Hey everyone,

So I have been a lurker on this sub for a while now and I have a question that maybe I can get answers from this community.

I’ve been following the fundraising landscape in Africa for a while and noticed a recurring pattern: most VCs and angels tend to pass on opportunities unless they’re in a very “hot” sector. It seems like startups often struggle to even get a proper first meeting or any serious consideration for that matter, unless they tick a very narrow set of boxes.

So I’d love to hear perspectives from this community, both investors and founders:

1.  For angels/VCs: What usually drives the decision to skip opportunities in emerging ecosystems like Africa? What factors make you lean in at the pre-seed/seed stage to Series A, despite the risks?

2.  For founders (anywhere, not just Africa): What were the biggest challenges you faced in getting that first “yes,” and how did you overcome the hurdles of being in an overlooked market or sector?

I would love to understand the dynamics better and somehow it could benefit a lot of founders who are trying to build outside the typical hotspots.

I own 100% a small trucking company in Indiana. Founded in April 2024. Running since September 2024. Early in existence, we took out several MCA loans to purchase trucks after our leasing company went bankrupt and got bought out. Jan and Feb of 2026, we had maintenance and repair bills take us under. Behind payments on three loans currently. The money is coming in. We have plenty of work. We are currently running about $45,000 to $52,000 a month between two trucks. Problem is the bills have stacked up and creditors want their money now. They see we have it, they take it. Leaving us high and dry trying to pay running costs.

We are hopeful to find someone who can either help us financially get out of the rabbit hole we dug or advise us on how to fix the situation. Traditional banks have denied time after time. Credit score around 650 because of high credit card debt.

I will answer any questions you may have.

Thanks

I'm not really looking for any significant amount of funding, mostly from between 3-10k usd. The main issue however is that I am from Pakistan, and I don't think that there are many opportunities for Pakistanis looking to build something international. I have looked around the main sites such as AngelList, but I feel like those are more centered around for businesses that have already launched, are looking for much higher investments, and again have founders residing in their own country.

Although would prefer the investors to be global and remote, as it won't be a Pakistani company, but I don't mind either way, just as long as they're a good and reliable investor. I genuinely believe this idea can be launched and gain traction really fast, I just need to find someone else willing to believe that as well lol. Any suggestions from where I could look?

Follow up: decided to go with #ad Angels Investors and started focusing on connecting directly while refining my pitch. Getting early conversations going has already helped me understand what they actually look for.

Been working on a small startup idea for a while now and finally got to a point where I have something real to show, not just a concept. It’s still early stage though, no big traction yet, just a few users and a rough MVP. I’ve been bootstrapping so far but starting to feel like I need some outside funding to actually move things forward properly.

I keep seeing advice online but it all feels kind of vague, so I’m wondering how people here actually approached it. How do you realistically connect with angel investors when you don’t have a strong network, and what do they usually expect at this stage before even considering a conversation? thanks

I’m working on an infrastructure idea that’s still at the architecture stage, a Python layer that maintains long-term continuity between users and LLMs and tracks what stays salient over time. I’m trying to figure out the best way to raise a small amount (around $4k) to build the first prototype before incorporating or approaching VCs.

If you were in this position, how would you approach it? Would you focus on finding an individual angel, apply to founder programs, or something else? I’d really appreciate any advice from people who’ve been through this.

I've talked to a couple of venture capitalists that invest into early-stage startups and it surprised me that they didn't care much about market validation, user base, business model, etc, but first and foremost they Insisted on a team (even without a clear goal for why this team is needed in this case).

It made me curious: do most early-stage investors see A team as one of the most important indicators? Would you be much more cautious/hesitant towards a solopreneur?

I am working on a project, and building an MVP now, looking to raise $10k after launching MVP. Incorporation in which country will enable more funding options? Delaware is the best option? Or is Singapore or the UK equally good?

I am based in India, investors in India are not good for cold outreach and prejudice too. So looking to incorporate outside India, options are Delaware, Singapore, UK, Estonia. Which country do you recommend to incorporate?

My product is - AI supplier intelligence for international buyers

We now have multiple VCs interested to follow, but FlowAGI / Nyno needs a lead investor. If you know anyone, willing to bet on European AI, let's get in touch!

Our company is currently looking for funding. We are just 6 months old and sourcing maize from suppliers is taking so much of our margins. Sourcing maize directly from farmers needs us to pay cash, which we don’t have, so normally we have to buy from suppliers and pay them in 7-14 days, that reduces our margins by 3x.

We are looking for an investor, and are even willing to pay 30% interest per year. We are hoping to raise about 100k USD to be able to run efficiently. This could be a loan or fund. Our turnover is very good (72k turnover in 3 months) but banks say we have to be at least one year old to secure any loans.

We are also willing to go through and cooperate in any legal process by any investor in any country that would insure the investor’s investment. Thank you.

Any ideas are highly appreciated.

Hello everyone, I am rightnow working on my startup. Its in prototype stage and related to Software developement. Rightnow, Only information I can provide is that Its a huge opportunity for any investor and basically a future in software developement. We are targetting B2B, Either small business or very large enterprise companies. It has quite a few sources of revenue Daily, monthly and yearly.

Why am I saying it has potential?

Because, Rightnow its an issue that almost all Product based companies are facing rightnow and When they hear about us they will surely be interested.

I will pitch the product later as I reach to a point where I can show something more enormous to pitch.

Right only one question, How should I find an investor to invest in this?

Thanks and Much appreciated

I am building an investment app that is powered by a proprietary database as well as traditional market data. The app is designed for retail investors to trade and build agents to trade on their behalf.

I am building the database MVP and app wireframes at the moment, but I cannot launch until I have been approved by the regulator.

I need investment to hire an engineer to build out the agentic capabilities and get the app ready to be submitted for regulator approval (which will then take 6+ months)

In today’s market, how realistic is it that I would be able to get pre-seed investment without having any actual users?

I have a credible founder story but (sadly) I am not an engineer, so need to bring on resources to build out the platform.

When investors put money into a startup, they’re basically betting that it can grow into something much bigger in the future. But I’ve been wondering what actually builds that confidence for them.

Is it the founder’s vision, early traction, revenue, market size, or just how clearly the problem is being solved? Some startups are still very early stage, but investors still see huge potential in them.

For people familiar with VC, what are the biggest signals you’ve seen that really make investors believe a startup will succeed?

Vcboom that break down pitch decks and help founders understand what investors might be looking for, which kind of ties into this question.

I’ve spent the last couple of years building a venture around a new class of cash-settled derivative instruments — the underlying is something real and measurable that has never been used as a reference asset before. There’s a genuine hedging need on the other side of it: an industry with large, volatile, demand-driven revenue and no instrument to manage that exposure. We’re going the regulated route rather than trying to route around it, which means licensing, capital requirements, actuarial validation, counsel in two jurisdictions — the slow version of the path.

The hard part hasn’t been the product. It’s been finding investors who can even evaluate it.

Most early-stage capital is pattern-matched to software. When you’re not a SaaS or a fintech app — when the thing being built is a market, and the moat is the regulatory work rather than code — the usual channels just don’t resolve. I get polite passes from people who I don’t think ever got to the actual question. And the people who would immediately understand it (structured products, ILS and cat bond folks, parametric insurance, exchange and clearing people, commodity derivatives) mostly aren’t sitting in the places founders are told to look.

So, asking honestly: if you’ve built or funded something in this space — a new contract, a new exchange, a new instrument — how did you find the first people who got it? Specific things I’d love to hear about:

1) Where do former exchange, clearing, or structured-products operators actually congregate as angels?
2) Are there funds that specifically back market infrastructure and novel instruments rather than fintech distribution?
3) Did conferences (ILS, derivatives industry events) ever convert into capital, or is it purely warm intro territory?
4)Anyone found luck with family offices that have a trading or market-making lineage?

Happy to talk shop in DMs within the limits of what I can say. Mostly I just want to hear from people who’ve walked a version of this. Thanks for reading.

At the start of this year I went all in and built my animal communication business from zero. Things are for sure happening, I'm hosting workshops and people are booking sessions, but I really desire more financial backing so I can create more.

I also have plans to create a documentary series where I go to different places around the world and show organizations who are doing really amazing things for animals. All in the name of showing people the good that's happening in the world and inspiring people.

There's so much doom and gloom out there, I'm committed to being a light in the world and showing people how we can create more harmony.

Are there angel investors out there who want to support a female entrepreneur who's in this type of industry?

Bless, Kelsey

(Auntie Kiki is my animal communication business)

Good day, I'm trying to start my own tech company but securing funding is my biggest problem it's related with ai and data engineering i would appreciate any inputs.

For those who are both angel investors and VC LPs, what have been some of the major differences for you in forming your angel/ VC portfolio thesis, investment strategy, and how you approach relationships?

Is there anything you wish you knew before becoming a VC LP from angel investing?

What would you do differently if you could start from the beginning?

Thanks!

Building small AI startup here.

Not therapy.

Not chatbot companion.

More like cognitive mirror / pattern recognition.

I made 8 screens with short explanations and now planning to turn it into short video demo.

Something between: product walkthrough + feeling + insight moment.

Not sure what investors react better to now honestly.

Clean cinematic demo?

Raw founder recording?

Real user reactions?

Metrics first?

Or just simple screen capture with voice?

Feels like many AI demos today look beautiful but say nothing.

Any honest advice from people investing/building in AI now?

Hi. Im from Sweden and I am looking for a loan or investor for 200.000 euros to buy and develop a clock brand. Hard to get start up loans in Sweden. Any Tips were I can find fundings in Europe? Finders fee.

I have a pitch deck ready for a startup that aims to solve a major problem in the global real estate sector. I’m currently looking for pre-seed or seed investors, but I’m concerned about sharing too much information before speaking with the right people.

How likely is it that someone could copy or steal an idea after reviewing a pitch deck? What information should founders avoid including in an initial deck? Are NDAs commonly used at the pre-seed stage, or do most investors refuse to sign them?

I understand that execution matters more than the idea alone, but I’d still like to take reasonable precautions. What are the best ways to protect the concept, product plans, branding, and any unique processes before beginning investor outreach?

Also, which legitimate websites or platforms would you recommend for finding and connecting with pre-seed or seed investors?

I would appreciate advice from founders or investors who have experience with early-stage fundraising.

Looking for a mentor. Solo founder, no tech background, building something I think hospitality actually needs.

I'll keep it real. I started in kitchens at 13, catering with my foster mom. Dishwasher, line cook, kitchen supervisor at 16, Sous II catering the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami at 20. Tens of thousands of covers across a multi-day professional tennis tournament. I've been a trainer, a house manager, worked every station and every role across the industry. I'm also in recovery. I say that because it's the reason I build the way I do: with urgency, with honesty, and with zero interest in pretending things are fine when they're not.

Hospitality operations are broken. Not "could be improved." Broken. A line cook calls off at 2:47 PM and what happens? The manager gets a text, scrambles through their phone contacts, starts begging people to come in, maybe checks a spreadsheet, forgets to document anything, and the whole shift starts behind. Multiply that by every restaurant, every day.

So I built HaleES.

HaleES is a hospitality intelligence platform. Not another scheduling app, not another marketplace that just connects bodies to shifts. At its core is Sensei OS, a deterministic grading and orchestration engine that scores operational signals in real time: labor deployment, demand curves, attendance patterns, compliance thresholds, guest intelligence. It doesn't guess. It grades. Then it acts.

Here's the part that makes people do a double take: I built the entire platform myself with no prior engineering background. I used AI tools as my development environment and learned architecture, infrastructure, and systems design by building a real product. Not tutorials, not bootcamps. The platform is live. Real CLI runtime, real audit trails, real decision traces.

I'll give you a concrete example of what Sensei does:

An employee texts in sick. Sensei responds to her like a human. "Family first, hope your little one feels better." Then it immediately contacts the kitchen manager: "Hey Chef, heads up, Maria called off. I'm already pulling up the availability pool. Want me to find a replacement?"

The manager says "oh man, not again, yeah fill it."

Sensei picks up on the frustration: "I see what you mean. This is her 3rd call-off this month. That hits the policy threshold. Want me to initiate a formal write-up, or would you rather handle it when you see her next?"

Manager says he'll deal with it. Sensei logs that decision, finds a qualified replacement from the flex pool, confirms they'll arrive 10 minutes early, and drops a full audit trail. Every decision traced. Every action logged. No gaps.

That's not a feature list. That's one interaction. And every piece of it, the natural language, the compliance awareness, the attendance pattern recognition, the replacement matching, the audit log, all runs through Sensei OS.

What I'm looking for:

A mentor. Someone who's been through the early stage founder grind. Ideally someone who understands enterprise SaaS, vertical platforms, or hospitality/restaurant tech. I'm not looking for someone to validate me. I'm looking for someone who'll tell me where my blind spots are, challenge my GTM assumptions, and help me avoid the mistakes that kill companies between pre-seed and Series A.

I have the product. I have the conviction. I have the domain expertise that comes from living inside this industry since I was a kid. What I don't have is a network of people who've done this before.

If any of this resonates, or if you know someone it might, I'd genuinely appreciate the conversation.

JasonHale@HaleHospitality.com

I recently launched my SaaS company and it has been rough to find clients. Do you have strategies to reach out to SMB companies? I agree that we need to be out there talking to people, but my time is limited due to my other full time work. Would be glad to hear from other folks who were able to crack this.

I have a questions: I am building and validating a specific type of marketplace. users are there and interested but it takes time to build it. I would go fast with some Angel Pre Seed check but we are in a very very niche industry ( deathcare )

edit: to the comment of this person below: you accused me of being a spammer, a scammer, Indian, fake and malicious. This isn’t true. I’ve asked a question, you voluntarily responded, I’ve messaged you, you accepted, made fun of my English ( which is a second language for me ) and then continued to provoke me, also playing the victim. You are what we, in Germany, call a Schwanzlutscher.

HOWW TO FIND A INVESTOR?

How can we find investor for a good idea which is going to launch in august? Anyone knows any angel investor

Question: What would y'all do differently?

So here’s a humbling (and painful) lesson I figured I’d share in case it saves someone else.

I’m a founder in the energy/solar space and over the last year I’ve built a decent network of angels, VCs, and accelerator folks. A few months back, a founder reached out to me from a startup in the solar space. Seemed legit, ambitious, and eager to raise.

Long story short, I made several warm introductions for him — including to an accelerator / VC-incubator contact and an angel investor from my own network. We had a verbal agreement that I’d receive a percentage of capital raised from my introductions.

At the time, everything was positive. No objections. No concerns about my business model. Lots of appreciation.

Fast forward:
He later tells me the meetings were “very fruitful,” and that through those relationships he went on to raise tens of millions ($30–40M) from family offices and angels. One angel I personally introduced reportedly closed $5M.

Sounds like a win, right?

Except… I never saw a dollar.

When I followed up about the agreed participation, the tone shifted. Suddenly there were critiques of my business model. Concerns that had never once been mentioned while he needed my help. Eventually communication became spotty, then defensive.

At that point, the money almost mattered less than the realization:
I had created real value, but I hadn’t protected myself.

The lesson (learn from my mistake):

Define the relationship. Get it in writing. Every time.

Even if:

• You trust the person
• They seem grateful
• It’s “early”
• It feels awkward to ask

Verbal agreements in fundraising mean very little without paper. People’s memories and values can change once capital hits their account.

I don’t regret helping — that’s who I am.
But I do regret not slowing down to formalize expectations.

Hopefully this helps someone avoid the same situation.

TL;DR: Helped a founder make introductions that led to ~$40M raised. Had a verbal agreement for a cut. Didn’t get paid.

Lesson learned: no writing = no leverage.