All new posts at sajithpai.comFor my latest posts, please visit sajithpai.comDec 28, 2024Dec 28, 2024
Narrative CapitalA fan reached out to me after a recent tweet of mine (below), asking for a ’smol essay’ on what I meant by the term ‘narrative capital’ and…Jul 17, 2022Jul 17, 2022
Tokeni$eMe(This is a fictional news report. Nothing mentioned here happened. There are some real names here, but none of them said or did what is…Dec 23, 2021Dec 23, 2021
Shower ThoughtsA frequent conversation topic that comes up with founders is that of individual employee performance. Once a company nears Series A, team…Dec 22, 2021Dec 22, 2021
The Congruent SquareOf late, I have been thinking of a concept I call the Congruent Square (or Rhombus for the math-purist) to better explain to founders why…Nov 26, 20212Nov 26, 20212
Defining ‘Product-Market Fit’Two discussions, one with a founder, and another with an experienced operator, both around the definition of product-market fit (PMF)…Nov 11, 2021Nov 11, 2021
Down the ‘product-market fit’ rabbit hole!An innocent google query around the origins of the term ‘product-market fit’ sent me down the internet rabbit hole a few nights back.Nov 3, 20211Nov 3, 20211
Nailing Capital vs Scaling CapitalThoughts and reflections inspired by the frenzied pace of investing and deal making we are seeing in the early stage ecosystem in India…Jul 31, 2021Jul 31, 2021
‘Exhaust Fumes’, or, Understanding Startup Valuations.“Early stage valuations aren’t really valuations. They are the exhaust fumes of a negotiation about two things — the amount raised and the…Jun 10, 20219Jun 10, 20219
Network States and Nation SPACs, or Westphalia ReduxThe title of this piece is of course a play on The Peace of Westphalia, the name for the two treaties signed in 1648 between various…Apr 14, 20211Apr 14, 20211
The Indus Valley PlaybookOn the evolution of the Indian startup ecosystem, or Indus Valley, and the distinct set of hacks and business models that have evolved to…Jan 7, 20216Jan 7, 20216
Social-as-a-Service“There are only two ways to make money in business: one is to bundle; the other is unbundle.” — Jim Barksdale, former CEO and President of…May 24, 2020May 24, 2020
What is the Superhuman of Calendars?If you end up subscribing to the Superhuman email service, you are clearly in the subset of busy people with a lot of emails. One thing…Feb 15, 20203Feb 15, 20203
Nosumer MediaThinking of a media category I want to call ‘Nosumer Media’ (nosumer as short for no consumer). These could be books, podcasts, apps etc…Nov 13, 2019Nov 13, 2019
Published inHackerNoon.comIndia1, Avocado Startups & Product-Market FitI recently met the founders of a quasi-dating app enabling friend discovery via meeting strangers at events. We passed on them, primarily…Feb 18, 20196Feb 18, 20196
I wrote a piece today for online tech business + culture site FACTOR DAILY, where I look at the…https://factordaily.com/vernacular-apps-the-english-premium-and-monetising-the-next-200-mn/Dec 4, 2018Dec 4, 2018
The Rise of Hyperlocal Video News Apps in India(This was published in Mint, 19th November 2018, albeit in an abbreviated form due to space constraints. This is the complete piece.)Nov 19, 2018Nov 19, 2018
What will India look like in 2089?I wrote a piece for Arre predicting some aspects of society, technology and politics in India 71 years hence.Aug 15, 2018Aug 15, 2018
Blume VenturesI have been, for long, a keen student of the startup / venture ecosystem in India and outside. I find startups particularly fascinating…Aug 13, 20181Aug 13, 20181