Startup Story: KonnectzIT X Tehnopol Startup Incubator

KonnectzIT joined Tehnopol Startup Incubator in spring 2022 and their whole team is actually from India. Tehnopol Startup Incubator welcomes teams from abroad as well, so if you want to apply for our growth programme, now is your chance – the application deadline is September 5. For more information, visit startupincubator.ee/en.

But now, let’s get to know KonnectzIT! They are developing a platform that allows to use multiple applications all at the same time for routine time-consuming tasks. KonnectzIT helps product owners by allowing users to connect them with their public API and allowing their features to be used with infinite opportunities to connect. Their co-founder Vijaya Kumar Channalli introduced their startup in more detail.  

How did you come up with the idea to found a startup?

We, founders, having more than a decade of experience in building large-scale applications, were always solving one bigger problem, i.e. automating their daily processes like status checks, updates and follow-ups, and integrating the number of applications used day in and out. Every solution/product built has a considerable number of opportunities to be integrated with other applications.

Though there are solutions, there isn’t something simple to use with the lean learning curve and high potential outputs. So, we, as founders, gathered and brainstormed to create our brainchild – KonnectzIT.

What have been the biggest challenges/failures and the biggest wins so far?

As an integration-intensive task automation tool, adding major platforms is a time-consuming process involving a series of approvals and authorizations which sometimes proves challenging but we are working on our way to tackle it.

Reaching out to millions of people already using task automation, and becoming their go-to solution for task automation, is the biggest challenge since we need to move them away from their existing solutions.

Task automation is not just a practice, it can be a hobby and a way to find precious time in your life consumed by routine tasks. KonnectzIT’s vision is to build a platform that is simple, easy to learn and automate, with no coding knowledge required. So, we’ve introduced a visual builder within our tool and users love building automation in a quick and innovative way. We feel that’s a big win for us.

Why did you join Tehnopol Startup Incubator?

We are in the stage of acquiring our early adaptors and our traction has been good so far, and we are looking to accelerate our ongoing efforts in all aspects of the company including sales and marketing, product development & team building. We were looking for mentors on a few things which required some expertise, and incubator was an opportunity to connect with mentors and keep things rolling with expertise, also an opportunity to network with the community with much bigger market exposure, and people with similar minds.

As an integration platform, the association with the product owners also plays an important role in the success of our business, and an incubator could be the platform which could help us build these associations we are looking for.

As we progress and we accelerate the efforts in our sales and marketing, we are also looking to raise funds which help us achieve our goals and thus contribute to the success of our customers, team and investors. We are exploring this opportunity as well at the incubator.

Where do you see your startup in 1 year’s time? And in 5 years’ time?

We are aiming to become a widely recognized automation platform among the industry leaders like Zapier and Integromat (Make) with a satisfied customer base in another year.

3x growth in our user base and revenues with a team completely focused on making task automation a hobby for everyone who uses more than one application in their daily life.

Our goal is to reach the top as an industry leader in the automation niche in the coming five years, thus not just serving a bigger audience, but also becoming a platform where product owners stop worrying about building integrations and just connect to the world of apps with KonnectzIT.

Who will be the next Estonian unicorn?

KonnectzIT – by saving hours for users by automating their routine tasks thus helping them create precious moments every day with the time saved.

What kind of books/podcasts/magazines (or top names in your field) do you follow and would recommend to other founders?

• Zero to One by Peter Theil
• Hooked by Nir Eyal
• Product-Led Growth by Wes Bush

If you’d get a chance to meet with Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Steve Jobs, what would you ask them?

We would like to ask them that “Starting up is not easy, how did you feel when you started your first company? And do you think you will feel the same if you might start that now?”. And also “When is the right time to diversify your business?”

Startup Story series introduces the up-and-coming startups that are part of Tehnopol Startup Incubator’s growth programme and whose journey is worth keeping an eye on. Startup Stories can be found here.