Karan Bajaj Startup Pitch - Whitehat
Karan Bajaj Startup Pitch - Whitehat
with No Product
CONTENTS
+
4th R: algo Rithmic thinking
(coding: logic, structure, sequence creative expression )
Note: MIT/HK Early Childhood Development Research ~ Significant improvement in “hard” (mathematics) and “soft” skills (creative expression) among children exposed
to coding.
PROBLEM
Parents have a strong, latent desire for their kids to master computers at the earliest 1
VIRTUAL CODING
LOCAL CODING
SCHOOLS CLASSES
CLASSES
! <10% of US/India Schools ! Physical limitations 2 ! Very low student
have structured computer engagement 3
! No standard curriculum
courses in early childhood ! Complex for parents to follow
! Expensive
! Structured courses focused ! No H2H element - critical for
on computer literacy vs. early childhood
computational Thinking development
FIRST H2H TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM CONNECTING 5-10 YEAR OLD KIDS TO QUALIFIED TUTORS
WITH STANDARDIZED COMPUTATIONAL THINKING CURRICULUM
(1) Prices pegged based on competitive analyses: Student pricing in line with alternatives; Teacher pay 40% higher than alternatives.
WHY NOW?
STRUCTURAL CULTURAL TRANSFORMATIONS CAUSING UNPRECEDENTED DEMAND SURGE;
MASSIVELY UNDER-UTILIZED SUPPLY SIDE CAN BE TAPPED WITH TECHNOLOGY
(1) Prices pegged based on competitive analyses: Student pricing in line with alternatives; Teacher pay 40% higher than alternatives.
Management Team
Curriculum Team:
Karan Bajaj Anurag Shukla Computer Science +
(CEO, Founder) (VP, Engineering) Early Childhood Experts
• Discovery India CEO, bestselling • Lead Technology Team at various • Josna Vaz (Mobile): B Sc.
novelist startups and created Computer; American School of
• 15-years P&L/ operational scalable systems. Bombay Tech Integrator.
experience across India & US: • 10+ Years Technology Experience • Gauri Parulkar(Beginner): Computer
P&G, BCG, Kraft-Mondelez, • System Architecture and Product Engineer; Founder, Kids Science
Discovery. User Flows Quotient
• Selected Top 40 Under 40 (Fortune • Built more than 100 websites and • Dr Farida Umrani (Intermediate): IIT
US; Ad Age US); Top 35 Under 35 apps Computer Research Scientist; K8
(India Today). • Hacking since age 7. Won Computer Curriculum Expert.
• #1 Bestselling Novelist National Level Hackathons • Abhijeet Gawande(Advanced):
• Education: BIT, IIM Engineer; K12 Robotics/ML Expert
MARKET SIZING: Immediate $3 Billion+ Market
• Markets: US, UK, China, India • Markets: US, India • Markets: US, India; Metro Cities
Only
• Target Audience: 4-10 Year Olds; • Target Audience: 4-10 Year Olds;
Top 15% India/China, Top 30% US/ Top 15% India, Top 30% US. • Target Audience: 4-10 Year Olds;
UK. Top 5% Households in India; Top
15% in the US.
(1) Assumes 45% Churn Rate from Classes; 30-40% lower pricing for Middle Market Solution; 50% Addressability from city targeting
NEXT STEPS
Phase 2: India/US Top 4 City Scaled
Phase 3: India/US Top 20 City Phase 4: Deep India/US with
Phase 1: Prototype Test Launch with External Solutions
Expansion with Owned Product Mobile Solution
25,000 Students , 2500 Teachers
TIMING Jun 1-June 30 2018 Nov 5-Mar 1 st 2019 Mar 1’2019+ Jul 1’2019+
OBJECTIVE Product Market Fit Gut-Check Full PMF and Financial Validation Scale with owned IP/Build Data Critical Escape Velocity with Mass
Solution
BUSINESS • Reach: 91 Students • CAC: $110(US); $27.5(INDIA) • 2019 RUN RATE: $100MM • TBD
KPIs • Paid Conversion: 57% • LTV: $329(US);$105(INDIA). • EBITDA: 25%
• Qualitative: Excellent • Churn: 56%
ALL KPIs EXCEEDED SIGNIFICANTLY • GMV: $1.2MM/Month
• Breakeven: India(M5), US(M5)
PRODUCT • External solution: Skype + • External Solution: Zoom + • Bespoke Whitehat VC + Coding • Mobile Enabled Platform
Kodable Code.Org Platform •
ROADMAP Deep Learning Algorithms to
• Manual Scheduling/Payment • Student and Teacher Portals with • Deep Learning Algorithms to auto-suggest engagement
scheduling & payment auto-suggest engagement improvement
improvement
Competitive Advantage
Human-to-Human
Non-STEM STEM/Coding
Jun Prototype Results: Blockbuster Interest & Conversion
Test Results
Test: Mumbai/Bay Area Plan Actual Index vs Plan
www.whitehatjunior.com/betaus Demand
7-Day Paid FB Significantly
6 Teachers, 90 Students Marketing
Campaign
1-day Organic FB Posts
Exceeds
Expectations
Sign-Ups 60 91 152
Paid Conversion
20% 51% 255
Rate
"Great initiative
but don't know Significantly
Qualitative "Kid loves it. This is what
how to measure Exceeds
Feedback he needs everyday."
kid progress and Expectations
outcomes"
User Reviews
“My kid is ahead of the curve. This is exactly what he/she needs.
School doesn’t cover this”
“I’ve seen a change in my kid in the last 3 days—he’s creating
steps even on simple things like eating a banana”
Test Learnings: Improvements for Phase 2
Curriculum 12,955 10,955 10,955 10,955 10,955 10,955 67,731 5% CAC: India(Student+Teacher) $27.5
Technology 8,633 8,633 8,633 8,633 8,633 8,633 51,976 4% CAC: USA(Student+Teacher) $110
Salary/Office 16,915 16,915 16,915 16,915 16,915 23,134 107,711 8% Margin/Student/Class: India $3
Net Acquisition Margin/Student/Month: US $7
- - 63,835 229,470 512,883 271,916 1,078,103 83%
Working Capital
LTV: India $105
Total Costs 38,533 36,533 100,368 266,003 549,416 314,668 1,305,522 100%
LTV: US $329
# Students - - 1,000 4,000 10,000 10,000 25,000 -
Breakeven: India M5
# Teachers - - 100 400 1,000 1,000 2,500 -
Breakeven: US M5
Churn Rate - - 30% 15% 10% 10% 45% -
Identified/
In Place
CEO Hiring in
Progress
Senior Directors,
Curriculum (4)
-Beginner(Mobile) VP, Growth Hacker VP, Teacher Ops
VP, Product VP, Engineering (Teacher Recruiting,
-Beginner ( Student acquisition) Vetting & Training)
--Intermediate
-Advanced
APPENDIX
Beginner Curriculum (4-6)|50 Classes
16 16 16
6 Commands
Sequence 6 Loops 5 Test, Debug
4 Pattern
Recognition 6 Animation 5 Conditions
5 Algorithm
Decomposition 2 Internet Safety 4 Functions
1 2 3
Rule book for
Draw a picture
a Game
2
Functions Song
1 using 2D shapes 2 - Algorithm (Snake &
with its algorithm
Ladder)
Intermediate Curriculum (7-8)|50 Classes
16 16 16
5 Decomposition 4 Pattern
Recognition 2 Digital Footprint
4 Command
Sequence 8 Conditionals &
Loops 6 Abstraction
6 Algorithm
Debugging 2 Responsible
internet use 5 Events
1 2 3
Animation of
3
Create Picture
1 Create a Marvel
character
2 Story Book
Play Book for
Play Equipment
Advanced Curriculum (9-11)|50 Classes
15 15 15
3 Sequences 5 Events 3 UI Design
1 1 3
INDIA US/International
Phase 2 Student Markets # Premium Students(MM) Student Test Markets # Premium Students(MM)
Mumbai 0.36 New York 0.52
Bangalore 0.19 Bay Area 0.3
Total 0.549 Total 0.82
2. Omidyar (my 2nd founding investors- deeply values-driven and respectful to entrepreneurs):
Siddharth Nautiyal, Sarvesh Kanodia, Namita Dalmia
It took 60 days from idea to securing $1.3 Million seed funding for WhiteHat Jr. And this was in late 2018, well
before the incredible funding momentum we’re seeing now in India.
What a golden time to be an entrepreneur! For any would-be entrepreneur with an idea and energy but no
product or team yet, I hope this post can be of some value to go from idea-to-secured funding in rapid timing.
I spoke to a friend the day I had come up with the idea of WhiteHat Jr, shortly after giving my notice to Discovery.
Coincidentally, I had a meeting with a large tech company CEO the next day for a project for Discovery, who I
was convinced would “get it”. The CEO said coding for kids was years ahead of its time for India and it would
never work.
So I did what I should’ve done the moment the idea had come to me.
I took it to users.
Startups always lie at the edges of systems, not at the center of it. So people’s opinions, even experts, are
seldom useful.
I hired a website designer on Upwork, the freelance platform, and created a demo version of the website
overnight. Soon after, I contacted a teacher, who ran her own Science classes, and created the first version of a
6-class coding curriculum with her, using Zoom and Scratch.
We just had to replicate the process of finding the one customer at scale.
Today, WhiteHat Jr operates in many countries and categories. But the basic framework of advertising for a trial
class, an engaging trial class with a live teacher, and a creation-oriented curriculum that kids love, has stuck.
If you have just one paying customer, you can likely create a global category with millions of users!
Just scale what worked for that one user. That’s all you need to go confidently to the next step.
3. Reach out Cold to Venture Capitalists and Close the Deal! (30 Days)
We grew the pilot to thirty paying customers over two weeks. Then, I approached venture capitalists completely
cold on LinkedIn.
Six out of ten VCs I reached out to responded to the cold outreach above.
My odds would’ve probably been higher had I used my IIM networks. But I’m poor at asking for help, a lingering
and I’d say rather foolhardy legacy of my extensive reading of Aristotle’s view of the Ideal Man in college (“He
takes joy in doing favors to other men, but he feels shame in having favors done to him by other men”- A)
Contrary to public perception, I found almost all Indian venture capitalists extremely responsive and courteous,
both in their acceptance and rejection. I highly recommend the following exceptional early-stage investors. They
were incredibly quick to respond and deeply astute in their evaluation, even if some of them rejected my pitch:
Within a month of pitching (you can see WhiteHat Jr’s seed deck here), I had my first term sheet. Easier than
getting a novel published! But unlike a novel where a book deal is almost the end of the laborious process,
getting a funding deal is barely the start of building a company. I don’t remember celebrating either my Seed
or Series A funding rounds for even a day, there was almost so much more to get done! And funding was just
a small milestone indicating the next stage rather than a destination of any consequence. But early funding did
make the journey later less harder, so I hope this is useful for aspiring entrepreneurs debating whether to take a
plunge.
Do let me know if this was useful! Also, what stage of idea generation are you in? Is funding your biggest barrier
or is something else holding you back? Do drop me a note in the comments-I’d love to hear from you!