What’s a key learning or takeaway from the VentureWell program you participated in, and how did it impact your journey?
“Go and talk to your customers”—that is step one, and realizing this fact is crucial for every startup founder. VentureWell really hammered it into our heads—well, at least mine—and now I’m hammering it into the heads of young and fresh startup founders.
What’s the biggest change or milestone your institution or venture has experienced since participating in VentureWell programming?
The path towards Elven Technologies’ major pivot originated from the VentureWell training, because we went and talked with firefighters in over 20 departments in several states, which gave us crucial insight that would have been impossible to gather otherwise. This led us to understand that we were on the wrong path—this realization, and the pivot that followed, raised us the first seed investment, and we’ve been rocking since.
Looking back, what advice would you give yourself at the start of your journey?
I would not. I’m sorry. If I did, I wouldn’t walk the path I walked, and I’m quite happy with the path I walked until now.