This is how Zayd Ali sold his first company in high school and immediately started a new one in AI, called Valley, that has raised over $3 million already.
📚 1,800 Pitch Decks (Free) → deck-database.carrd.co
Follow Zayd's journey:
🐦 X → x.com/zaydsyedali
💼 LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/zayd-syed-ali-4201101a9
🚀 Startup → joinvalley.co
Follow us:
🎥 YouTube → youtube.com/@foundingjourney
📝 Newsletter → join.foundingjourney.com
📈 Founder Membership → upgrade.foundingjourney.com
💼 LinkedIn → linkedin.com/in/michael-houck
Founder's Journey
- (01:19) — Selling a company in high school
- (07:03) — The feeling after selling a company
- (09:09) — Community accelerator programs
- (21:30) — Bootstrapped vs. venture-backed startups
- (34:58) — Selling before building
- (52:34) — Risk of startup life in your 20s
The Art of Pivoting
- (14:51) — Executing a pivot
- (17:39) — Advice for reluctant founders
- (18:54) — Founder market fit & "why now"
Investor Dynamics
- (23:11) — High-profile investors’ impact
- (24:52) — High energy in investor meetings
- (28:23) — Creating urgency for investors
- (38:03) — Investor response to customer LOIs
- (38:47) — Pre-read deck strategy
- (41:45) — Analyst to partner transition
- (44:01) — Anticipating investor pushbacks
- (45:10) — Avoiding introductions from investors who passed
- (47:30) — Challenges for AI startups
- (50:44) — Raising in a hot market
Rapid Fire
- (54:56) — Who's an investor you'd recommend?
- (55:47) — One thing you'd change about startups?
- (56:44) — Advice for first-time founders?
- (57:38) — Something you believe that most disagree with?
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