Journal
Lab journal
A chronological record of what's happening across ColdStart Labs. Launches, research, validation outcomes, and lessons learned.
Published research on AI-assisted product development
Documented the full workflow ColdStart Labs uses to build experiments with AI-assisted tools. The key insight: AI compresses the build phase but doesn't shortcut problem discovery. Published findings in the research library.
CoMutes goes live on Wave City corridor
First subscribers onboarded for the Wave City to Sector 44 route. Running daily shared rides Monday through Friday. WhatsApp-first booking, no app download required. Early signal: commuters value reliability over flexibility.
Deep dive into India's broken home finance journey
Published research on how property buyers navigate the disconnected systems of RERA, lender eligibility, and personal finance. The fragmentation isn't just an inconvenience — it's a structural barrier that adds weeks to every transaction.
Taksh Fin expands lender coverage to 8 banks
Added four more banks to the Taksh Fin rule engine. Users can now check property eligibility across all major home loan lenders in Delhi NCR. The expansion validated that lender policy encoding is repeatable — each new bank integration takes 1-2 days.
Exploring vendor-neutral messaging orchestration
Published research on why enterprise messaging remains fragmented. The Contexa architecture is taking shape around an adapter pattern that normalises CPaaS providers behind a single API. Key design challenge: preserving channel-specific capabilities behind a unified interface.
Pickly opens second storefront
Launched the second Pickly online store, expanding into artificial jewellery alongside the existing toys and gifts catalogue. Testing whether the curation model extends to accessories. Early data: gifting occasions drive higher conversion than everyday browsing.
Field research on AI in NBFC collections
Completed a round of conversations with NBFC operations teams about AI collection tools. The gap between vendor promises and field reality is significant. Published findings connecting this research to the collection agent context problem on the problem board.
Saksham: exploring subscription model for retail kits
Investigating whether a recurring subscription model works for Tier-2 retail entrepreneurs — monthly product refresh kits with seasonal recommendations. Talking to existing Saksham users about willingness to pay for ongoing curation.
Four experiments live simultaneously
ColdStart Labs now has four live products operating simultaneously: Taksh Fin, Saksham, Pickly, and CoMutes. Findrive publishes weekly. Contexa is in active architecture. This validates the multi-experiment model — parallel exploration across domains is sustainable with AI-assisted development.
Fixed corridor hypothesis validated for shared mobility
Published research on why ColdStart Labs chose fixed corridors over flexible routing for CoMutes. The trade-off is deliberate: slower growth but sustainable unit economics. Three months of data supports the hypothesis.
Saksham ships first business kit
The first complete Saksham retail kit was delivered to an entrepreneur in a Tier-2 town. End-to-end package: product selection, supply chain setup, branding materials, pricing guide, and operational playbook. Early feedback suggests the mentorship component is the most valued element.
Why defining kill criteria before building matters
Documented the experiment design framework that ColdStart Labs uses across all experiments. The most valuable practice: defining specific kill criteria before writing any code. This prevents the common failure mode of endless pivoting without accountability.
Testing curation vs. catalogue in kids ecommerce
Pickly's two-storefront test is producing early signal. Editorial curation outperforms catalogue breadth for gift purchases but faces price sensitivity for everyday items. This is shaping how the product catalogue will be structured going forward.