Miguel Fernández @modernsandbox

Today was pitch day!! And it was such a great event. Great opportunity to talk with other startups, our mentors and some investors.

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Important learnings about patents: -Time carefully your IP protection -You need around €10k per patent -Takes ~2 months to draft it -18 months to become public after filing - Due to the publication delay, product cycles are at least 2 years - NDAs are necessary but not enough

Yesterday we had our first meeting with a patent attorney. Very enriching, especially if you are developing hardware like us. I suggest addressing IP ASAP. Main learnings: -Patents are Expensive😅 -Plan carefully your IP Strategy -You only need a feasible idea to file a patent

I’m annoyed by social media. It seems like most of the people are just playing a game to get more followers, looking for likes and views. But very few are truly and purposely sharing insights. Because of that, X is full of empty open questions, just to catch audience.

Music has been the key to my integration in Germany. It’s the first time in my life I feel part of a community. Arts are way bigger than a self-expression tool. They are community and a way to connect and exchange with others. @muenchen

I have the best job on Earth: I’m the cofounder of an audio-tech startup. Here’s what a typical market validation day looks like for me. @desordenpublico at @BackstageMunich

The best decision we have taken so far… Applying and getting into a Startup incubator. We are part of Unternehmer TUM in Munich, Germany. And Startup Studio by Inria Paris. What about you? are you part of a startup ecosystem?

Yesterday I had a very fruitful night having casual (validation) conversations with potential users of our products. I think I am gaining some momentum with the validation. Share below your experience validating your assumptions.

I feel I am getting some momentum with the validation of our ideas. Yesterday I went to jamming and had 3 fulfilling conversations with 3 professional drummers. Discovery of the day, drummers care the most about getting a beautiful sound out of the kit.

We made a very easy decision that comes with a very complex conversation. Today we are finishing a professional relationship with a person that was part of the team for the last 3 months. Have you been in such position? how have you handled it?

Validate, validate and validate The three most important steps to ensure success. Approaching someone is weird and scary, but when I finally do it, wow. Pure gold is what I get from a 10-minute informal conversation about their problems.

I am terrified about “interviewing” people. There is something about approaching strangers that makes me very anxious. And yet here I am, in Zamanand Festival, hopping between stages. Trying to overcome my fear and do some market validation.

Showing your logo in emails with a custom domain isn’t cheap. You need BIMI + a VMC certificate, and to get VMC, your trademark must be registered. 💶 VMC ≈ €1300/year 💶 EUTM (trademark) ≈ €1200/year

Discovery of the day: Showing your logo in emails with a custom domain isn’t cheap. You need BIMI + a VMC certificate — and to get VMC, your trademark must be registered. VMC ≈ €1300/year European trademark ≈ €1200/year

Yesterday, I had coffee with a cofounder from another startup. Although we address different markets, we share many business challenges. We were bouncing around ideas on conducting customer interviews and organising the outcomes. Talk to your network, it's very refreshing!

Set yourself up for success.

Starting a business is hard in many ways. One of the is keeping yourself healthy. Routine is the key for me. Every morning, right after I wake up, I go out for a 20min walk, no exemptions.

I’ve forgiven myself today for not doing core business tasks. Instead, I took some time to tweak our logo (V4 😅). Can you spot the changes?