IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BRAINSTER 🎓

Is branding or rebranding on your to-do list? 🎨

The students from the Graphic Design Academy by Brainster are ready to work with your startup.

✅Implementation period: 27.08.2024 - 19.09.2024

✅First come, first served

✅Collaborate with 50+ students on your project

✅Choose from over 40 solutions for your project

✅$0 (zero) cost

In return, you will offer an internship or employment to one of the talents you find to be a perfect fit (which can include candidates from other academies as well).

Does a new brand or rebrand by summer's end sound cool?

Shoot your email over to [email protected] and get things branding done.

INTEL 🧠

TFGxclusive - BioHide in the hot seat!

The inaugural edition of The Founder Games Exclusives is reserved for the best!

We have the exclusive opportunity to meet Nadica from BioHide, the team that's changing the world one SCOBY at a time and the inaugural winners of the first season.

A swift start 👉 Leather & Hide (BioHide) is breaking new ground in sustainable materials with kombucha-based bio-leather.

Nadica, Bisera, and Angelina are the founding team, each expert in their respective fields, contributing to the overall success of this novel idea that has grown into an award-winning startup recognized for its commitment to sustainability and innovation.

This interview aims to bring you closer to BioHide by introducing you to the team, their valuable entrepreneurship advice firsthand, their journey through The Founder Games, and much more.

LEVEL UP ⬆️

Curious about the latest State of Innovation?

As an entrepreneur, it's always beneficial to have double-checked facts, opinions, and trends from fellow entrepreneurs who are also betting on the future, just like you.

Just recently, Techstars published their second annual ‘State of Innovation’ report, packed with valuable insights. We've done the reading for you and will now present the top 6 key takeaways you should know.

Heads up: Techstars is a global pre-seed investor that offers capital, mentorship, and support for early-stage entrepreneurs. Since 2006, they have been operating in 13 countries with 48 accelerator programs across 35 cities. To date, over 4,000 startups have graduated from their programs, with a cumulative market cap of $113.6 billion.

#1 76% of startup founders are mostly optimistic about their startup's outlook.

Despite all the challenges in the macroeconomic environment, the lack of talent, rapid AI developments, and more, 60% of founders claim that access to capital is the top issue facing their companies.

On the contrary, 64% of VCs report that sourcing high-quality startups and entrepreneurs is their primary issue these days.

#2 The vision of startup founders is to be acquired by a big tech company or large corporation.

Staying private and independent is the second most popular option.

It's interesting to note that IPOs are currently not in the picture.

#3 One in three startup founders work more than 60 hours a week.

More than half of them reported experiencing high stress and anxiety in the past year.

If you're feeling tired, you're not alone. Moreover, these founders do not foresee returning to the office; 59% expect to work flexibly in the next five years.

#4 According to the report,the ten most innovative sectors currently are:

DeepTech, HealthTech, FinTech, Sustainability, Enterprise & SaaS, Gaming, Media & Entertainment, Aerospace & Defense, Advanced Manufacturing, Web3, and Future of Work.

#5When it comes to AI, 41% claim that it is adirect component of their business.

However, the majority of other founders focus on different technologies, using AI either as an enabler or not at all.

#6 The top five most innovative cities/hubs today

are Silicon Valley, New York City, Singapore, Tel Aviv, and London.

In closing, these findings offer a fascinating glimpse into the current trends shaping the startup world. Staying informed about these insights can provide valuable guidance for anyone navigating the entrepreneurial landscape.

STARTUP NEWS RADAR 📡

_{What’s happening these days?}

• Microsoft and Apple are leaving their observer seats on the OpenAI’s board due to regulatory scrutiny. [source]

• A rundown of today's most engaged investors. [source]

• Runaway Financial is currently the most talked-about topic in the VC world. It secured $22.75 million from Garry Tan and Initialized Capital. The funding will support further development of its intuitive platform for financial modeling, headcount planning, department budgeting, and more. The platform integrates with over 650 business tools covering HR, CRM, accounting, and other areas. It also includes AI features that assist teams in gaining deeper financial insights and automating workflows. [source]

• Involved in e-commerce? Secure your spot early for the upcoming 7th regional e-commerce conference happening this November in Skopje. [limited early bird ticket here]

• Building something cool in AI? Apply to Batch 4 of AI Grant - the accelerator for AI startups by August 9. More details here 💰

THE STARTUP VAULT 🗃️

_{Founders take note:}

• Use Talisman to audit, manage and plan your recurring expenses

• Try Scrintal to convert your creative ideas into structured knowledge

• Klap turns your videos into viral shorts

• Should entrepreneurs take time off? Get great tips on balancing hard work and relaxation in this podcast 🎧

• How do you keep up with the Gen Zs? A breakdown of behaviors to apply to your business in this article.

• Watch the making of Devin and some of the lessons this team has learned while building the first AI software engineer.

*Working on something that fits this category? Reply to this email to be featured.

Hey ChatGPT 🤖

write a cold email to a prospective customer to introduce them to my <niche> company and how it can benefit them with <insert unique selling points>

Guess the term of the week 🕵

_____________________________ is a continuous process of collecting, analyzing, and acting on customer feedback to improve products and services.

reply to this email for a hint and/or send us your best answer.

NOTEWORTHY TWEETS 🐦

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT 🍿