New beginnings
No one could have anticipated how 2020 would turn out. And yet here we are, a year down the line, alive and kicking (mostly).
India has arguably been one of the most impacted countries because of Covid-19, and as fears of a mutated strain are gripping nations, vaccines are being rolled out across the world.
Solutions are being iterated upon and released into the market at lightspeed. Supply chains reconfigured, businesses restructured, relationships reformed, technology on overdrive.
Gotta love human ingenuity.
But when it comes down to the ground level reality, Indians are mostly still playing catch up with the rest of the world. Problems that plagued Silicon Valley have bled into the Indian ecosystem which was traditionally robust and grounded. Though the barriers for entry have remained higher than other countries, it hasn’t stopped the average Indian from figuring out a jugaad.
India is a land of entrepreneurs of all kinds. Every corner, every street, every city and town and village filled with industrious folks who often display a knack for business when least expected. Hard work is a given for survival here, success often a byproduct. What the ecosystem lacks, however, is mentorship, community and platforms.
Platforms have existed for years. Malls for consumers and merchants; newspapers for subscribers and advertisers. IT and network effects have made Facebook, Github, Uber and many more possible. And, of course, Bitcoin too.
But what of the unbanked, the disconnected and the marginalized? Concentration of progress in pockets has made centralization of progress a self-fulfilling cycle in some parts while the rest remain largely ignored.
Draper Startup House Koramangala, situated in the middle of Bengaluru, is a startup platform trying to empower entrepreneurs and digital nomads in India. And through our fellowship we intend to figure out more gaps to fill and more problems to fix. And also fix them, if possible.
The most immediate one to fix, in my opinion, is search and discovery. Advertising and media has cluttered the world with dubious information and imagery, and trust in institutions has reduced over the past few years. There is a sore need for solutions that simplify life, and I’m trying to work on one through the fellowship.
As the world shrinks away from strangers and comes closer to known people and circles and communities in their vicinity, people will want a way to connect with each other online hyperlocally. It’s impractical to go knocking on everyone’s door in a small radius just to find someone new to speak to, and social networks are broken when it comes to discovering or approaching potential connections in nearby areas.
Dating app fatigue is plaguing people already, social media apps continue to push untouchable celebrities and influencers, and gaming is one of the few escapes from reality left for the average joe.
In the age of communication, serendipity is being lost.
It’s time to change search and discovery.
