Startup got funded 260,000 USD on Shark Tank changes its focus towards Blockchain
Vnexpress, which has the highest ranking among other e-newspapers in Vietnam on Alexa.com, number 11, only after Yahoo!, Google, and Google Vietnam, is the most read and most prestigious newspaper in Vietnam.
Before the ‘Tech Awards 2018’ organized by Vnexpress, where Mr. Don Thao Nguyen will attend as speaker and panelist, the newspaper had an interview with CEO of Umbala Network to discuss on the future of Umbala Network after successfully closing deal with investors on Shark Tank Vietnam
You can view the original content in Vietnamese here
Not just a live video app with multiple effects, Don Thao Nguyen is pursuing Blockchain and building Umbala ecosystem.
Umbala has become well-known in the startup’s community since receiving fund on Shark Tank Vietnam at the beginning of 2018. After a year, co-founder of Umbala, Mr. Don Thao Nguyen states that the company is having new goals.
- After the successful deal on Shark Tank, how was the fund used?
Firstly, besides the fund, the greatest benefit we earned from Shark Tank was the brand equity and credibility. When joining the show, we determined that this was an opportunity to accelerate the growth, as well as approach community and investors without any marketing cost. Apparently, we have achieved this goal.
After the show, Umbala attracted talents and high-quality human resources. We received many emails and messages from young people eager to get on our board and contribute to our company. As a CEO, I think this is our powerful invisible resources.
Regarding the fund, in fact, during the negotiation, the percentage of equity and the number of the fund may be changed, or the deal may fail due to legal issues or other problems. When working with the Sharks, we have negotiated to get the amount that most suits the business value.
However, one thing has changed after the show. Our company was no longer Umbala.Tv. We have changed our focus forward Blockchain technology, thus, our business valuation was much bigger than before.
- How did your team approach new opportunities after Shark Tank?
After the show, I was blessed to have the credibility of Umbala and myself raised markedly. I had a chance to meet and talk to Vietnamese young people, and get to know their passion for startup. Our team is proud of inspiring many students to start their own career.
There were some parents that recognized me on the street and expressed their gratitude for bringing passion to their children. Since then, I understand that my persistently pursuing the dream of Vietnam-based technology startup has become the motivation for Viet youth.
Back to when I was in my 20s, I was lonely on my career path and did not have a clue about startup. I had opportunities to meet entrepreneurs with revenue of hundreds to thousands billion VND a year. I’ve always wanted to bring my technology to
Besides, the credibility of Umbala among investors has gained considerably. Some Vietnamese corporations offered to acquire Umbala but I refused because I could have sold the company to a corporation in Silicon Valley (USA) from Sept 2016.
- Umbala redirects with Umbala Network and pursues Blockchain. What were the reasons for this change?
We are researching and developing Umbala Network — a Blockchain-based platform with high performance and speed, and ability to connect billions of camera-based devices. The ecosystem of camera-based applications is like a new keyboard, or in other words, a real-time communication window between people all around the world. This economy is called Eye Vision Computing Economy.
In the era of digital technology, data is an invaluable asset that can bring in billions of dollar to big information technology corporations such as Facebook and Google. And the data exported from cameras is worthful and enormous potential.
It is predicted that there will be 44 billion cameras all around the world in 2020. With a population of 10 billion, each person will interact with 4–5 cameras. This suggests many potential future business models that make use of data about human and human behaviors.
We also have our R&D team work on protocols assisting the traditional models of e-commerce, travel and services to operate on Blockchain platform.
In addition, we expanded opportunities to cooperate with many other companies to study traditional business models, and apply Blockchain and AI to bring economic efficiency and benefits to users.
- What do you think when people say that Umbala.Tv failed after Shark Tank?
As the saying goes, we can lose the battle but win the whole war.
Umbala.Tv entered the US market with just a small amount of fund compared with millions of dollar of competitors from China and Silicon Valley. However, Umbala.Tv was widely popular with American and global young people and became one of the best apps to create videos on social media. This is the evidence of Vietnamese technological proficiency that can serve the global market.
However, the battle in the end users market is not just about technology, it is also about capital. Umbala.Tv was originally a Vietnam-based tech company with much smaller capital than Chinese tech giants. Funding is difficult as there are many obstacles in Vietnam’s financial system. Frankly, Vietnamese investors don’t believe in technology in the long run. To survive, inland tech companies have to be acquired by foreign corporations and the team become their employees right in the Vietnamese market. That’s why I prefer bearing difficulty than selling the company.
But we have fate with Blockchain. After Shark Tank, a lot of underground “sharks” and “whales” have offered to invest in Umbala. Some enterprises have asked to cooperate with us to apply Blockchain và camera technology in their traditional business models. We are now full of energy because by keeping the company, we have found the new technology that brings more opportunities to survive in the market.
- With this new direction, what challenges do you have to face?
The basic challenge of any tech company is human resources and capital. I always have faith in Vietnamese talents, proven by our team at Umbala Network. In terms of capital, this is the biggest challenge that prevents us from entering the global market. Our competitors from China have a huge amount of fund, support from the government and financial institutions.
- What are Umbala Network’s advantages when pursuing Blockchain?
My team and I have more than 15 years of experience developing online apps, 8 years of Mobile Economy apps, especially camera devices processing apps. Therefore, we clearly understand the potential of the economy based on camera data.
We develop Umbala Network with the mindset that sees camera data as a digital asset. With this philosophy, we develop a transparent platform with secure data to enable companies to create an ecosystem of many industries. At that point, the scenario is that digital asset from individual’s camera can bring in annual revenue, be transferred and traded with other assets.
- What is your strategy in for the near future?
Our foremost goal is to run a successful funding campaign. The market is bearish and our company will incorporate the traditional funding model from venture capitals with funding from Blockchain investors. The fund will be allocated to developing the platform and creating the ecosystem.
In the Blockchain world, people don’t often say where we are in the world, but which industry we are building our platform in. We solve the problem of other Blockchains by the new consensus algorithm. Umbala Network’s Blockchain is designed to fast accelerate, effectively work, and easily approach end users.
The Eye Vision Computing economy has great potential since a camera in the near future will be used not just as a device for capturing and recording but also as a new method of communication between people. This is the reason why I have a strong belief in what our company is pursuing.
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* Landing Page: http://umbala.network
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* Pitch Deck: http://bit.ly/umbalanetwork-deck
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* Whitelist: http://bit.ly/umbwhitelist
* Umbala Network Global Community: https://t.me/UmbalaNetwork
* Umbala Network Global Announcement: https://t.me/UmbalaNetworkAnn
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* Medium Global: https://medium.com/umbalanetwork
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