Source: news.google.com
Running any tech startup is a monumental task. However, running a startup in the world of Web3, with its layers of technical knowledge, rapidly evolving ecosystem, and ever-changing demands from regulators, is certainly more difficult. That’s often where accelerators come in.
Simply put, an accelerator is an organization that helps existing startups grow and develop. Your team often includes experts from a variety of backgrounds. In a Web3 context, this often includes those with a thorough understanding of tokenomics, metaverse, and how best to match a project idea to the needs of the ever-changing Web3 marketplace.
Most accelerators will also bring with them opportunities for networking, marketing and PR experience, and a contact book to help establish your projects in the broader ecosystem.
Accelerators exist in every industry, though their presence is especially important in technology, where rapid growth and strong fundamentals can make or break a project in its early days. In short, these expertise centers can take a project from vision to execution.
Elnaz Sarraf, founder and CEO of Roybi Robot and Roybiverse, has certainly found them useful. In 2019, Roybi Robot, an intelligent toy robot designed to help young children learn multiple languages and STEM skills, was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine as one of the Top 100 Inventions of the Year in Education.
Accelerators can break down the doors of Web3
In the wake of that success, Sarraf and the team had their eyes on the horizon, and Web3 was rising to the top. “We always wanted to be one of the first companies to introduce new technologies to the industry,” he says. “But also, the education sector is very traditional. I remember talking to a couple of investors about Web3 and blockchain, and they looked at me like I was a completely crazy person.”
Sarraf and the team coolly approached Matterblock, whose founders had been working in the space for several years. For them, deciding whether or not to participate in a project is largely based on dedication, IQ, and IQ (intelligence and emotional quotient), says Zia Word, one of the two co-founders. “She is a true example of what I am talking about. She built these companies and slept on a factory floor in China to get [Roybi Robot] delivered, not only on time, but six months in advance.”
Sarraf and his praise are a bit of an outlier. I’m told that for many Web3 startups, many processes need to be reconfigured or thrown out entirely, Zia says. “In traditional startups, you have things like MVP (minimum viable product), which is to test whether what you’re building is really necessary.”
Web3 startups work a little differently
A replacement for that is community building, a modus operandi that has characterized many pre-launch Web3 startups. “It’s hard on Web3 because you’re often creating new categories or building new technologies.”
Co-founder and CEO of Web3 accelerator The Blox, Ben Constanty, also believes we are in a different era. “Many ideas at this stage simply don’t have an existing market,” he says. “It’s impossible to determine if a product will fit the product-market without placing all your hopes in the founders’ ability to deliver first. We try to bring in entrepreneurs who can iterate quickly and pivot when necessary so that we can repeat the process over and over again until we find the right product for the market.”
In multiple conversations with BeInCrypto, the emphasis on founder quality was a recurring theme. Above all else, project managers need mental toughness, coachability and an execution-focused mindset, says Nathalie Oestmann, chief operating officer at Outlier Ventures. “Founders who don’t embody these traits are ultimately the ones who experience the biggest startup problems.”
Outlier Ventures has a 12 week ‘Base Camp’ program for early stage startups. Seed investments refer to the early stages of a company’s development, when the company receives its first round of funding for product development, market research, and hiring.
Being the founder of a startup is an incredibly tumultuous journey, and there is a constant need to change plans and make adjustments at any stage of this process,” he continues.
The most successful founders are those who are open to receiving advice, learning, and adapting. “As we always tell startup founders, these learnings can lead to big changes to your business plan that aren’t easy to make but ultimately lead to a stronger, more resilient business model.”
Startups need a strong team
According to Thomas Rush, a partner at Consensys Mesh, founded in 2015 by Joseph Lubin, one of the co-founders of Ethereum, the strength of the people is often more important than the idea. Especially since it’s so early in the process. “The team is number one for us,” he says. “We know that things are going to change in the future. That could be next week or in six months. Our bread and butter have been working with highly technical teams and then helping them build up more business operating experience or go-to-market experience, whether it’s sales or scaling and recruiting.”
According to multiple sources who spoke to BeInCrypto, a staggering number of Web3 startups fail. You can find various numbers on the internet, but the consensus is that the vast majority fall apart in the first few years. So, to put it mildly, the pressure is on from the start.
That pressure can encourage navel gazing and a lack of perspective. That’s something to be careful about, Rush says. Teams need to understand and adapt to the world around them. “If a team can’t articulate why their business is going to be successful because of things that are external to the business itself, that’s not a red flag, but it’s definitely something we look for and want to encourage people to consider.”
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