🚀 Shipping web3 founders to the moon

Gm, this is the doodhwala, we’re your Master Shifu, here to guide you through the difficult crypto world.

This newsletter is for all the BUIDLers out there. 😎

We get it buidling is hard!

Especially when you’re tryna convince a bunch of people that web3 is the way of the future.

You’re doing a TON of things from:

Fundraising to Marketing to Community building to Boiling your own doodh! 🥛

You could use some help.

And we spoke to just the guy who can help.

😇 Web2 ticketing to Web3 incubation

Today’s Saturday!

And we’re back with another dope conversation with an Indian crypto guest.

This guy is:

• crypto OG (since 2015)

• former CEO of a web2 company

• CEO of Foundership, a web3 incubator

• real-life doodhwala (not like those fake newsletters)

Today, we’re talking to Santosh Panda, he’s not an actual panda don’t worry 🐼

Santosh is building the next-best incubator for web3 builders.

The funny thing is he started his web3 journey by attending meetups, and now he’s speaking at a TON of them.

Santosh has worked with over 50 Indian web3 companies. In this conversation, he tells us about the companies he’s eyeing and what trends will win in the future.

You do not want to miss this one. 🤩

If you want to listen to the conversation, check out our podcast with Santosh 👇

🍼 Do you just work with web3 companies only? Or anything in the tech side

When we started Foundership we thought of experimenting with other companies.

But I got more confidence in how web3 founders need a lot more support than — SAAS, B2C, or DTC companies.

My focus is web3 companies.

That’s what I say when someone sends me a DM on LinkedIn.

If you’re in web3, let’s talk. If not talk to someone else.

But we’re not limited to any chain or any niche within web3 (like DeFi, gaming, or Metaverse).

This gives us a wider canvas to engage with prolific people.

In the first batch of LaunchCampg, we had gaming, NFTs, DeFi, and community protocols.

We’re all over the place currently. But as we continue, we might get into certain niches.

🍼 Why the focus on web3, we get it’s cool and all to put it in your Twitter bio. But why are you focusing on helping web3 founders?

Before Foundership I was running Explara, a ticketing platform.

While at Explara, I had some unfair advantages.

Back in 2015-16, all the Ethereum conferences and meetups were powered by Explara.

So, I had first-hand information of — what’s happening? who’s hosting it?

That got me interested in buying Bitcoin and getting into ICOs.

Then in 2020, I wanted to do a new thing.

I started a small initiative where I’d said, “if you’re a founder from tier 2 or tier 3 cities, book my calendar and let’s talk.’

That got me 176 bookings in 4 months.

That got me thinking, we should give back to the ecosystem.

In Jan 2021, we decided to get started with a niche.

We thought of doing this with:

• B2C • D2C • No-code • Healthcare

Then web3 happened and BOOM the world opened up.

And we found our zone.

🍼 Are you following the YCombinator model with Foundership where you accelerate startups in return for equity?

Yes definitely, that’s a good analogy.

Back when YC started in 2005, the companies that went to them were experiments.

But now, the YC companies are polished. They’re going to YC to get to that next level.

Nowadays, founders are not going to YC to “start-up.” They aren’t going at a pre-seed stage.

They’re going at a seed stage or a seed to Series A stage.

So, YC is great in terms of the network effect.

But Foundership works with companies at the idea stage.

This needs a whole new treatment altogether.

So, instead of having an 11-week program (like YC). We have a 6-month program.

Because in web3 things move so fast — what you building in 3 months is broken in the 4th month. 💀

YC already had a network effect. We don't have that yet, but we’re building this with CoachDAO.

And we have a 3-week incubation campaign for founders specifically for path clearance. Because we don’t want founders to waste months building the wrong thing or the right thing for the wrong audience.

A lot of accelerators have this concept of bringing people as mentors to run masterclasses, with no context.

Most of this is a PR stunt that founders do not need.

In CoachDAO we take 1.5% as equity, and a third of that is for the coaches who are engaging with the token.

Beyond this, we don’t take anything upfront. To meet our day to day expenses, we rely on grants from various foundations.

This is an accountable and unique model.

And our startups are loving it!

🍼 What are some of the v v cool projects that you’re excited about? And what’s the process like in Foundership?

Before that, let’s be honest — nobody gets it right the first time.

But in the current batch, we’ve seen some great founders.

For instance:

• *Trikl: A way for written content creators to monetize content*

• *Linkdot: A web3 system for community based reputation*

• *Recorem: Building a simplified solution for web3 hiring*

• *Aureal: A way to monetize podcasts using web3*

In the first batch we had about 50+ companies register.

We met 32 in Bangalore. 18 came through to the 3-week camp. And finally 7 qualified for the first Foundership batch.

These 7 will go into the 6-month Foundership camp.

Our second batch will be done by the end of the year, from which we’ll select about 8 web3 startups.

The 6-month camp will start next year tho.

Next year, we’re targeting 60 startups for the 6-month Foundership camp. And the 3 year target is 220 startups.

We’re looking beyond India to include — Dubai and the APAC region as well.

💡 Fun fact: A lot of gaming studios from Vietnam are applying to Foundership.

🍼 Have you thought about web3 ways to earn revenue? Something like a $FOUND token which people (like us) can invest in which will in-turn invest in the Foundership companies?

I think we would be…that’s the whole point of web3’s tokenized participation.

But maybe not in the immediate time frame.

When we started, we asked ourselves — who needs the maximum support?

The answer was the Founders.

And that support was in the form of guidance, not tokenomics.

We decided to help these companies first.

Regardless of if they have a token.

Once they’re successful, the network effect will kick in. And from there we can think of a token model for Foundership. But this is after our network and the web3 economy develop.

Compare this with YC.

With all due respect to YC, can the $580 billion valuation of YC startups be distributed?

Probably not.

But in Foundership it can. So that there’s an opportunity for everyone!

And maybe later on if we do launch a token, a Foundership company can even get an airdrop.

With web3 for the first time, there’s a way for people to be part of long-term wealth creation.

CoachDAO allows that in one form.

But largely that’s how the work should create networks, through community tokens.

🍼 What kinda founders do you like to work with? Not just the product and what they’re building but the personality of the people building it.

The number one thing is the founder needs to be determined. I want to work with founders who try, figure it out, and succeed.

It’s not just about the idea. It’s about the passion with which a founder says, “Hey, I’m here to leave my mark!”

The second I look at is founders who are willing to unlearn. Things are moving so fast that what worked till yesterday won’t work tomorrow in web3.

The third is founders have to have a movement mindset.

They need to be flag bearers and move people around them! Not just the web3 folk, but they also need to educate customers about their product.

In web3, you can’t really build in silos and hope people come.

You have to go out there, be active, and social, and then people will come.

These are the kind of founders I like. Ones who are determined, are willing to unlearn, with a movement mindset.

🍼 You’re coming across a lot of dope folks buidling in web3. What are some of the interesting trends you’re noticing?

There are some fantastic examples within the Indian ecosystem already.

I’m really bullish on what Huddle is doing. As well as Gitopia!

We’re gonna see a lot of these kinds of tools coming in — infrastructure tools, tools for developers, analytics for developers, and more.

Another area I want to initiate in some way is — open source.

How about building open-source tools with a DAO philosophy?

Let’s recreate this in the web3 world with:

• distributed ownership

• self-thriving revenue model

• and of course open-source access

I would say, take on the property stronghold systems that you can take on in an open-source manner.

🍼 Lastly, and most importantly — how do you take your doodh Santosh?

You won’t believe this! We had a dairy farm when I was a kid.

In my childhood, I sold milk to my friend’s families. I was an actual doodhwala, so you’re speaking to the right person.

I love doodh in all forms, raw as well as in sweets. 🍨

Big ups to Santosh Panda for chilling with us and teaching us the way of the Foundership.

Give him a 👋 and let him know the Doodhwala sent ya!

#ShipLikeFoundership

If you want more doodh then, be sure to follow our Twitter (@DoodhwalaDaily)

That’s all for today bhaiyo aur bheno! Naale Sigona!

Aakash "Dahi Cheeni" Athawasya & Arvind "Doodh Peda" Krishna

Yo! Our legal and financial advisors (aka our good ol’ conscience) have asked us to add this boring disclaimer.

None of what you read here is financial advice. We aren’t here to get you to buy or sell a crypto. We’re only here to tell you what’s up in crypto today and make you laugh. So, if you screwed up on a trade, that’s on you G. Stay safe in the markets.