[Peter Tuszynski] Keynote. How to take off in 2016

It's 2016 and turning your idea from just a concept in your head to a startup is easier than ever, but sometimes that road can get a bit turbulent. Let's talk about making your take off smooth, quick and fun!

More information at: https://devfest.gdg.org.ua

Transcript

1. How to take off in 2016 or how to turn your side project into a dream job Peter Tuszynski CTO @ inFullMobile
2. #dfua Who am I and why should you care? • Peter Tuszynski, 30yo, Warsaw, Poland • CTO @ inFullMobile & EIR @ HardGamma Ventures • Founder of 1 venture backed startup, graduated from an accelerator • Hackathon lover, AngelHack Ambassador, FB WorldHack Winner • Fencer, almost-a-pilot
3. #dfua Plan for today’s session 1. The essentials 2. Tech tech tech 3. Graduating from a side project to a startup
4. The essentials
5. #dfua You’re already #winning • Developers and designers are uniquely positioned • Literary a TON of events out there • It’s easier than ever to start a company • All the resources you need are out there
6. “It’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen” Scott Belsky, Behance
7. #dfua Few examples • Started at a StartupWeekend • Raised $3.75M in 2 rounds • Acquired by OpenTable for $10M
8. #dfua Few examples #2 • Started on StartupWeekend • Raised $800k • Grew to 10M users • Acquired by Startups.co (undisclosed amount)
9. “Don’t start a company unless it’s an obsession and something you love. If you have an exit strategy, it’s not an obsession. “ Mark Cuban, VC, Shark
10. Founding a company is really hard!!!!!!
11. #dfua Pre-take off checklist • Start as a side project • Find a mentor (who founded a startup before) • Bootstrap vs venture • Size the market • Validate your assumptions!
12. #dfua Validating your assumptions • You (your family, friends, wife, cat) ARE NOT A USER! • Get out there • Don’t be scared of someone stealing your idea • Ultimate validation = revenue
13. #dfua Pivoting • Products rarely start in the shape of their final version • Listen to your users • Don’t be scared to say no
14. #dfua Take things step by step • Verbal pitch • Paper prototype • Interactive prototype • Prototype • MVP
15. “If you’re not embarrassed when you ship your first version you waited too long.. “ Matt Mullenweg, Automattic
16. “I want to do one thing, and do it well” Jan Koum, Whatsapp
17. #dfua Choosing a partner • It’s dangerous to go alone (the bus rule) • VC’s like to see 2-4 founders • Complimentary skill sets • Similar ethics & values • On equal economical level
18. Tech tech tech
19. #dfua Technology choices • Android vs. iOS (vs. Windows ??) • Python vs. Ruby • Django vs. Rails • Google Cloud vs. Amazon • ….
20. Languages don’t scale, architectures do. Go with whatever you or your CTO knows best.
21. #dfua Stand on the shoulders of giants • Take advantage of open source (& contribute as well) • Use existing frameworks • Be flexible and adjust to whatever can help you build the product faster
22. #dfua Firebase • Data store & Auth • REALTIME! :O • Push notifications • Remote config • AdMob
23. #dfua Want more? • Gmail API • AppEngine • Search API • Speech API • https://developers.google.com/apis-explorer/
24. The graduation
25. #dfua Prerequisites • You have at least a working prototype of your solution • There’s at least two of you • You have (at least a vague) idea of what to do next • You’re willing to hustle
26. #dfua Joining a pre-accelerator • Great opportunity to learn the basics • Not too time consuming • Opens some doors • No money on the table
27. #dfua Joining an accelerator • It gets real here ;) • A little bit of cash • Ton of free services & support • Great opportunity to network • Time consuming & you give up some equity
28. #dfua Raising seed round • No turning back beyond this point • Investors are not your friends • Look for smart money • Chemistry is required • Long and frustrating process
29. Raise money when you can, not when you need to.
30. Enjoy the ride
31. Peter Tuszynski piotr.tuszynski@infullmobile.com @dusker Questions? Thank you!