E
The App We Almost Deleted-Now a $500M Success | Gaurav Misra, Captions
@ EO
05/02/25
Takeaways
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
I dropped out of my PhD program in machine learning to join a startup, which was a high-risk decision that ultimately paid off.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
In the US, there's a lot of opportunity, and being a risk-taker often leads to rewards.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
Captions aims to make video storytelling accessible to everyone without the need for recording or editing.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
We raised over $100 million in funding and have tens of millions of users, with over 100,000 daily active users.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
The curriculum in India for computer science is often more advanced than in the US, leading to a lot of repetition in college courses.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
I learned the importance of quickly figuring things out in new domains, which is a crucial skill for success.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
At Microsoft, I worked on Azure Machine Learning, and at Snapchat, I shifted to product design, merging technology with design.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
Snapchat was one of the first companies to utilize video for consumer use, especially short videos, which immersed me in the video space.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
When we started Captions, we focused on creating captions for videos, addressing a gap in the market for accessibility solutions.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
Our first project was built in one weekend, quickly gained traction with 600 users per minute without marketing, and I almost deleted the Captions app due to its $10,000 monthly cost, but instead designed a paywall to see if users would pay for it, allowing us to keep it running without incurring costs.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
After launching the paywall, I forgot about the Captions app, but later discovered it was generating over $500,000 in revenue with no employees working on it, and users were retaining it without any support.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
The decision to focus on Captions instead of another app we were developing was crucial. Once we launched new features, the growth of Captions became exponential, highlighting how small decisions can lead to vastly different outcomes.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
When too many users join an app quickly, it can be challenging to identify the actual customers who will retain the product. It's essential to focus on the right users to avoid building the wrong product.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
In building a startup, the small decisions often have a greater impact than the big ones. For example, the choice to keep Captions as a paid app helped filter our user base to those who truly valued the service and provided us with valuable feedback.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
We aimed to minimize technical risks by testing with a minimum viable product (MVP) before investing heavily in development. This approach helps determine if there's a product-market fit without wasting resources.
GM
Gaurav Misra
05/02/25
@ EO
It's important to quickly build and test ideas. If something doesn't work, it's better to kill it and start again rather than justifying its existence with additional features that may not address user needs.