peak Sales Recruiting Article · 9 min read · Starting Up Hunter vs. Farmer in Sales: Empowering Your Team for Long-Term Success Peak Sales Recruiting
- This is the India-specific explainer you hand a candidate who has never held equity. It defines pool, vesting (typically 3 to 4... Razorpay Article · 15 min read · Starting Up ESOP for Startups in India: Benefits, Legal Framework, Costs, & Taxation Razorpay Learn
- The canonical answer to the sequencing question: do not hire a go-to-market specialist before you know what drives growth.... First Round Review Article · 15 min read · Starting Up When to Make Your First Sales Hire: Expert Guide for Startup Founders First Round Review
- The most concrete guide on the specific role our answer names: the founder's associate, the high-agency generalist you hire to... Jumpstart Article · 12 min read · Starting Up Startup Guide to Hiring a Founder's Associate Jumpstart
- This is the India proof of the answer's edge: great people in smaller cities are underpriced and overlooked, and hiring them is... Zoho Article · 15 min read · Starting Up Rural Revival: building world-class products from small towns Sridhar Vembu / Zoho
The hubs
Starting Up
Find an idea, validate it, build, and land your first customers.
GTM
Go-to-market, from breaking in to how the best teams do it.
D2C
Building a direct-to-consumer brand, India-first.
Wealth
Paying yourself, ESOPs, secondaries, and de-risking founder wealth.
How Founders Use AI
How founders actually put AI to work, mapped topic by topic.
Glossary
Plain-language definitions of the startup and VC terms you'll hit.
eChai Partner Brands
The partnership →