Redefining FAIL: How Getting It Wrong Moves You Forward

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Welcome to the 13th edition of The Good News Newsletter—proudly serving over 3,109 founders! Here, we break down the latest insights from our weekly Investor Office Hours sessions and equip you with tools to help you secure capital, customers, and talent for your business.

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Office Hours Recap:
We are now partnering with the Startup Community led by @TheBestOfAdam on X to bring our Office Hours to the over 145,000 community members!

Session #1 - Preeti Adhikary, General Partner at Momo VC

Stage: Pre-Seed & Seed

Industry: AI, Cybersecurity, HealthTech, Biotech, FinTech, & Sustainability

Check Size: $50K - $150K

How to Apply: Apply through their website at momo-vc.com (must be incorporated in the US, though they can help international companies incorporate).

Key Takeaways from Session:

1. VC Plus Model: Momo VC operates as "VC Plus" - providing not just capital but strategic support through their network of domain experts (doctors, lawyers, product managers, etc.) who help with due diligence, go-to-market strategy, and customer introductions.

2. Customer Validation is Key: For their investment decisions, they prioritize customer validation over everything else. As Sajan emphasized, "just solving the problem in founder's head is the first stage, but to be able to scale past that, the customer has to validate."

3. Coachability Matters: Successful founders need to be coachable and open to feedback while maintaining their passion for their idea. As Preeti noted, founders should be "sponges" - hearing different perspectives to make better decisions about which advice to implement.

Session #2 - Tim Yau, Associate at Vine Ventures Corporation

Stage: Pre-Seed & Seed

Industry: Industry agnostic (except defense/military), with Tim's personal portfolio focusing on resources and mining, hardware and IoT, and B2B Software as a Service.

Check Size: $50K-$500K for early stage deals, with ability to syndicate larger rounds (millions+) through LP network

How to Apply: Reach out to Tim directly on X/Twitter or Linkedin

Key Takeaways from Session:

1. Market conditions have shifted significantly - The era of "dumb money" or "investment by vibes" is over. Founders now need MVPs and traction (paid pilots, revenue) rather than just business plans and prototypes to secure funding.

2. Strategic investment approach - Vine Ventures operates as a strategic investor, not just check writers. They provide business advisory services through their venture studio and don't micromanage founders. They focus on empowering entrepreneurs rather than holding them strictly accountable to milestones.

3. Critical metrics for B2B SaaS evaluation - Focus on Daily Active Users (DAU) and Monthly Active Users (MAU) over vanity metrics like downloads, seek exponential user growth of 80-100%+ month-over-month in early stages, prioritize actual revenue traction and customer validation, and maintain a "trust but verify" approach to founder-reported metrics.

Funding Resources:

💰 Resources of the Week:

Builders + Backers - Up to $5K | Deadline: 7/29/2025

The Hey Helen Grant - $5K | Deadline: 7/29/2025

NJEDA AI Cohort - Up to $400K | Deadline: 7/30/2025

ETN Pilotathon & Showcase 2025 - Industry Access | Deadline: 7/31/2025

SpringWell360 Health Equity Grant - $1K | Deadline: 8/1/2025

Conquer EdTech Accelerator - $20K | Deadline: 8/1/2025

SPC Founder Fellowship Fall 2025 - $400K | Deadline: 8/3/2025

Y Combinator Fall 2025 Batch - $500K | Deadline: 8/4/2025

Build in Tulsa Product Pitch Night - Up to $20K | Deadline: 8/4/2025

Maesa Magic Incubator Class of 2026 - $35K | Deadline: 8/6/2025

Founders' Box Accelerator: Fall 2025 - $150K | Deadline: 8/8/2025

Distilled Intelligence Pitch Competition - $1M | Deadline: 8/15/2025

SemperVirens Accelerator - Deadline: 8/15/2025

The Workers Lab’s Innovation Fund Fellowship - Up to $200K | Deadline: TBD

Z Fellows - $10K | Rolling

Tulsa Remote - $10K | Rolling

💸 Alternative Funding Sources:

Access up to $2M in non-dilutive debt financing. Request information here.

Raise up to $5M in equity capital through a Community Round. Request information here.

Interested in 1 on 1 support from Darrel? In preparation for launching my own fund, I will be working 1 on 1 with select founders as an advisor. Interested founders can learn more and consider submitting their company here.

🎙️ Podcast of the Week:

Charles Hudson and Mia Farnham discuss insights from Josh Kopelman's podcast appearance about venture capital's evolution into a crowded ecosystem with 10,000+ firms competing for founder attention. They explore the strategic value of "relevancy" and "logo buying" in VC, the importance of real-time decision documentation, and tackle a critical founder dilemma: when facing limited runway, should you raise a down round or seek acquisition? Hudson emphasizes these processes are mutually exclusive and require full commitment, while stressing that successful M&A requires relationships built over time, not last-minute networking.

Why I recommend it: Charles provides brutally honest insights about the venture landscape, particularly his concept of the "great realization" where founders must honestly assess if they're building a breakout or need an exit. The episode offers actionable advice for both investors and founders, especially around building acquisition relationships early rather than scrambling with limited runway, making it essential listening for anyone navigating today's challenging fundraising environment. You can listen here.

✨ Inspiration

💬 Tweet of the Week

🙏🏽 Scripture of the Week

That’s all for this week’s edition of The Good News Newsletter. We hope you found these insights valuable as you continue your journey to securing funding.

What’s next?

Join us the this Friday for more amazing guests joining us for Office Hours.

For session #1 we have Mike Ma, Managing Partner at Sidecut Ventures.

Sidecut Ventures fund coachable superheroes building equity in HealthTech, FinTech, and EdTech.

For session #2 we have Raquel Scott, Investor at SemperVirens Venture Capital.

​SemperVirens Venture Capital invests in technology startups reshaping the worlds of health, wealth, and work.

If interested in joining and/or pitching, please register here.

You can see the full list of past and future VCs on this Calendar.

Be on the lookout for our newsletter next week where we’ll bring you more actionable advice, resources, and success stories.

Let’s All, spread ‘The Good News’

Best,
Darrel Frater
Co-Founder
The Frater Family Foundation
Linkedin | Twitter/X | 609-804-5999

P.S. - If you enjoyed this newsletter, forward it to a founder you know who could benefit from these insights!

P.S.S. - Got ideas or suggestions for The Good News? Shoot me an email at [email protected] for us to discuss!

About TFFF: The Frater Family Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the family office of Darrel and Roselly Frater, dedicated to promoting human prosperity through entrepreneurship. To learn more, reach out to Darrel Frater directly.