Topic:   Startups

Venture-building as a venture capitalist, and insights into Web3 for customer acquisition and retention :: with Jonathan Hung

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Jonathan Hung (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanhung/) and I discuss all-things venture building/investing, his work as a venture capitalist, and the story of his startup, Kitchen Data Systems (https://kitchdata.com/). We talk about advice for emerging fund managers, how founders and startup investors should be thinking about the current state of the market, the potential for Web3, interesting startup markets for investing, and general advice for entrepreneurs today.

A call to action for Web3 entrepreneurs

Will's General Newsletter (Weekly) :: Oct 11, 2022

Web3 product management and decentralized executive leadership: A call to action

In this episode of Ventures, I (https://www.linkedin.com/in/wclittle/) share a short monologue about Web3, product management, and leadership in Web3 startups, especially in Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs). I talk briefly about the history of Web1/2/3, Balaji Srinivasan’s book The Network State, a call-to-action for Web3 product managers and leaders, and how to distribute key CEO-like responsibilities in DAOs.

How to generate compelling startup ideas :: with Mike Anderson

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Mike Anderson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeandersonjr/) and I discuss all-things startup ideation in the modern era. In light of this being the topic of Week 1 of Prota’s new incubator (https://www.protaventures.com/labs), we dive into what makes a good idea, what makes a bad idea, how and why to integrate your idea with your own skills and knowledge of a market, how to reverse-engineer ideas based on what investors and consumers want, why finding startup ideas has changed over the years, and the importance of maintaining vision and grit through challenging seasons of startup life.

Web3 gaming, token incentives, and deciding between for-profit and non-profit when starting a venture

Will's General Newsletter (Weekly) :: Sept 27, 2022

Web3 gaming, designing token incentives, and the Haste Arcade story :: with Joe De Pinto

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Joe De Pinto (Co-Founder of https://www.HasteArcade.com) and I discuss his entrepreneurial journey from being a professional baseball player to starting a Web3 company. We talk about his choice to build on BSV, what that experience has been like, the types of games that are available in the arcade, the marketing strategies his team has used, entrepreneurial lessons learned, Web3 features deployed, and overall thoughts about the promise of Web3.

Self-sovereign identity for sports fans, influencer engagement in web3, and the Encore.fans story :: with Mike Sorgenfrei

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Mike Sorgenfrei (https://www.linkedin.com/in/msorgenfrei/) and I discuss his web3 startup, Encore (https://encore.fans). We talk about its origin story, where Encore fits in the marketing software stack for an athlete/influencer, self-sovereign identity for fans, how Verified Credentials are being used, how to build a profile of a fan by allowing them to opt-in their data directly, and the entrepreneurial journey that Mike and his team have taken to get a web3 startup off the ground.

More details about the upcoming Oct 4th incubator (that you should apply to) :)

Will's General Newsletter (Weekly) :: Sept 12, 2022

Incubator Deep Dive: FAQ and syllabus details of the upcoming startup ideation cohort hosted by Prota Ventures (Oct 4th Start, Apply Today) :: with Mike Anderson

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Mike Anderson (https://twitter.com/MikeyAnderson) and I discuss in much greater detail the syllabus, ideal candidates, and time commitment of the new ideation incubator (https://www.protaventures.com/labs) that we introduced in episode 112 (https://satchel.works/@wclittle/ventures-episode-112). We talk in depth about the range of founders who should apply (from “pre-idea” to “pre-seed” teams), the outcomes of the incubator, info sessions on Fridays leading up to Oct 4th start, the minimal time commitment required, and a short synopsis of each of the 16 sessions of the program in October, November, and December of 2022. As a quick reminder, this incubator is free and 100% remote; we are happy to serve and welcome founders at the idea stage from all over the world.

Introducing the New Startup Incubator Program Hosted by Prota Ventures (Begins Oct 4th, Apply Today) :: with Mike Anderson

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Mike Anderson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeandersonjr/) and I discuss the launch of a new startup incubator program hosted by Prota Ventures (learn more and apply here → https://www.protaventures.com/labs). We talk about the program’s background, motivation, vision, details, mentorship and investor opportunities, cohort model, and more. Prota has an enormously successful track record of incubating and investing in startups at their earliest stages. This new incubator is for those who either want to work as a startup CEO on an existing idea, bring their own idea to the table, and/or propose a general market area for us to incubate a new startup idea together within.

The past, present, and future of FinTech and DeFi :: with Drew Glover

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Drew Glover (https://www.linkedin.com/in/drewbailerglover/) and I discuss all-things FinTech, growth, venture capital, and Decentralized Finance (DeFi). We cover his background co-founding Fiat Growth (https://www.fiatgrowth.com/), raising a $15m fund w/ Fiat Ventures (https://www.fiat.vc/), the overall FinTech landscape, advice for founders leveling up their growth strategies, and the future of finance technology for entrepreneurs and the rest of the world.

Web3 data for engineers, and knowing how to practically start a startup

Will's General Newsletter (Weekly) :: Aug 16, 2022

Accessing blockchain data for practical Web3 development, the SubQuery story :: with James Bayly

In this episode of Ventures, my guest James Bayly (https://twitter.com/jamesabayly) and I discuss SubQuery (https://subquery.network), including information that Web3 developers need to know about how to practically access data from blockchains to engineer decentralized applications. We talk about the various APIs available, where SubQuery fits in the Web3 data availability landscape, the difference between indexers and RPC nodes, SubQuery’s financial model, and what excites James about the Web3 space in general.

Entrepreneurship, Web3, and identifying solid venture ideas

Will's General Newsletter (Weekly) :: Aug 9, 2022

Web3, Open Mobility Data, and the Digital Infrastructure for Moving Objects (DIMO) story :: with Andy Chatham

In this episode of Ventures, my guest Andy Chatham (https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-chatham-a5a45825/) and I talk about Digital Infrastructure for Moving Objects (DIMO, https://dimo.zone/). We discuss the background and story of the project, why giving people an open platform for mobility data matters, the journey of creating and shipping a hardware product, parallels to the Helium network, keeping OEMs accountable, and the future vision of DIMO to create a positive impact on our world.