For multiple accelerators, the common theme is clear: resiliency, emotional intelligence, and an understanding of the broader ecosystem are traits founders must have.
Running a startup in the Web 3.0 world, with its layers of technical knowledge, rapidly evolving ecosystem, and ever-changing demands from regulators, is certainly significantly difficult. That’s often where accelerators come in.
Most accelerators bring with them opportunities for networking, marketing and PR experience, as well as a contact book to help establish the projects in the broader ecosystem. Their presence is especially important in technology, where rapid growth and strong fundamentals can make or break a project in its early days.
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 to Web 3.0
In the wake of that success, Sarraf and her team had their eyes on the horizon, and Web 3.0 was rising to the top.
“We always wanted to be one of the first companies to introduce new technologies to the industry,” she says. “But also, the education sector is very traditional. I remember talking to a couple of investors about Web 3.0 and Blockchain, and they looked at me as if I were a completely crazy person.”
Sarraf and the team cold-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 EQ (intelligence and emotional quotient), says Zia Word, one of the two co-founders.
Sarraf and her praise are a bit of an outlier: “I’ve been told that for many Web 3.0 startups, many processes need to be reconfigured or scrapped altogether,” Zia says. “In traditional startups, you have things like MVP (minimum viable product), which is to test whether or not 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 Web 3.0 startups. “It’s hard in Web 3.0 because you’re often creating new categories or building new technologies.”
In multiple conversations with BeInCrypto, the emphasis on founder quality was a recurring theme. Above all else, project managers need mental toughness, coachability, as well as an execution-focused mindset, says Nathalie Oestmann, COO of Outlier Ventures, “founders who don’t embody these traits are ultimately the ones who experience the biggest startup problems.”
“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,” Oestmann continues. The most successful founders are those who are open to receiving advice, learning, and adjusting. Above all, the strength of both founders and their teams is often more important than the idea, especially because startups early stages are the hardest.
By Audy Castaneda
