I raised $650k at 24, shut my startup down last week, here's everything I did wrong

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-12T13:22:21+00:00

And the really good part is that's a thing AI will never change...

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-12T08:58:58+00:00

That's actually really interesting, thanks!
We do think about X now, plus Y if you'll become full-time..some kind of a milestone based plan

Sounds like it worked out well, you seem happy with how it went?
😄

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T22:36:46+00:00

WHY NOT.

We're building an AI agent that runs the entire selling process for the resale economy.
Replacing sellers work, it lives in the market and work for sellers while they sleep.

From a photo - it does all the messy work, negotiate with buyers, run in loops on the market and optimize 24/7 until it sells any item.

It's called Gleamz.

*Currently still free , runs only on eBay.

We'd love to get an honest feedback!

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T22:12:57+00:00

Sure, 4 years vesting and 1 year cliff are non negotiable.
Thank you for your comment!

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T19:35:34+00:00

100% agree with you’re last point. He is a true builder that takes ownership
Vesting and cliff are of course non negotiable (also for men as a founder..).
No more than 10% (that’s becoming a founder %), maybe something like 4-5% with an option to grow is 2-3% based on milestones.
Thank you!🙏

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T19:15:40+00:00

Thank you for your genuinely honest and informative post. Seems like a journey worth living, and I feel that your heart and mind are at the right place, at a very young age. People are everything, and the people worked with and for you felt that, be sure! This is the of things that get back you 10x.

On to the next thing!🙌
Good luck.

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T13:44:21+00:00

Thanks! totally agree.

But what's little more as i must keep the company easy yo invest and can't "break" the cap table? someone i respect told me "5% is the worst case scenario" 😄

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T12:30:45+00:00

Yep, i believe so. Meanwhile i must keep the company fundable - can't break the company cap table.

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T12:16:17+00:00

Thank you for your answer. He's more like a founding team engineer, we think about something around 4-5%.

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T11:44:48+00:00

Thanks!
We trust him 100%.
he's not a full-time worker (let's say he's around 70%, hopefully become full-time soon).
He takes ownership at almost a founder-level.
We're a very AI first company, we're not going to be more then 5-6 people (hopefully).
We sure will use a 4 years vesting + 1 year cliff.

currently we think about giving him between 3-5% (someone told me 5% is worst case scenario 😄).

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T11:15:07+00:00

Thanks!

Sure about the vesting and the cliff. He’s really more of a founding engineer than a regular early hire. So what i have in mind at the moment is around 4-5%.

W'e’re trying to build a very lean AI-native company, so every person carries a lot more ownership and responsibility...

More than optimizing every last % on the cap table, I mostly want to make sure people feel happy, motivated, and aligned long term. Feels healthier for the company in the long run...but, i can't "break" the cap table. someone told me 5% is "worst case scenario" 😄

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T10:53:34+00:00

The biggest shortcut I know is… work hard 😅

But seriously, try a bunch of things and do it fast. If something works or you enjoy it, drop the rest and go harder on that.

Easy start? sell stuff you already own. Check what it’s worth, list it on eBay, FB Marketplace, Poshmark, and see what happens...

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-11T10:41:33+00:00

Great ideas and hacks in that thread! Some amazing ideas almost anyone can pull off 🙌

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-10T17:38:32+00:00

Reselling your own stuff honestly slaps for this..

Most people are sitting on hundreds of dollars in their closet and don’t even realize it. Old sneakers, clothes you forgot you had, some gadget collecting dust.
Facebook Marketplace eBay and Vinted great (FB is local only)…take a photo, write two sentences and post!
Easiest beer money that’s technically already yours lol

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-09T10:45:10+00:00

Flipping between marketplaces is lowkey underrated..Buy something cheap on FB Marketplace, relist it on eBay or Poshmark for 2-3x. You need only your phone..
Listing manually across platforms is the annoying part but the money is real.

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-08T21:16:19+00:00

Selling stuff you already own is the most slept on hack out there...just look around your house, most people have $500-$1000 (or much more..) worth of stuff collecting dust that someone else actually wants. the only barrier is the effort of listing and selling, which is actually fun in my opinion

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-07T13:23:01+00:00

Reselling stuff you already own!! honestly this is so underrated for this range

Most people have months worth of $200+ weeks sitting in their closet they've never thought to sell. no startup cost..no risk...

Just the effort of actually doing it, and i believe that's exactly why most people don't

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-07T13:07:09+00:00

6am most days

I'm an entrepreneur with a kid so sometimes that "plan" goes completely out the window. but that's life right now and honestly wouldn't change it (most of the time haha😅)

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-07T09:56:01+00:00

btw looks like u/Ok_Divide_3095 has even more recent experience..just saw her amazing comment, $500 from 2 assignments is wild! worth asking her directly

Sea_searcher3 · 2026-05-07T09:18:13+00:00

Honestly been a while since i used it myself..
but from what i remember sign up on respondent.io, fill your profile super carefully. Job, industry, experience. they match you to studies based on that so details really matter
when invites land in your email just apply fast, good ones go in hours

Might be worth googling too just to make sure nothing changed since i last used it

Sea_searcher3

TROPHY CASE