- Name: Joshua Mitcham
- Business: Audemic
- Location: United Kingdom
- Website: Audemic.io
Entrepreneur of the Week: Joshua Mitcham and the Revolution of Audemic
In our latest feature for 'Entrepreneur of the Week', we delve into the inspiring journey of Joshua Mitcham, the founder of Audemic. His story is a fascinating account of how personal frustration can be the catalyst for innovative solutions, especially in the realm of academia and research.
Audemic's inception was rooted in Joshua's own challenges with accessing research papers. Traditionally limited to printed PDFs or online reading, he recognised that these documents, rich in crucial information, needed a more dynamic approach for consumption. This led to the creation of Audemic, an ingenious platform that reimagines how we engage with research papers by offering an alternative: listening to them and their summaries.
The realisation of a market need came through Joshua's introspection as an intellectual. Conversations with fellow researchers, academics, and consultants revealed a shared frustration, underscoring a broader market demand for a solution like Audemic. This understanding was instrumental in shaping the business's trajectory.
Embarking on a venture in the Edtech space, however, was fraught with challenges. One significant hurdle was the initial focus on selling directly to universities. Recognising the need for a strategic pivot, the Audemic team introduced a freemium B2C version of their product. This shift proved to be a masterstroke, leading to over 12,000 verified users and more than 220 paid B2C users within a year of launching their MVP.
In assembling his founding team, Joshua sought individuals with complementary skills to his own. His quick, dynamic approach was balanced by his co-founders' attention to detail and perfectionism. This synergy proved to be crucial in the company's growth. His advice to budding entrepreneurs is to acknowledge personal limitations and assemble a team that fills those gaps.
Looking towards the future, Audemic has set its sights on an ambitious goal. By 2030, the company aspires to significantly contribute to the dissemination of knowledge by developing tools that eliminate learning barriers, democratise access to research, and simplify complex ideas into universally understood knowledge.
Operating from the United Kingdom, Joshua highlights resilience as the most critical skill for an entrepreneur. His motivation stems from the challenge of materialising a concept that inherently deserves to exist. His entrepreneurial journey has enhanced his resilience, sparked creativity, and bolstered his confidence.
For those dreaming of starting their own business, Joshua advises maintaining a balance between strategic and tactical thinking, ensuring that both elements are considered in decision-making.
Audemic's innovative approach to making research more accessible is transforming the landscape of academic consumption. For more information about their work, visit Audemic.io.
Joshua Mitcham's story with Audemic is a testament to the transformative power of entrepreneurship. It highlights the importance of identifying a personal need that resonates widely, the value of strategic adaptability, and the strength found in a well-rounded team.
Full interview below 👇
What motivated you to start your company and how did you begin your entrepreneurial journey?
What motivated me to start Audemic is a process of frustration in trying to read research papers. There was only to ways to consume this information - By printing out a PDF or reading a PDF online, and yet these documents contain some of the most important information in existence. I started to think is there an alternative way to read or more importantly listen to research papers, and the potential to create summaries
Identifying a market need is crucial for any business. Can you share the story behind discovering the market opportunity that led to your business idea?
It was my own need as an intellectual person. After I realised I would like something to exist that solves this need, I started to speak to researchers, academics and consultants, and understood their needs where the same. I understood then that there was a market opportunity for this.
Starting a company often involves overcoming obstacles. Could you tell us about a significant challenge you faced during the early stages of your company and how you navigated through it?
For us selling in the Edtech Space is incredibly difficult, and therefore after a month selling to universities directly, we knew that we had to create a B2C version of the product to get to our end users directly. 5 months after launching the MVP, we launched a freemium B2C version of the product and 12 months since we have had over 12,000 verified uses and 220+ paid B2C users.
Building a strong team is essential for success. What qualities were you looking for when assembling your founding team, and what advice do you have for others in this regard?
Definitely complementary skills, both hard and soft. I am fast, but not a perfectionist, my co-founders are. This helps me check myself when driving forward a quickly as possible. I would say understand where you are not good, and find a team that makes up for that.
Looking ahead, what's the long-term vision for the company? How do you plan to continue innovating and making an impact in your industry?
By 2030, Audemic will have played our part in unlocking knowledge by building tools that:1. remove barriers of time and format in learning2. make research a useable source of information for everyone3. transform today's complex ideas, into tomorrow's common knowledge.
What is the most important skill for an entrepreneur to have?
Resilience
What motivates you to be an entrepreneur?
The Challenge of bringing something into the world that SHOULD exist.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own business?
You need to think Strategically and Tactically at all times, make sure you always consider both.
How has entrepreneurship impacted your life?
It has made me more resilient and creative, and has given me more confidence in my abilities.
Is there anything else you would like to share with us about entrepreneurship?
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