Startup Blueprint

Jeremy Barr is a founder mentor, providing leadership advice to entrepreneurs with a unique and detailed approach. Jeremy has extensive experience as a software developer, was a chief technology officer, and is now CEO of his coaching platform Rocket Mindset as well being a VC. 

Jeremy went from "super nerd" to "super social" through deliberate processes and actions - allowing him to become much more confident with time. He puts huge emphasis on micro-behaviours and technically breaks down what characteristics founders need to show to achieve success, which he delivers through his work as a founder mentor. Important takeaways include how to navigate investor conversations, how to improve bad social skills, and how to stop chasing the bag

We discuss Jeremy's background, how it molded him today, his approach to coaching, his framework for founders and leaders, his work as a mentor, how to train your mind to improve your skills, adopting the right mentality, the importance of body language, how to navigate investor conversations and pitches, how to improve social skills, putting yourself out there, the value of experiences and getting to know yourself, finding your purpose, having an expansionary mindset, and how to avoid chasing short-term dopamine hits. Plus, we talk about how he got bored with money (!), stopped chasing the bag and decided he wanted to be more impact-driven.

Access Jeremy's services here: ⁠⁠https://www.rocket-mindset.com/⁠⁠

Connect with Jeremy here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremydbarr/⁠⁠

Connect with James here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/⁠⁠

Connect with Suraj here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/⁠

Leading the charge of next-gen composite materials manufacturing is Russ Vorobev, founder of Composite Vision. Russ has a PhD in Mechanics & Mathematics with a lifelong passion for DeepTech and composite materials engineering, and excels at making complex subjects easy to understand. His company turbo-charges non-destructive testing (NDT) of composites in aerospace by leveraging AI algorithms.

He discusses his DeepTech startup, the applications and end-markets for his technology, the playbook for securing big industrial companies as customers, next-gen composite materials innovation, the future global energy mix, his background in nuclear energy, electric vehicles (EVs), whether AI is on a hype cycle or not, how AI is used for composites, and how to excel at communicating complicated concepts to investors - a must-have tool in the arsenal of any DeepTech founder!

Learn more about Russ' company here: https://composite.vision/

Connect with Russ here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/russ-v/

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/ 

How do I build a Military startup? 

Max Werner used his 7 years' experience in the German military to identify the missing pieces and launch his startup - high-tech drones for first man replacement on military operations.

Max's story from the military to entrepreneur to consultant, some misconceptions about the military, how he launched hisnext-gen military drones startup, military drones with guns, the role of AI at his military startup, how his military startup got acquired, next-gen military tech, exciting new military tech on the horizon, his personal lessons from the past, plus advice for hardware and DeepTech founders.

If you're looking to become a founder of a military startup or hardware startup - listen closely!

Connect with Max here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/mmagwitz/⁠ 

Connect with James here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/ ⁠

Connect with Suraj here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/⁠

The manufacturing sector has some catching up to do. To make full use of the shop floor, physical infrastructure and digital solutions (including the likes of AI and computer vision) must integrate seamlessly with one another - there's no simple existing solution for this.

Alex Krüger is looking to change this as co-founder and COO of United Manufacturing Hub - who are putting the most powerful IT tools directly in the hands of engineers. Through their open source model, they allow companies to manage IoT infrastructure to unlock the full potential of their manufacturing processes at scale.

We cover: Alex's company UMH, his journey from university straight into entrepreneurship, the benefits of open source, the manufacturing industry and how it lags other sectors technologically, how to sell to enterprise clients, marketing your software, different investing styles of VCs, European vs USA investment attitudes, the role of AI in manufacturing, and the shutting of the last Germany nuclear power plant.

Want to learn more about UMH? https://www.umh.app/ 

Connect with Alex here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexander-krueger/

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/

Karl Swanepoel launched his first online business at 15 and is now founder of Revolancer, a freelance marketplace that lets you pay for services with your expertise rather than your money. Karl’s been a freelancer since he was a kid, making money from home part time as a student with no experience - his journey started when he tried to launch a YouTube channel at age 12.

We talk: how to make money online, freelancing, starting a business, how to create partnerships, Karl's background in graphic design and web development, his AI side-projects where he tracked Twitter user sentiment, how freelancers can use AI, the countless times he's tried and failed to start a business, the benefits of getting a head start on entrepreneurship, how to discover your purpose, how to know when to quit, how to deal with burnout, how Karl unwinds from work, and projects he'd like to pick up again in the future. Want to make money from home? Sign up Karl's platform Revolancer Today! - ⁠https://revolancer.com/⁠

Connect with Karl here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/karlswa/⁠

Connect with James here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/⁠

Connect with Suraj here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/⁠

The next big trend for Venture Capital? DeepTech & Innovation. 

Gus Badran has over 30 years' experience in DeepTech, innovation investing and manufacturing. We lift the lid on deeptech and cleantech investing, covering: his story from Imperial College to today, the historical interest in cleantech, case studies for how to analyse a deeptech investment, the future energy mix, and views on nuclear power. We then walk through Gus' investment philosophy, the drivers behind scientific innovation, how to construct a personal investment portfolio, what startups should be focussing on, and even touch on Elon Musk's recent roasting of the BBC interviewer 😎 

Connect with Gus here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/gus-badra...⁠ 

Connect with James here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-ban...⁠ 

Connect with Suraj here: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4...⁠

How to get new clients for your business? 

Zoltan Vardy has 30 years of experience and has closed $2 Billion in B2B sales. His masterclass service, The Launch Code, will help you add 3-5 enterprise clients per quarter through his bulletproof framework: Focus, Build, Execute. 200 B2B founders from 25+ countries have already used his service to achieve success - you could be next! 

Zoltan dives into the following on one of our favourite podcast episodes so far: how to nail your startup's elevator pitch, the trappings of a corporate lifestyle, his experience doing sales coaching, brand messaging case studies, how to know when you have product market fit, how startups can find their ideal customer, where AI is headed, where the Metaverse failed, and his warrior mindset with 7 Spartan Races completed so far! 

If you're a B2B startup founder looking to scale, sign up for Zoltan's program today: https://thelaunchcode.net/ 

More on Zoltan here: https://zoltanvardy.com/ 

Connect with Zoltan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoltanvardy/ 

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/ 

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/

Yogesh Gupta is CEO of Gaston - AI-powered food based on personal diet preferences straight to your door! 

Yogesh shares a wealth of insight with us, not to be missed if you’re currently building a software startup - from his novel Go-To-Market strategy to the benefit of having your own proprietary database for machine learning.

Connect with Yogesh here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ybgupta/

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/

Suzanne Noble launched Startup School for Seniors to empower less-conventional entrepreneurs to start a business. 

She opens up about the barriers that seniors face when becoming founders, and the importance of venture inclusivity.

Connect with Suzanne here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzannenoble/

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/

Deepak Shrivastava is a serial entrepreneur flipping biased credit checks on their head with Sunrise AI. 

Deepak drops a bombshell on the real nature of the venture capital industry, his learnings from investment banking, and his experiences at the world famous AI fund.

Connect with Deepak here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepak-shrivastava-3baa12/

Connect with James here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bannon/

Connect with Suraj here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suraj-t-4a9630155/