What I learnt from building a deep tech company
Starting. Failing. Scaling. Learning. Exiting. Now what?
 |
šš½ Ahoy!
It has been a minute, a pandemic and then some. To dial your memory, my team and I were building the worlds first No-Code platform for making Virtual & Augmented Reality experiences. We called it Scapic, mostly because the domain was available and partly ended up being a word that everyone made a mistake on.
We started Scapic with a goal to be the simplest way you create, share and explore AR, VR & 3D experiences. Since then, we've seen hundreds of thousands of experiences generated on Scapic's No-Code platform. Towards the end of last year, Scapic was acquired by Flipkart.
A few things have changed since then, but the mission to bring Augmented Reality to a billion Indians, is now stronger than ever.
The journey of building Scapic, or any deep-tech startup is not for the faint hearted. If any of your friends tell you that they are going to build a deep-tech startup, the biggest favour you can do is to shoot them, while they are still happy.
If they still persist, send them this newsletter because itās meant to help with tactical insights on what it takes to build right on the frontiers of tech. Iām writing Battle Cards to be the stash of information that I wish I had, when starting up.
The journey so far
Ever since Engineering undergrad, Iāve been trying to make things.
Most donāt work out, but some do. Looking back over 8 years of trying to launch products, 3 unique phases stand out, and I documented each of them:
š Startup 1: Aeriem:
Adaptive learning LMS for K-12 education
šµ Startup 2: Supertext:
WhatsApp based hyperlocal delivery
š„½ Startup 3: Scapic:
No-Code platform for Augmented Reality
Every journey taught me something new, something that changed how I see the world, and pave the way further ahead.
A shiny new website
We do not have enough software developers in the world, and in turn, great quality software. The No-Code revolution is something Iām deeply excited about for changing this. So, decided to launch thesaitec.com as a site to capture the things I do, the startups I advise and what Iām passionate about.
Launching Battle Cards
Startups = speed of execution
Faster execution = more chances of mistakes
To Avoid mistakes = read and learn
Battle Cards is a newsletter about ideas, principles and actionable insight into what goes behind building deep-tech products. Here is a quick post on what Battle Cards are, and why build it:
Initially, I experimented with screenshot sized essays that are optimised for mobile reading. Whilst the content resonated, the format, seemed better suited to be a newsletter format
One of the first Battle Cards I wanted to write out was a map of reflection that I found useful as a founder, after Scapicās acquisition. I think a good map of reflection is incredibly useful, and wrote more about it here:
Launching things in 2021
This year, my goal is to better document my learnings as an entrepreneur, builder and product geek. There are several launches that Iām deeply excited for. Through it all, Iād look to document my learnings often using Battle Cards. Adjust your veshtis as weāre just getting started.
Lotās done.
Lotās more to do.
āļø & š„,
Saitec
Create your profile
Only paying subscribers can comment on this post
Check your email
For your security, we need to re-authenticate you.
Click the link we sent to , or click here to log in.