At Momentum91, we've been hard at work understanding AI and their use-cases for mid-market and large firms. Late last week, I had the opportunity to share everything we've learnt so far with eChai Ventures at GVFL Limited.

Here are some notes:

๐Ÿ‘‰ ๐ƒ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐›๐ฎ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ง ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ž ๐๐ข๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐ข๐œ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ญ
Other people also have AI. A lot of folks are building on top of AI and so there is increased competition in almost every vertical. Every niche software has like 3 bootstrapped competitors who are going to market via SEO. Also, product differentiators are difficult to communicate in the age of low attention spans. If you are starting distribution today, it needs a thorough re-imagination.

๐Ÿ‘‰ ๐€๐›๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐จ๐ฐ/๐–๐ž๐š๐ค ๐€๐ˆ
Instead of building systems that are kind of smarter at doing a lot of things, you might want to consider building multiple and separate systems that are very smart at doing a few things extremely well. Enterprises/companies will separately pay for solving specific problem areas and addressing their use-cases. The game is depth, not breadth.

๐Ÿ‘‰ ๐๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž ๐€๐ˆ ๐ž๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ž๐ซ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐œ๐ž๐ฌ
Companies like ClickUp and Notion have done an amazing job at bringing AI within their products. But they are still not AI native. They were conceptualised when AI was not around. They have fit AI retrospectively. There is a large opportunity for building Native AI experiences. Platforms and products that are conceptualised from ground-up in the age of AI. An example of this is a project management system where I can assign tasks to both humans and agents. It will demand a lot of capital and ingenuity but it can be done. Here's a good question to ask: What other 'systems of records' exist that can be made AI native?

๐Ÿ‘‰ ๐’๐จ๐ฅ๐ฏ๐ž ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐š๐œ๐œ๐ฎ๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ž ๐๐š๐ญ๐š
AI will solve for analysis, predictions, pattern recognition etc. Most firms do not have accurate data. If you can figure out a way for a business to collect accurate data about their prospects, customers, employees, products, sales, etc - using AI, you can do anything and everything. Figure out a way as to how you will solve for collection, storage and organisation of accurate data.

There were a few other things that we discussed.

๐Ÿ‘‰ Co-pilot and Autopilots
๐Ÿ‘‰ AI wrappers
๐Ÿ‘‰ AI & Funding
๐Ÿ‘‰ Verticalising LLMs
๐Ÿ‘‰ AI Safety
๐Ÿ‘‰ Real-life implementations of AI by companies we have not heard about

This conversation was meant to be a starting point for folks thinking about building in the AI space. It was by no means exhaustive - but sort of a summary of all the research Harsh, Jay, Koushikram and I have been doing for the past few months.

If you want the deck, let me know in the comments and I'll send it over ๐Ÿ˜‡

Thank you Jatin for the opportunity.

Until next time :)

The eChai Effect - In Their Words

"At DevX.Work, weโ€™ve greatly benefited from our association with eChai. Their events and networking forums have connected us with high-potential startups, ecosystem leaders, and innovation-driven professionals โ€” many of whom have become valuable partners, collaborators, and even clients. What stands out most is the openness and accessibility of the community โ€” whether you're an early-stage founder or an experienced entrepreneur, eChai provides a welcoming space to learn, collaborate, and grow. It's more than just a network โ€” it's a catalyst for real, collaborative growth. Weโ€™re proud to be part of the eChai community. Highly recommended for any organization aiming to grow within the startup space."
Umesh Uttamchandani - Co-Founder, DevX
Umesh Uttamchandani
Co-Founder, DevX
"We found eChai to be a force multiplier throughout our startup journey. Through it, we connected with folks from DevX, Allevents, Plutomen, and more - many of whom became friends of IndiaBizForSale.com and even part of our clientele."
Bhavin S Bhagat - Co-founder of Indiabizforsale and IBGrid, TiE Ahmedabad President
Bhavin S Bhagat
Co-founder of Indiabizforsale and IBGrid, TiE Ahmedabad President
โ€œWhen we launched LegalWiz.in back in 2016, concept of procuring legal and compliance services through a digital commerce platform wasn't as prominent in India. eChai played a significant role in providing the early adopters, and building significant positioning in the startup fraternity. Overtime, eChai grew to be a massive network of like-minded entrepreneurs and extended that benefit to all the members in a true "co-rise" spirit. I personally love to attend eChai events, learn from subject matter experts who share relatable and actionable insights and experiences. For startup journeys, it is so important to be surrounded by people who can add relevance, perspective, and push you to do better. Most importantly a group of people where you aren't being judged about things going right or wrong, but be a motivational force that keeps you going, yet keeping you in check. eChai is that place for me!โ€
Shrijay Sheth - Founder at LegalWiz.in and Hire4Higher Consulting
Shrijay Sheth
Founder at LegalWiz.in and Hire4Higher Consulting

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