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📩 New Ambassadors. Who dis?

Joel Hansen

• 5 min read
📩 New Ambassadors. Who dis?

Hey Startup Fam,

Welcome back to Kernal. Your go-to coffee shop to nerd out on startup ideas and bump into angel investors. Here’s what happened on the internet this week: a solo VC raised $1.5B to invest in web 3, Goldman Sachs CEO is an undercover DJ and $HUBS spun up an accelerator to fund creators. For the spring breakers driving home this weekend, cue up this Mr. Beast interview for a listen. Let's jump to the menu, shall we?

Why you should keep scrolling:

  • Meet our new Kernal ambassadors doing cool stuff
  • Get the 2022 stats on why now is the best time to build
  • Wet your beak on the latest Kernal projects members posted

Buckle up and let's get rollin'.

🧨 Meet our New Kernal Ambassadors

Someone at a dinner party once told me: Ideas are only as strong as the people behind them. So, our team thought it was time to round up some heavy hitter members to take Kernal to the next level.

We wanna build something the startup community loves. Is that a crime? Didn't think so. But it does mean getting a little creative. We wanna get out of our own heads. Leave the echo chamber. So, we rallied up a group to help.

Each of these ambassadors brings a different skill to the table. They've been in the trenches, earned their scars and have some big wins we can learn from. They've agreed to be our eyes and ears for what Kernal needs. If they have product ideas, we're all ears. If they wanna jam on web 3 concepts at 2 am, we'll grab the snacks.

So, take a gander at the list. They're a group that loves challenging the boring and building the brilliant. 99% chance you've run into them one way or another, but you can count on seeing them more on Kernal in the days ahead. 🚀

  • Michael Houck: Co-founder of launch house, university for the new, decentralized silicon valley. He's a former mentor at First Round Capital and PM at Airbnb.
  • Mary Huan: Sr Director, Program Mgmt Office at Peloton. Mentor of First Round Capital. Strategic Leader, 12+ years of experience in high-tech consumer industries.
  • Shane Mac: Co-founder & President at XMTP Labs, Founder & General Partner at Logos Labs, Co-Founder at Squared Away.
  • Alexis Grant: Founder of TheyGotAcquired. Builder of media companies. Angel investor at the Hustle Fund and former EVP of Content at the Penny Hoarder.
  • Jakob Greenfeld: Builder of enrichmylist.com, founderflywheel.com, tweetsondemand.com, newsletterspy.io and product explorer (acq). Track his projects here.
  • Milly Tamati: Building bravely.io, for a world with better mental health from a little island in Scotland. Founder of Cartoon Crowd and many other projects.
  • Tamar Weinberg: CMO of blocksurvey.io, professional hustler, bestselling author, founder of TAMAR, perfume for mental health. Director of Content for Sequencing.
  • Mark Wormgoor: CEO & Co-Founder Aforceof.one, Executive Coach, European Director of CommerceCX, Former Accenture and IT Enthusiast.
  • Elaine Zelby: Partner at SignalFire, startup idea machine and board of director of Silicon Valley Executive Network. Former Slack.
  • Aishwarya Ashok: Product at Zoho, Co-Founder of TheProdcast, Reforge Fellow, Built onegoodthing.in & 100nottech.com, Mentor at ADPLis, writing at aishashok.com
  • Lola Ojabowale: Founder at Lunch Pail Labs, Fellow at On Deck, Former Venture Scout of Indie.vc, No Code Enthusiast.

Say hello. They won't bite. We’ll be featuring more of their story in the future. So keep your eyes peeled on social. And maybe sync with them before they’re booking their Calendly in 2023. 👀

Wanna join the waitlist for our next cohort of ambassadors? Drop us a line.

⏰ Why 2022 is Your Year to Build

Fun fact Friday. Did you know it's actually the best time to start a business? Don't take our word. Listen to Axios. [not a paid ad I swear] One of you actually sent us this killer article by them. It's a pretty fire read, but since it’s a 10 min scroll so we’ll share the 1-min gems:

  • The U.S. census just reported the biggest startup boom in history
  • There’s been a +53% jump from 2019 that applied for small biz licenses
  • (Let’s not forget the thousands of millennials that don’t know how to apply but have probably started side hustles since being locked in their apartments)
  • Startup funding obliterated 2021 records at $643 billion

The 5 factors people are building startups now more than ever:

  • ⛑ Safety net = never been more backup plans available  
  • 💻 WFH option = anywhere, anytime, anybody
  • 💲 Lower Costs = fewer buildings, fewer dress shoes, fewer fax machines
  • 🚗 No commuting = any help is a google search way (HR, accounting, etc)
  • 🎉 Startup PR = companies love hiring builders, not corporate time suckers

So, what are you waiting for? Stop lurking and start chasing a startup idea.

Let's put it this way. I hope our newsletter open rates drop next week b/c you’re so busy building your startup. More shipping, less reading.

Share Startup Idea

Founders News:

  • 👀 Katie Haun just raised a $1.5B VC fund called Haun Ventures
  • ✅ Steal Lenny's checklist to interview a killer product manager
  • 🛠 Join this Miro event with Saba Karim to build the perfect pitch deck
  • 📖 Read this post from angel investor Paige Doherty on how to apply feedback
  • 🔗 Startup Juggernaut, Shopify, launched its own "Link in Bio" called Linkpop
  • 💰 Bridgewater's Ray Dalio has officially entered the crypto game
  • 🐦 Twitter legend, Balaji, wrote a new book on "how to start a new country"
  • 😬 Be careful in the web 3 wild. Arthur just had 1.5M stolen and explains it here

Kernal Launchpad:

Sitting on a startup idea? Drop it below.

Share Startup Idea

🐦 Tweet of the Week

James Clear catches our drift:

Have something you wanna share with our ~10,000 Kernalers? Share a news tip or hot take for us to include in a future newsletter. And join our discord party if you haven't already:

Join Kernal Discord

Have a great weekend troublemakers.

💚  Kernal fam

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