Zuhayeer is the founder of Levels.fyi, a platform that lets you compare salaries across big tech companies. This is the story of how he turned Levels.fyi from a side project into a million dollar startup. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Zuhayeer: https://twitter.com/zuhayeer · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Levels.fyi: https://www.levels.fyi Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:19 - Meeting his cofounder 8:41 - How they monetized 20:03 - Shifting from growth to company building 21:58 - Why they built a mobile app 27:29 - What's next marketing-wise 30:06 - Will Devin kill engineers? 37:44 - How to land a job in tech 40:56 - What's Levels.fyi built on 43:34 - Are you hiring?
Evan is the founder of The SF Compute Company, a cloud computing company that sells GPU clusters for AI models. This is the story of how he became one of the fastest growing AI companies in less than a year by betting the entire company every month. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Evan: https://twitter.com/evanjconrad · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · The SF Compute Company: https://twitter.com/sfcompute Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:12 - Betting the company every month 7:59 - $1M in profit in 6 months 9:36 - Getting their first customers 14:33 - SF founders and politics 19:08 - Is SaaS dying? 29:20 - Managing time as a founder 31:44 - Joining YC because of exposure therapy (crazy) 35:32 - What to prioritize in a startup 41:20 - Mitigating risk
Aman is the founder of Deeptrust, an AI deepfake detection startup that's helping you trust what you see and hear on the Internet. We talked about OpenAI's new text to video model SORA , the terrifying success rate of AI fraud, and how to (theoretically) scam someone for $1M using AI. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Aman: https://twitter.com/amanmibra · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Deeptrust: https://twitter.com/deeptrustAI Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 4:26 - OpenAI SORA 12:09 - Fighting deepfakes 17:10 - Election fraud 18:34 - How Deeptrust helps 23:15 - AI scams to look out for 30:33 - How to scam $1M 35:56 - Managing priorities as a founder 37:34 - How to trust what you see
Prady is the founder of Sync Labs, an AI research company that’s building real time lip-syncing. This is the story of how he used viral Twitter marketing to build a deep tech research startup. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Prady: https://twitter.com/therealprady · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Sync Labs: https://synclabs.so/ Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 3:04 - Going viral on Twitter 12:00 - YC, F.inc, and Buildspace 15:29 - How will AI impact communication? 19:20 - Will AGI replace us? 22:09 - AI lifehack as a founder 27:04 - Making content for your personal brand 30:02 - Synthetic humans are coming 33:11 - What’s the longterm plan?
Dylan is the founder of Evergreen, a crypto mining hardware company that he started out of his dad's garage. This is the story of exactly how he growth hacked his way to over $3.5 million in revenue.
Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Dylan: https://twitter.com/dylanmrose · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Evergreen: https://evergreenminer.com/ Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 11:31 - How they went to market 17:33 - The hard thing about hardware 25:04 - Building the team 28:15 - Learnings from big tech 33:01 - Will we run out of energy? 38:27 - The future of consumer electronics 40:07 - How to get into crypto mining
Sharif is the founder of Lexica, a Midjourney killer that he grew to 1 million users with basically 0 zero employes. This is the story of how he went from couch surfing to building one of the most popular AI image generators. We're on Skool: https://skool.com/thedock Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/devs Links: · Sharif: https://twitter.com/sharifshameem · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Lexica: https://lexica.art/ · Founders, Inc.: https://f.inc Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 7:38 - Pivoting from his last startup 19:53 - The future of AI content creation 25:08 - Why the team has 0 marketers 28:16 - Moving to SF (Furqan’s couch) 35:36 - How far is AGI? 46:07 - Will the Vision Pro replace our phones?
Rahul is the founder of Julius, an AI app that he scaled to 300k users in just 6 months. This is the story of how he pranked global news, met Elon Musk, and built a ChatGPT killer. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: https://f.inc/studio Links: · Rahul: https://twitter.com/0interestrates · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Founders, Inc.: https://f.inc · JuliusAI: https://julius.ai/ Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 7:24 - Reviving dead users 10:47 - How to ask your friends for help 17:43 - Pranking the world 21:55 - Meeting Elon Musk 26:45 - Managing a small team 30:11 - Do you need a mobile app? 36:08 - Live brainstorm
Julian cofounded and scaled Wisdolia to over $300,000 in less than a year. This is the story of how he used TikTok marketing to go from an almost failing startup to a viral AI education tool. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: f.inc/studio Links: · Julian: https://twitter.com/InfiniteJulian0 · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Founders, Inc.: https://f.inc · Wisdolia: https://www.wisdolia.com/Cred Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 0:39 - The experiment that saved Wisdolia 5:27 - The TikTok growth playbook 11:27 - How to reach your target customer 19:56 - Why paid ads didn't work 25:06 - Structuring a small team 27:21 - Current product experiments 29:08 - How to use referrals as a growth hack 33:21 - Suspended from college 40:00 - How AI will change education forever
Alex Schachne cofounded and grew Leap from 0 to $500k+ in his first 10 months. This is the story of how he went from booking a one-way ticket across the country to building an AI company with a $10M valuation. Help us start companies from scratch in the Studio: f.inc/studio Links: · Alex: https://twitter.com/thealexshaq · Omar: https://twitter.com/omarwasm · Founders, Inc.: https://f.inc · Leap: https://tryleap.ai Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:22 - Background 6:32 - Choosing a marketing channel 17:02 - Turning viral moments into brand partnerships 24:33 - Do you need a personal brand? 34:57 - How AI will disrupt traditional media 40:32 - The plan for $5M ARR 58:01 - The next big AI opportunity 1:02:58 - Live brainstorm (Resend)
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Steven Tey (@steventey) from Vercel to talk about why he joined the company, his secret for making projects go viral on Twitter, how Vercel got its name, the problem with conferences for devs, the importance of company branding, and more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
https://f.inc
Links:
· Steven's Twitter
· The Dock
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
2:02 - His Background
5:23 - Why Vercel is winning
6:13 - How Vercel got its name
9:37 - His secret to virality
18:33 - Austin vs SF
20:12 - His Day in the life
22:44 - Vercel's branding
23:49 - Are conferences a waste of time?
32:25 - Omar's SF movie night
36:56 - Will he become a founder?
52:11 - Rapid fire (lol)
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Adi Baradwaj (@aditya_baradwaj), ex-employee at Alameda Research, to talk about what went down at FTX, how he had his life savings stolen, his lavish life in The Bahamas, the red flags, the day of the collapse, the aftermath, his new company, and more insider info...
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
https://f.inc
Links:
· Adi's Twitter
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
2:22 - Adi's Backstory
3:56 - Why Tell The Story Now?
5:38 - Getting A Job At Alameda
8:27 - Alameda vs. FTX
10:07 - Relocating To The Bahamas
12:03 - SBF's Unique Personality
16:08 - The Red Flags
20:01 - Fat Fingering A Trade
22:23 - What Caused The Collapse?
32:14 - The Day Of The Collapse
38:43 - The Aftermath
44:49 - What He Lost
47:58 - Is Crypto Dead?
48:43 - His New Company
52:37 - Why This Doesn't Happen In TradFi
55:00 - Learning from the Collapse
1:03:17 - Crypto Needs Role Models
1:07:12 - Reading Tweets
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Farza Majeed (@farzaTV), founder of Buildspace, to talk about building the future of education, his take on college, the creation of Nights & Weekends, opening a physical campus, how he met the team, his biggest mistake, why he hates microwaves, and more...
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
https://f.inc
Links:
· Farza's Twitter
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
3:28 - Should You Go To College?
5:20 - His First Company
8:59 - His College Experience
16:13 - The F.inc Origin Story
22:02 - How Nights & Weekends Started
33:41 - The Buildspace Brand
37:04 - Being A Solo Founder
39:12 - The Secret To An Amazing Team
45:01 - A Day In The Life
46:01 - The Evolution Of Buildspace
46:47 - How It Makes Money
49:01 - What Made It All Work
52:59 - Is Buildspace A Cult?
1:01:28 - Audience Questions
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Dillion Verma (@dillionverma) to talk about winning the Vercel Accelerator program, why he switched from the medicine path to engineering, a bet that made $5k in 48 hrs, why he left big tech, his 10 day silent meditation retreat, his framework for making money from side projects, and much more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Dillion's Twitter
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
4:32 - Switching From Medicine To Engineering
8:20 - How He Learned To Code
11:25 - Are Hackathons Oversaturated?
16:09 - Unlearning Big Tech
19:16 - How To Make Money From Side Projects
25:47 - Testing Demand For Your Product
28:01 - The Vercel Accelerator
35:37 - Leaving Big Tech
41:42 - How to Properly Use Twitter
45:04 - How To Jump From Big Tech To A Startup
46:44 - Reading Tweets
55:07 - 10 Day Silent Meditation Retreat
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Arib Khan (@aribk24), founder of Musicfy, to talk about hitting 1 million users in 6 months, getting into Founders, Inc., working for Buildspace, receiving cease and desist orders from top music labels, learning how to swim, having untraditional mentors, and much more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Arib's Twitter
· Musicfy
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
2:47 - Playing Professional Sports
3:38 - Side Hustles
5:11 - Free Flights To Consensus
12:08 - Getting Into Founders, Inc.
24:23 - Learning About History
25:04 - The 6 Hour Commute
32:52 - Core Skill Set
36:28 - Turning Down An Acquisition
40:27 - Current Mentors
44:48 - Musicfy Origin Story
51:43 - Cease And Desist Orders
58:21 - Learning How To Swim
59:37 - Future Of Musicfy
1:01:07 - Friend Circle Shift
1:03:46 - LinkedIn Fact Or Cap
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Rox Codes (@RoxCodes) to talk about building tools for creators, working for Mr Beast, sneaking into the Forbes 30 Under 30 lounge, getting his Facebook employee username blacklisted, the truth about Buildspace IRL, and roasting the f*** out of Vishal.
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Rox's Twitter
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:54 - Sneaking Into Forbes 30 Under 30
7:19 - Professional Twitch Streaming
10:27 - Vishal Gets Roasted
12:55 - Vishal Gets Obliterated
15:41 - Working With Mr Beast
28:11 - YouTube Hacks
36:56 - Building Tools For Creators
44:10 - Vishal Gets Obliterated... Again
45:29 - Founders Becoming Creators
54:22 - Facebook Employee Username Blacklisted
59:29 - The Truth About Buildspace IRL
1:06:43 - Rapid Fire
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Matthew Rastovac, (@mattrasto), founder of Respell, to talk about building no-code tools for AI, starting a custom home building company, being friends with Sam Altman, almost becoming a pro gamer, creating a Bitcoin exchange at 14, and much more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Matthew's Twitter
· Respell
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
2:07 - Relationship With Sam Altman
8:14 - Avoiding Getting Crushed By OpenAI
12:17 - Why Rippling?
14:34 - Zapier's Framework
18:48 - Your Job Will Be Replaced By AI
22:32 - Jarvis IRL?
24:59 - Automating Your Life
30:48 - Claude Access
37:35 - Almost Becoming A Pro Gamer
40:50 - You Should Know This About Management
47:42 - Creating A Bitcoin Exchange
49:30 - Life After Startups
52:11 - Going To Burning Man
57:19 - Rapid Fire
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with John Coogan, (@johncoogan), cofounder of Soylent and Lucy.co, to talk about the viral success of Soylent, the key to finding a good cofounder, starting a tech YouTube channel, joining Founders Fund as an EIR, things you didn't know about defense tech, clean energy takes, and much more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· John's Twitter
· John's YouTube
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:28 - Why His Cofounder Relationship Worked
7:19 - How Soylent And Lucy Succeeded
14:13 - Starting A Tech YouTube Channel
20:25 - His Deep Research Process
23:55 - YC For Creators
30:29 - The Core Of Founders Fund
37:09 - Defining A Personal Vs. Company Brand
43:12 - Reading Tweets
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Kaito Cunningham, (@0xkaito), co-founder of Utopia Labs, to talk about building a blockchain payments company, developing sustainable workflows, messing up an $8 million transaction, managing working with 4 cofounders, scanning his eyeballs with Worldcoin, his "human operating stack", and much more...
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Utopia Labs
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:36 - Is Web3 Dead?
3:24 - How He Found His Co-Founders
4:49 - Why Isn't Crypto Mainstream Yet?
11:52 - Evolution Of Utopia Labs
17:22 - Becoming A Venture Backed Founder
21:33 - Building In Silos
25:05 - Developing Sustainable Workflows
28:21 - The Next Wave Of Tech?
29:51 - Mass AI Adoption
36:52 - Worldcoin
41:54 - Is Crypto Bad For The Environment?
45:43 - Audience Q's
51:50 - Reading Tweets
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Will Depue, (@willdepue), previous founder of DeepResearch and applied research resident at OpenAI, to talk about living in Argentina, dropping out of college, building a computer in Figma, the truth about burnout, why he doesn't focus on Twitter growth, watching Dune 5 times, how to get started building anything, and much more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:18 - Working At OpenAI
2:39 - Building In High School
8:15 - Founder Journey
24:24 - Growing On Twitter
29:54 - The Truth About Burnout
34:53 - How To Decide What To Work On
37:31 - Building A Computer In Figma
40:21 - The Alexandria Project
52:17 - Explore, Don't Commit
1:05:32 - Reading Tweets
1:17:43 - Favorite Project
Omar (@omarwasm) and Vishal (@vishalkolr) sit down with Samraaj Bath, (@samraaj), CTO and co-founder of Bifrost, to talk about building a complex AI product, working at Expensify, starting an ice cream company, getting into Y-Combinator, work/life balance, being creatively unfulfilled, and more....
The Dock is a Founders, Inc. show. Learn more about Founders, Inc. at:
Links:
· Bifrost
Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:09 - Bifrost's Mascot
4:36 - Pivoting
5:49 - Y-Combinator
7:42 - Are Founders Special?
9:36 - Decision Making
16:09 - Ice Cream Company
29:00 - Working At Expensify
36:49 - Bifrost
40:35 - Work/Life Balance
47:31 - Striking Vipers
50:23 - Being Energized
53:39 - Reading Tweets
1:05:27 - Creatively Unfulfilled
1:11:33 - Bifrost Learnings
