NewsCatcher

Me (Artem) and Maksym, childhood pals since school days and university companions, teamed up to launch NewsCatcher in February 2020. Both Data Engineers with a knack for problem-solving, we were fed up with the status quo but passionate about data, laying the groundwork for our startup. Embracing the ethos of rapid iteration, we wasted no time, kicking off our journey by creating a Telegram chat dubbed "First million".Following Y Combinator's mantra of swift action, we rolled out our beta in April 2020, fuelled by AWS credits from YC Startup School. Our early strides were apparent when a Python package we crafted gained traction on Reddit, attracting a flurry of sign-ups. By June 2020, we debuted our V1 product on RapidAPI, landing our first paying customer—a serendipitous encounter with a US student bound for YC W24 batch. Our trajectory continued with applications to accelerators like TinySeed and YC, ultimately opting for TinySeed's rapid application process, albeit declining YC's offer later on. With strategic hires and laser-focused growth, we had a revenue surge from $3,000 to $25,000 MRR within a year. We circled back to YC, securing entry in May 2022 with $300,000 ARR. Despite hurdles, like my temporary detour to aid the Armed Forces of Ukraine, we thrived, clinching enterprise contracts and elevating ARR to $450,000 by Demo Day. Post-YC, while grappling with revenue challenges hindering our progress, we gleaned valuable insights into customer alignment, reaffirming our dedication to efficient growth and customer-centricity.

Deciding to apply to Y Combinator was a big step for us. We wanted to take NewsCatcher to the next level, and YC seemed like the perfect fit with its reputation for helping startups succeed. In early 2021, we applied to TinySeed, Alchemist Accelerator, and YC for the third time. TinySeed offered us a spot, which we accepted, even though we also got an interview invitation from YC. We had a monthly revenue of $3,000 at that time. Over the next year, we hired Aditya, Aakash, and Ibrahim and grew our monthly revenue to $25,000. This encouraged us to apply to YC again. In May 2022, despite the challenges of the Ukraine conflict and Artem's temporary absence to help the Armed Forces, we decided to reapply to YC. Our dream came true when Michael Seibel interviewed us, and we got in. Joining YC with around $300,000 in yearly revenue, we embraced their focus on fast growth and solving real problems. Throughout the program, we learned a lot from mentors and other founders. By Demo Day, our yearly revenue had grown to $450,000. After YC, Artem spent two days fundraising and found a great investor in Uncommon Capital, led by Jamie Quint. We also got support from other YC alums.

Staying connected with the YC community has been super important for us as we figure out life after our time in the batch with NewsCatcher. We've been using all the cool stuff YC offers to help us grow and get better. Their knowledge base has been a goldmine of tips and tricks that have really helped us make NewsCatcher bigger and better.We've also been talking to other folks in the YC community for advice on running our business and bouncing around ideas. It's been awesome to have a bunch of other founders and experienced mentors cheering us on and giving us advice as we tackle the challenges of starting up.Plus, we've been taking advantage of discounts YC offers for different services, which has been a huge help in making our operations smoother and saving us some money. The YC community has been super generous in sharing their resources and expertise, and we're really grateful for all the support and camaraderie. It's been a big part of our journey as founders, and we couldn't have done it without them!

February 2020: me and Maksym, both Data Engineers, co-found NewsCatcher driven by a shared passion for data and dissatisfaction with existing solutions. April 2020: Launch of NewsCatcher's beta, followed by the release of V1 product on RapidAPI in June, attracting first paying customers. January-February 2021: Joining TinySeed accelerates growth, leading to rapid revenue increase and team expansion. May 2022: Reapplication and acceptance into Y Combinator highlight commitment to excellence and innovation. 2023: NewsCatcher experiences significant growth, achieving an ARR of $1.13 million. 2024: Setting ambitious goals, aiming to grow ARR to $3.7 million. Focus on building scalable customer success processes to maximize retention and upsells. Additionally, hiring first Account Executives to drive sales growth and expand market reach.

NewsCatcher is all about tackling the big challenge of making real-time news data easy to access from a wide range of sources. Many businesses and researchers struggle to get up-to-date info for things like market analysis, trend tracking, and content creation. It's a pain to manually gather news from lots of places—it takes forever and isn't very efficient. We decided to tackle this problem because, as Data Engineers ourselves, we know the frustration of trying to get good news data for projects. We realized that making this info more accessible could have a huge impact, so we decided to use our skills to do something about it.With NewsCatcher, our goal is to make real-time news data available to everyone. We've gathered news from over 70,000 sources and made it easy and affordable for anyone who needs it. We believe that by solving this problem, we can help spark innovation and improve decision-making.We're all about prioritizing data quality, adaptability, great customer service, and keeping things simple. That way, our customers can always count on getting the news they need to succeed.

Our long-term vision for NewsCatcher is to change the game when it comes to how businesses get and use news data, making the business world more informed and connected. If we truly succeed:* Businesses of all sizes will have equal access to real-time news data.* Decision-making across industries will be more informed and agile.* Innovation will be accelerated, driving economic growth.* Transparency and accountability in business operations will be enhanced.* Global connectivity and collaboration among businesses will be strengthened.Basically, we want to give businesses the tools they need to succeed in today's fast-paced and interconnected global market.