Nick Lahoika

💥 THE STARTUP EXPLOSION JUST STARTED #AI ♻️ Everything is about to change 👨‍💻 With the new Cursor code editor, AI can now build a basic Airbnb clone in 30 seconds ⚡️Thousands of people are building software startups at lightning speed - a few you can find on Indiehacker Twitter ⏰ Soon, you will be able to build a TikTok or Google clone in 30 seconds 💻 Software development is being solved by AI in front of our eyes 🎨 UX UI Design has been solved by AI and ShadCN (& many other frameworks) 📈 It’s all going to be about marketing, sales & support soon 💰 And marketing is ultimately going to be about who has the most capital 💥 The lower barrier to software development leads to a super explosion of new <builders> and startups - and it is happening now 📝 But 99.9% of startups don’t raise funding, so they need to advertise for free. Many use SEO 🚀 These startups, many now ran by solo builders, scrape other websites’s data 🏗️ They automatically pump out 1000’s of pages per day 📑 After giving the content a twist with AI, it’s ‘unique’ and won’t be penalized by Google ❌ This was happening, but will continue to blow up Google’s organic results more 📢 Leading to an increase in paid ads, as it gets harder to rank top 3 organically 🤷‍♂️ But most startups don’t raise money. So how can they do it? 🍀 Give your community a self interest in seeing your software product grow. The more the better! ❓How do you give people a self interest? 🧱 Ownership. 💸 I think more and more startups will share their #equity with power users, starting with revenue share models like Youtube, Twitter and OpenAI 🪙 Because we’ve seen in crypto how investors will turn into marketers once they own a piece of a project ‼️ They actually *pay*(!) money to become a marketer ✨ Contribution based revenue sharing networks - the more value you add, the bigger your equity piece / profit share 🧬 1000’s of people working on human content & to create human value 🗺️ Software will also be more local, niche, fractured, human led (good, human support) 🧮 But as AI shaves off the 30% profit margins that the world’s spreadsheets so desperately run on, there are bumpy roads ahead, and many people will need to re-skill 🔮 With enough time, the new world will be more amazing and beautiful than we can imagine ⛈️ But this will be a turbulent decade for many, in between AI and the new economy as governments and people slowly adapt 🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 I believe in the age of AI, humans will work closer together and have a shared interest in seeing companies & communities succeed 🍰 You will own more small pieces of small & medium companies 🌪️ It’ll be a wild ride. And so many people don’t yet see it 🤖 Maybe you didn’t try AI yet, or it’s not as threatening in your industry yet 🌊 But sooner or later, the waves of change will hit everyone. First slowly, and then all at once 🙏 Be prepared. (I think) #AI #Cursor #tech #startups #bootstrapping #code #marketing #design

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Great set of tools, thanks for sharing Md Tanvir Islam

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How to Get $2 500 in OpenAI Credits for Free You know how launching a company, especially one that uses AI, can get pretty expensive, right? Well, I found a great way to get some financial relief. I applied with iZetta_io and got into the Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub. This program is pretty awesome because it offers a range of benefits including $1 000 in Azure credits and $2 500 in OpenAI credits. These credits have been a big help, letting us focus on building our product without worrying so much about the costs. If you're running a startup, especially one dealing with AI, this is definitely worth looking into. Check out the link in the comments if you’re interested  #MicrosoftForStartups #startup #AI #izetta #AIsales

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How to Find the Right Investors for Your Startup 🎯💼 Securing investment is crucial for your startup's early growth, but not all investors will be relevant for your venture. 1. Know Your Niche 🔍 Investors often have specific investment theses and sometimes they only invest in startups on specific stages e.g. series A. Make sure you're targeting investors who align with your startup's industry and stage. 2. Check for Conflicts ⚖️ Before reaching out, verify that potential investors haven't backed your competitors. This saves time and avoids awkward situations! 3. Get Introduced 🤝 Get an introduction from founders they've previously funded. 4. Nail the Initial Meeting 🗓️ Make a great first impression. If they're interested, it's time to move to the next stage. 5. Close the Deal 📝 Ready to seal the deal? Send your SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) and gauge their interest. Pro Tip: Create FOMO 🔥 Want to increase your chances? Create a sense of urgency! When multiple high-profile VCs are showing interest, investors are more likely to act fast. Follow me to learn about startups! 🔔 I am the founder of an EdTech AI startup, building an AI-powered higher education and career- building tool. #StartupFunding #InvestorRelations #VentureCapital #StartupTips #EntrepreneurLife #FundingStrategy #StartupInvestors #FOMO #NetworkingTips #StartupGrowth

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500 VCs and thousands of founders have already joined the movement! That's HUGE for European Startups, but no time to chill. 🚀 - Europe's risk-capital backed ventures create jobs at 3x the pace of the traditional market. - 8 of 10 of the world's most valuable companies were once VC-backed startups - The startups signing the EU Inc petition today have already more enterprise value, than the biggest player in Germany automotive and chemical industry combined in market cap. And they are just getting started. Yet lets be realistic, our industry won't collect 1 Million signatures needed for an official European Citizen Initiative, but we can do what startups do - get creative, re-invent distribution and create a step-function. Which founder, which VC, which KOF from your local ecosystem do we need on the petition? Please comment and tag.

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The world of sales is changing FAST. Clay just got evaluated to 500 million USD. What is Clay? A fancy excel sheet where you can scrape and enrich contact info. You can also automatically send cold email using AI text. In short: - Anyone with internet and some money can send 10k cold emails per week using AI. WHY is this important? It’s easy, cheap, and satisfying to scale. One rep can now 10x their cold emails. It looks good and may sound great. BUT (a huge but): Every time this happens the buyers move one step further away from these channels. When everyone can spam (even more) that’s what they do. The buyers still need to buy stuff, but disconnect from these channels. This is where the fun begins. Now you have to create VALUE to ATTRACT clients. And that takes a whole different breed of salespeople. Now you have to know your stuff, know your customer, know how to attract and create a compelling and value driven social media presence. Of course while still making those cold calls. Salespeople need to step their game up and be more generalists then before. I may be completely wrong. But if I’m right I love it. It makes it easier than ever to stand out. What’s your thoughts? —— 👋 I’m Robin. Follow me for more content about sales, tech and entrepreneurship

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𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐂𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 𝐔𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐧 Wallafan Note: feel free to create the whole process using ChatGPT or Perplexity, if you want to understand the real power of Wally. 💪 Let's start! [ Adjust the following according to your content's target user and paste it to Wally ] ... 1. 𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐃𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐬: - 𝐀𝐠𝐞: 55+ - 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫: Male - 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Urban - 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: PhD - 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞: $60k-100k 2. 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐏𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐬: - 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬: Technology, Food, Finance - 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐬: Innovation, Community - 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐬: Creative, Adventurous 3. 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐏𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬: - Need for expertise - Overwhelmed by choices 4. 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬: - Improve health - Increase income Now, synthesize the information and create a narrative that combines these elements. I will use such narrative to question you about creating content relevant to my customer avatar. ... [ You will end up with something like this: ] "Meet John, a 58-year-old urban professional with a PhD in Computer Science. He thrives on creativity and adventure, working in the technology sector with an annual income between $60,000 and $100,000. John values innovation and community, and his interests span technology, finance, and culinary arts. He's eager to improve his health and boost his income but often feels overwhelmed by the plethora of choices available. Recognizing the need for expert guidance, John seeks clear, authoritative advice to navigate his goals effectively." [ Refine and personalize: ] Adjust the avatar based on your specific target audience and industry insights. Add more details that align with your ideal customer profile. The resulting customer avatar will serve as a foundation for creating targeted, valuable content that resonates with your intended audience. For example you might paste the final narrative to Wally followed by "Find me a suitable piece of news that might be of interest to John," and get relevant content ideas. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞. 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐦𝐢𝐱 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐀𝐈 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞. ⭐ Would you like to see different case scenarios? Let me know in the comments. 🤟 #ContentStrategy #AIForCreators #CustomerAvatar Canonical original blog: https://lnkd.in/d-A6yzSz

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It took me 35 seconds to create a post and publish it on LinkedIn. Impossible? Here is the proof. Test it yourself for free and be a part of the future. https://linkinlead.com #aimarketing #ai #marketing #linkedinai

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Struggling to scale? Strategic partnerships might be the hidden power move your startup needs to accelerate growth. This is nothing new. We can find successful examples in well-known names such as Google & NASA, Shopify & TikTok,   Uber & Spotify, and a long etc. Here’s how: 1️⃣ Expand your reach: ↳ Partners can open doors to new markets and audiences. 2️⃣ Leverage expertise: ↳ Tap into specialized knowledge without stretching your team. 3️⃣ Optimize resources: ↳ Share resources like marketing channels or distribution networks. 4️⃣ Build trust: ↳ Aligning with established brands boosts your startup’s trust. Ready to boost your startup growth with a strategic partnership? Always choose partners whose values align with yours and who bring real value to the table. 👀 Discover the top 3 platforms in 2024 where startups find game-changing alliances in the comments 👇 #marketingstrategy #startups  #partnerships

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A list with over 1000 VC funds from Europe. 🚀 For all founders, entrepreneurs, and those who navigate the startup ecosystem, finding the right investment partner can be a challenge—especially in Europe, where each country has its unique investment landscape. I found one of the most comprehensive Europe VC lists. This is more than just a directory; it's a powerful resource to help you explore funding opportunities, connect with VCs that align with your vision, and, ultimately, build the future you envision. Whether you’re looking to scale your startup or explore different markets, this list is a great place to start. 💡 Feel free to share it with anyone who might benefit! Here’s the link to access the list: [Link in comments]

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A true pleasure to join Daniel Tannor on his podcast and share my experience bootstrapping Kontax AI. Listen to the full episode & follow Daniel for more B2B marketing insights!

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Let me show you in 43 seconds how you can create insane prompts for FREE (No-techies will LOVE it). 1. Visit Claude AI 2. Click on Console 3. Clik on Generate prompt 4. Tell in plain language what you need 5. Press RUN 6. Copy-paste to any AI tool. ➡️ANYONE can do this. Now GO and win some grants!💪 Share ♻️ and help your team get AI-fied. ______________________________________ ➡️ 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗠 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴.

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Our clients called 170 top VC funds and angels in the last 6 months including A16Z, General Catalyst, Sequoia, Index Ventures, and many more well-known funds. Here is how it happened 👇 I do believe outreach can fuel a successful fundraise. But you need to ‘think smart and react fast’. Here's my checklist for getting great results from your outreach: 1. Carefully prepare all your materials before you start reaching out. Make sure your pitch deck, P&L, cohorts, and other key documents are in top shape. 2. Start with warm outreach. Think about anyone in your network who can make an introduction to a relevant investor. Personal connections can open a lot of doors. 3. Stay active in the startup community. Attend conferences and events, engage with other founders online, and work to expand your network with useful contacts. Personal offline connection is always better than a Zoom call. 4. Make sure your LinkedIn profile and email are ready to outreach. No funny emails, random photos, and no info in bio. 5. Find the right contacts to write to. NOTE: You can have 1000 contacts, but if they don't invest in your industry or stage - you are wasting your time. 6. Follow up potential investors with traction and product updates. To really fundraise like a pro, be sure to check out the first link in the comments. I'm launching a course that dives into groundbreaking strategies for effective outreach and fundraising. Will be glad to see you! #startups #fundraising #investors #seed #round #outreach

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Telecommunication + Web 3 = Heaven for Marketers! Web 3 startups typically go through three phases: 1. Inform and Engage: Build a community using Discord, Telegram, etc. 2. Sales: Communicate live and manage wallet access. 3. Post-Sale: Share updates, tokens, roadmaps, and airdrops. But people often mute these channels due to the noise. Enter Web 3 powered telecommunication! This could be the next big thing, merging Web 2 and Web 3. For marketers, this means: 1. Native Web 3 Email: Use your wallet address as your email, allowing anonymous communication while staying connected. 2. Reward Mechanisms: Get paid for reading emails. This "pay to read" or "read to earn" model lets marketers monetize engagement. 3. Direct Communication: Send quality news directly to public addresses, automatically updated through blockchain activity. This cuts down on message overload. As a marketer, I love this concept. It enables direct, high-quality communication and leverages blockchain's transparency and efficiency. #Web3 #Telecommunication #MarketingInnovation #Blockchain #DigitalMarketing #FutureOfMarketing #ReadToEarn

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🔥List of Seed & Series A US VCs🔥 US investors' average valuation in the seed phase is $15m, compared with European, which is $7,1m. This is a good opportunity for US companies and European-based startups with HQ or legal entity from the US. I would love to share lists of the active US seed & Series A VCs that are actively invested in companies with a presence in the US market. To get the database, please complete BOTH STEPS (Step 1 & Step 2) Step 1: Comment on the post below Step 2: Drop me a DM/Inmail (with a connection request if we're not synced up) saying "US VC" and I will send you a link to the database. Step 3: (Optional) ♻️ Found this helpful? ↳ Repost it so your network can benefit from it, too.

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Wrongly positioning your startup can cost you billions. Let's look at ConvertKit and Klaviyo. Both are marketing tools, started around the same time (2012-13), but their 2022 revenues tell different stories: ConvertKit made $34 million, Klaviyo hit $580 million in ARR. Here's why: ConvertKit focuses on creators. Help them start their business, and offers generous free plan. Sounds great, right? But there's a catch: the creator economy is relatively small. Klaviyo, on the other hand, targets eCommerce companies. They charge more, serve over 100,000 corporate customers, and as a result have a $9 billion higher valuation ($200M vs $9.5B as of circa 2022) ConvertKit's challenge is clear: their market focus limits growth. They have two choices: → Change identity and go after bigger markets. → Grow the creator economy itself, becoming the top choice for new creators. They seem to be going the second way. With the new free plan that allows up to 10,000 free subscribers and offers automations, ConvertKit seems to double down on the creator community. I agree: instead of being a small piece of a big pie, grow the pie you are the large piece of. Stick to what you know and grow sustainably. Why does this matter? Early positioning can shape company's financial destiny. And don't think I'm slacking ConvertKit, we're talking about two very successful companies here. But if you're just a startup making tough choices remember – they will determine your future. Am I wrong?

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Are you looking for a WEB3 project that drives growth 100% a month? I have some! We are https://minders.vc. We shape the future of Telegram and the TON ecosystem. At Minders, we are working on 10 revenue-generating projects you can invest in and get a high-speed exit (3 years instead of 7 at a venture fund). 📈 Why invest in Minders?  Speedy Exits. Aiming for profitable investor exits within 3 years. Exit options are either through a microcap IPO on NASDAQ or we keep it as a dividend business. Fast Growth. Startups created in venture studios achieve seed funding twice as fast and exit 33% faster than conventional startups. Quick Launching. Bringing ideas to market within 1-2 months. Strategic co-founding. We take between 30% to 50% equity in the projects. Amazing advisors. Many of them have built billion-dollar businesses, and all of them are founders. Diversification. You invest in 10 projects instead of one. Ecosystem of growing projects. We are building an ecosystem where every project helps other projects grow. When we attract a user per $1 they get involved in all 10 projects so CPL for us is $0.1 We launched with $50k revenue in July 2024 → one of the projects brought in $80k in August 2024 → our goal is to launch 10 projects targeting $1M MRR by Q2 2025. Our flagship projects highlight our depth of vision and technical expertise: 🎯TADS: A revolutionary advertising network, unlocking new business opportunities within Telegram Mini Apps. $200k revenue for 2 months, +1-2 clients daily 🗓CatchUP: A smart calendar integrated with Telegram, redefining the way meetings are scheduled.  👛Evolur: A next-generation gaming wallet, unifying multiple gaming platforms into a single ecosystem. 🪄Ommly: privat content platform, like OnlyFans. A subscription-based decentralized platform that allows authors to reach their full potential and capitalize on popularity Our core principles set us apart:  • Innovation: We don’t follow trends — we set them. • User Experience: Every solution we design is with the user in mind. • Scalability: Our products are built for global growth. • Integration: Our solutions seamlessly enhance the power of the Telegram ecosystem. Want to learn more? Find the presentation here: https://lnkd.in/deRuDxQf Want to catch up in Singapore on September 16-20? Let’s meet! Send me PM to arrange a meeting.

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I met a founder who exited for $2.2B— then built an AI robot for farmers. He was “3 months from bankruptcy”— then closed $10M in pre-sales in a month: Paul was the co-founder of Isilon— it exited for $2.25B post IPO. He worked on AI at Uber and Oculus. So when a farmer told him about the problems weeds were causing, Paul went all in. He quit Oculus— & built an AI robot for farmers that shoots weeds with lasers. In 2018, Paul + angels invested $900K to build a functioning prototype. A year later, he raised an $8.9M Series A to go from prototype to commercial product. Two years later, he closed $10M in pre-sales and raised a $27M Series B to go to market. Today, he’s sold 100 robots at $1.5M each— $150M in total revenue. His robot’s killed 11.5 billion weeds— with no chemicals, no herbicide. It sounds like a perfect plan, flawlessly executed. “It sounds that way because I'm telling you the story with the backbone of history...but that's not what happened at all. We were just feeling our way through it. There were several times at this company where we could have made one decision or another and just… ended up dead. In hardware startup life, you're always running out of money…you're always like three months from bankruptcy.” The stories that get told in Startupland are up-and-to-the-right. The stories the founders live are never that way. Startups never go according to plan— no matter what the news story says. Startups are absolute chaos. Every time. /// Listen to the full story with Paul on The Product Market Fit Show #startups #founders #venturecapital

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Tips & tricks for European VCs fundraising right now. From Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital. Have courage. Step up. Don't let yourself down on some negative. Pursue your goals. Don't just try to do the same things that others have already done. Do something different. Do your own thing. Find your niche. Find your theme. Find your segment. BUT. Don't be overly ambitious at first. It's a long-term game. Don't set the bar too high. Start with a very small fund. Invest the fund for a year or a year and a half. What do you think? Join the conversation below. 🔽 #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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