India’s fintech adoption is booming. So today my guest is Ankur Joshi  CEO & Co-founder of Nuclei,a bootstrapped software enterprise startup that helps banks improve digital banking services by integrating its API platform to increase customer engagement through merchant marketplace and wealth management services. 

He talks about how he got this off the ground. Mistakes made in the early days. He talks about why they bootstrap and not raise any capital. He explains why the primary product is the team. He then talks about building partnerships, thoughts on B2C and B2B business models.  Talks about sharing equity with staff. 

Talks about why they think globally from day one & the tech hiring challenges in India. Talks about going fully remote and  building culture. And finally he talks about mental toughness and What he looks for in a co-founder.

In this conversation we talk about:

• Having patience
• Being a serial entrepreneur
• Don't worry about the vanity metrics!
• Onboarding new employees. 
• Choosing attitude over skill set.
• Management style - depends on the maturity of the other person. 
• Building an integrated API platform
• Processing 3 million transactions a month.
• Partnering with 18 banks in India and S.E Asia. 

And much more

Links

https://gonuclei.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

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https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

The wearable devices market in India is expected to reach a sales volume of 16.22 million units by 2024. So today I speak to Anmol Saxena, the CEO & founder of Ashva Weartech. They develop wearable solutions for chronic knee pain & spine. 

So in this episode she talks about her own battles with knee pain that inspired to build a prototype at a hackathon. And since then they not looked back! She talks about how the products work, quitting her job at Ford. Building a MVP. Talks product development. 

She talks about her research in the early days. She went to 50 clinics and spoke to over 110 knee pain patients. She talks about  dealing with feature requests and how they kill products. Getting paying customers and then having to refund them and then getting to pay again! Why they use an Excel spreadsheet when things go wrong. Partnering with one of India's leading physiotherapist.

Talks about an offline marketing campaign that worked really well. Talks about sales forecasts for next year. How they onboard customers. And finally she talks about how the lean business model canvas can help you with your pitch.

In this conversation we also talk about:-

• The wearables market in India
• Having a great team
• Mudra - a motion sensor worn on the upper back. It corrects your spine posture with sensory feedback.
• Sales forecasts for next year
• Creating a reporting system for chronic knee pain
• Getting support from Mum and Dad after quitting Ford.
• Book recommendation - The art of startup fund raising - Alejandro Cremades
• 3 stages of building the first MVP.
• 8/10 patients do not turn up to the clinic after the first session.
• The two business models
• Stress!
• Going through an incubator
• Not having access to high quality physio in the early days

and much more

links 

https://www.ashvaweartech.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Building bionic arms for people with disabilities! Today I speak to Rishi Krishan, the CEO & Co-Founder of Symbionic. Symbionic is an affordable, assistive technology startup that makes smart prosthetic devices. 

It all started due to a freak bus accident which led to him losing his arm.  So in this episode he talks about the huge challenges building a bionic arm. He talks about how he validated the idea by being a human guinea pig. Talks about how they build empathy into the product and the market size. 

Talks technology and the business model. Talks about the key takeaways in building the first prototype  , talks about user experiences and 3D printing. Talks about what makes this bionic arm so special. Why your users should be your first investors. Getting great advice from AssisTech Foundation (ATF). 

Talks about being able to ride a bike again! Predictions for 2022. And finally he talks about advice he would give to his younger self and what first time founders should be focusing on.

In this conversation we also talk about:-

• Using 3D printing customisation and sensors
• Breaking out of the biases.
• Having small breakthroughs 
• 10 million amputees in India. 
• How would he sum up his journey so far?
• Thoughts on recruiting & why you shouldn't always hire the most experienced person. 
• Working with a great team
• Existing solutions did not work
• Building something cooler, functional and cheaper.
• Using it in public and dealing with the reaction.
• Funding
• Creating crowdfunding campaigns
• Working in a niche market
• Feedback loops & dealing with the steep learning curves. 

and much more!

Links 

http://thesymbionic.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Ganesh Shankar is back! He came on the show in October 2017 (EP68) & he is celebrating 10 years as an entrepreneur! Ganesh is the co-founder & CEO of FluxGen FluxGen is on a mission to help industries become water positive, and aims to help save 1 billion litres of water everyday using his product AquaGen, a smart real-time water flow and level monitoring system. So in this episode he talks about improving the product using design thinking. 

He talks about time spent in the Cisco Launchpad Tech accelerator. Talks about dealing with the water crisis. He gives bootstrapping advice. Talks about digitising water structures and how they reduce water consumption by 30%. He talks about bringing water transparency and data to clients.

‘Who will marry you now’ - his mom's reaction to him quitting General Electric to do this (he got married!) He talks about  India being the largest groundwater extractor in the world, bigger than China & USA. He talks about the original MVP back in 2017. Having big clients onboard. Questions you should ask yourself before quitting your 9-5 job to do a startup. and finally we reminisce about his epic bike journey from Bangalore to Goa and getting a proposal on Valentines Day, but not that type of proposal! and much more!

In this conversation we talk about:

• 10 years as an entrepreneur!
• Looking back would he change anything?
• A commencement speech that still motivates him
• New projects in solar using drones
• Bootstrapping is good if you don't have a scalable plan 
• Getting criticism in the early days 
• The true cost of water
• How does he keep on top of things?
• The ongoing climate crisis
• A question you must ask → What is the primary driver for buying your solution? 
• Transitioning from projects/consulting company to a product company. 
• Not getting too worried about not getting sales in the early days. 
• Start with the customer or start with the idea?
• How they de-risk industries and facilities from the water crisis. 
• Dealing with the pandemic
• Building AI & IoT based end to end water management solutions.
• Being the founder and director of the non-profit The Sustainability Mafia (Susmafia.org). 

And much more!

Links 

https://fluxgen.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Nivedha is back on the show!  I spoke to her back in December 2017 (Ep 72). She is the Co-founder of TrashCon. They have created a machine that helps solve India's huge waste management problem by converting mixed waste into Biodegradable and Non-Biodegradable Waste. They started with one tiny machine doing 100kg/day to now doing 200,000 kgs/day!  Last year they did a million dollars revenue and have 3 million dollars in the pipeline this year. She talks about spending 2.5 years working in a dumpsites around India . She talks about working with big corporations and municipalities.  Nivedha then talks about how they launch & test MVP’s and product development. She talks about when to use experts &  when NOT to use experts. Going from 3 to 60 staff & what they look for in hiring, having a great co-founder  and finally she talks about how you shouldn't look for 100% perfection in building a startup..85% is ok! ,  Doing TedX talks  (Failure is when you decide to fail...) Winning awards, and why they have banned the word ‘impossible’ and looking back would she change anything? and much more! 

In this episode we talk about:

• Creating wow boards
• Having more downs then ups
• Patents
• Has india's attitude to waste changed?
• Having no credibility at the start to now working with big corporations & municipalities.
• Having a co-founder who is a chartered accountant &  engineer helps. 
• How they use the technology to separate the waste
• Building a culture & not micromanaging everything
• Having a strong vision.
• Advice for first time founders - Have a clear problem statement.
• Don't look for perfection! The market is not looking for perfection. 
• Going global.

and much more 

Links

https://trashcon.in/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Logistics is the hottest industry to be in right now , according to my guest Mudasar Mohamed, Co-Founder & COO of Ezyhaul. Ezyhaul is a logistics tech startup based in India and South East Asia. They are on a mission to transform transportation logistics by building an ecosystem around shippers, truckers, government agencies, and third party service providers. 

So in this episode he talks about how they validated the MVP by talking to experts & truck drivers. Talks about being very close to going bankrupt but are now growing fast!  300% in 2 years with $180 million in revenue.  

Talks about how they digitize the trucking process. Talks about how they use data, dashboards and analytics to improve decision making.  Talks about the two reasons why startups fail. Why three is the magic number in founding a startup. 

What to look for in a co-founder and the qualities you need to be a COO. Talks about the golden rule in growing a 2 sided market. Why do they employ data scientists? 

Talks about not getting carried away with valuations & Why is the transport industry still 20 years behind? And finally he talks about whether you!.. YES YOU! should pursue entrepreneurship or stay in your 9-5  job and much more! So please enjoy the show. 

In this conversation we also talk about:

• Ecommerce is booming.
• How they matching supply & demand
• Dealing with resistance to change.
• Beating the competition by entering Tier 2 cities.
• First impressions of his co-founders
• He shares what he looks for in hiring (do something entrepreneurial)
• Books/podcasts recommendations
• Creating a blue ocean & staying away from the red oceans
• Why the focussed initially on Delhi and Bangalore
• How they improve the life of truckers.
• 75K trucks on the platform

and much more!

Links

https://www.ezyhaul.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

If everything is going digital why not theatre? Today I speak to Shreyas Talpade, actor , director , producer and now he is entering the exciting world of entrepreneurship building India's first ever streaming platform dedicated to Theatre and Performing Arts called Nine Rasa. This platform  gives you access to several hours of plays, skits, story-telling, stand-Ups, chats and more across several languages. In this episode he talks about how the idea got conceptualised during the pandemic. Talks abut how the platform works, developing the ecosystem and being a first time entrepreneur. He talks about the decision making process on what goes on the platform and what doesn't. Shreyas then goes on to talk about his acting career including his big break,  learning the craft, getting recognised for the first time. Talks about dealing with directors & writers and finally he talks about why you should ignore the critics , stop overthinking and just go do it!

In this conversation we also talk about:

• Streaming 100hrs of content
• The rise and fall and now the rise of theatre in india. 
• Millennials liking the concept
• Who are they targeting?
• Everyone's a critic!
• Could he have made it as a cricketer after staring in Iqbal?
• Dealing with the emotional side of acting. 
• Getting out of the comfort zone & thinking outside the box
• Theatre classics v  new content.
• Not spending any money on marketing
• Advice for first time entrepreneurs
• Why he is not competing with  Netflix and other streaming services? 

And much more!

Links 

https://www.ninerasa.com/portal/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Making it easier and cheaper for e-rickshaw drivers to earn a livelihood. Today my guest is Varun Goenka, CEO & Co-Founder of ChargeUp. Charge-up offers the simple solution of Battery as a Service (BAAS)  to a growing community of 2.4 million E-Rickshaws. 

The company enables the e-rickshaw drivers to join the service without any upfront costs. By subscribing to a daily battery rental plan. Charge-up allows the drivers to visit the swapping station as many as 2-3 times a day to swap the discharged batteries with fully charged batteries. 

In this episode he talks about how he got started by talking to over 500 drivers, finding huge pain points on the way. He will explain what they are. Talks about working backwards to create product market fit , which they did in 12 months. Talks about traction, the business model  and how they use technology and data to grow the business. E.g driver behaviour, patterns, performance analytics and how they leverage the data.   

Talks about missing out on the opportunity in solar and what he  learned. Talks about the positive impact they have on drivers earnings and the environment.  Talks about trying influencer marketing, partnerships with dealers. How fast they are growing. Thoughts on oil/fossil  companies. He talks why reading Bhagavad Gita helps and finally he talks about having a growth mindset and why being a backbencher at school helped!

In this conversation we talk about:

• Battery technology
• Product research
• Helping drivers overcome range anxiety & increase revenue
• Overcoming negative feedback from the battery dealers.
• How they stop the theft of batteries
• How they build trust with drivers and dealers
• Having a co-founder with 'no attitude'
• Pay per use v buying the asset
• 'Imagination is more important than knowledge' - Albert Einstein
• Last mile connectivity/shared mobility
• Thoughts on the indian Government role in the clean tech space.
• Working on B2B deliveries
• The experience of driving an electric vehicle.
• Thoughts on bootstrapping

and much more

Links

https://echargeup.com/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Every year 300,000 wheelchairs are sold in india. 95% of all wheelchairs are one -size fits all. Imagine wearing shoes and everyone has to wear size 14 shoes! So today my guest is Swostik Dash, CEO & Co-Founder of Neomotion. This Chennai-based startup has developed a personalised wheelchair, and a battery-powered clip-on device that converts the wheelchair into a roadworthy electric vehicle. 

So they helping people with disabilities to live a more independent life with their products. So in this episode he talks about how the journey started by talking to 200 Wheelchair users in 40 locations around india. Talks about the initial stages product development. You will learn how  he makes decisions around feature requests.

Talks about how they balance creating impactful products, social change while making money at the same time. Talks about the main 5 metrics he checks every morning. Why don't they go after fancy features.  Interesting thoughts on what Wheelchairs will look like in 100 years time . Talks about the donation drive business model, major milestones. And finally talks about the huge impact he is making on people's lives.

In this conversation we also talk about:

• Why they don't want VC funding yet.
• Traction & sales so far
• Customisations -No two wheelchairs are the same. 
• Supply chain management
• Manufacturing / fulfilling orders/ quality control
• Proof of concepts
• Advice on product development 
• Product iterations
• What they are working on right now.
• What went wrong in the early days.
• Enabling wheelchair users to live life to the fullest. 
• Advice for first time founders.
• Using a whiteboard to deal with negative and positive feedback
• Product design advice
• Why you shouldn't get stuck on your idea
• ‘Startup is a systematic risk minimisation’ - Warren Buffet. 
• Solving the problem of Indoor and outdoor mobility

and much more

Links

https://www.neomotion.in/

P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Cryptocurrency is a trillion dollar industry & with a billion people in India the potential is huge! So today my guest Edul Patel CEO of Mudrex. A Y-Combinator startup building an algorithmic trading platform for cryptocurrency.  

They help crypto traders create, test and deploy their trading rules into automated trading algorithms without writing code. Started back in 2011 reading the original white paper while still in college and now they are growing 40% month on month. They have 2.5k paying customers and $10 million of assets under management. 

So today you will find out how he got his first 1k customers. Insights into the crypto scene in india. Talks about the hype/greed/fear/excitement/ in crypto. Are crypto trading bots better than human traders? 

Talks about the best advice he received at YC(19)  & the intense 24 hr demo day. Edul shares his product strategies on how products should be built and should they how they should be killed. The 3 books he gives to all his employees. And finally I talk to Edul about my first week as a crypto trader! So we talk about portfolios & trading advice. 

Please note I am not a financial advisor. So please seek financial advice and if you're interested in buying crypto please see the link on the show notes.

In this conversation we also talk about

• Traction
• The Crypto lightbulb moment
• Indian regulations
• Who are they targeting? 
• Talks about why crypto is so volatile (or is it?) 
• Dealing with user experiences issues in the early days..
• The challenge indian regulations dealing with crypto and what he would change.
• Happy to let his bots trade while sleeping.
• After 10 years finally breaking even and making profit
• Deal making advice (less is more)
• 3 key skills to become a product manager (32.49)
• Whats can do wrong in crypto
• Advice for first time product managers with no experience
• Dealing with stress. 
• Originally building a crypto exchange for India.

Links

https://mudrex.com/

P.S

Earn $10 USD in bitcoin

gemini.com/share/qng4qpxce

P.P.S

if you need something to do during these challenging and difficult times and want some inspiration and need some creativity. check out Skillshare. Skillshare is an online learning community with thousands of classes in design, business, tech, and more. Anyone can join the millions of members in our community to learn cutting-edge skills, network with peers and discover new opportunities.

Try Premium free for 2 months and access all my classes!

https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/neilpatel

music by Punch Deck.

 https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV

Hosted And Produced by Neil Patel 

https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/neilpatel2

Enjoyed this episode? Don’t forget to subscribe and leave us a review! Share this episode with your friends.

Listen and Subscribe to More Episodes

https://www.indianstartupshow.com/

Music by Punch Deck.

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7kdduxAVaFnbHJyNxl7FWV