Sridhar Pai Tonse

2 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Episode #6 – From a Hostel dorm to the Battlefield: The Kamikaze Drone Story

In this gripping episode, we explore the true story of two Indian teenagers who built kamikaze drones from scratch—without big VC money, flashy labs, or government grants. Their innovation has now caught the attention of defense forces across India and possibly beyond.

This is more than just a tech tale—it’s a Solopreneur Startup story with national impact.


What you’ll hear:

How two young founders went from prototype to defense-grade deployment


Why kamikaze drones matter in modern warfare

The deeper lesson for solopreneurs is building quietly in the shadows

This isn’t just about war tech. It’s about what relentless tinkering, zero glam, and deep conviction can achieve. 🔧🧠🚀


If this story resonated with you, share it with a builder who needs the nudge or a founder who is still sitting on the fence.


And subscribe for more such stories 2x per week in your Inbox.

sridharpaitonse.substack.com

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

This week was a blend of execution and reflection — from AI-infused systems to monsoon-drenched train rides. If you’re walking the solopreneur path, these pieces are designed to nudge, lift, and inspire.



My window overlooks this tree. And has been for years. Everyday she sheds a few four-petal Jasmine white flowers with a gentle aroma. They fill the air with the aroma, usually after sunset, and it lasts through the night. When I walk in the late evening the air is thick with the aroma of this flower and most of the flowers are on the ground below by then.



The other day I paused and went up to the stem to take a good long look at the tree. The uniqueness of the tree struck me - it was impossible to tell if it was one tree or two fused into one.

The stem looks firm and solid but when you go close, you realize it is actually two stems fused together....more

Full story here: open.substack.com/pub/sridharpaitonse/p/this-week-…

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

I wrote and published two fiction books during COVID-19.
But for Solopreneurs and founders - my advice?
Do Not Write a Book



If you are writing fiction, please go ahead with your creations. But if you are writing anything else (non-fiction) -on business, life, and so on - please do not write a book now.




Let me explain


My first book, titled The Whispering Tree of Bengaluru, sold about 500 copies in all -my first ever. This story is the autobiography of a tree, and it falls in love with a child growing up in the house across the fence.

My second book, a digital title (Kindle only) book titled An Untold Lockdown Story, is about the life of an old woman during the COVID lockdown. Her already lonely life becomes more difficult, and then she does something unbelievable, and the whole world takes notice.

So, why should solopreneurs not write books?

The answer: (like someone said) - You do not write the book till you become it.


Means?

Your life should become ‘the book’.

You should live the message.

The content of your book will be seen if someone looks at you carefully - you are living it.

That is when you write the book

Then it will fly off the shelf.

Publishers will fight to get the contract and for digital rights

Readers will scramble to grab a copy.

Your first edition will be a sell-out, and the second edition will have a wait-list.

You will be smiling as you look at your book in the airport bookstands

You will be surprised when unknown readers leave reviews on Amazon.

You will look back and say, ‘Did I say that? ’

You will ask yourself, “If you had a second chance, would you live that way - and you will hear yourself say -’ Darn YES!’


But when should you write the book?

After living the art

'After breathing the craft, ‘eating, drinking, and sleeping, it’ as they say.

After scripting your rules

After breaking them

And then rewriting

After your ego is busted several times. After you are humbled

And you realize the role model you had in your younger years,

whom you imitated shamelessly,

is also reading your book (or art, or performance, or code, or your craft, be it anything)

Or he has dropped you a line that says, nice things about your work


That someone you thought was a giant in your art is now walking with you like a peer, shares the podium with you as a panel member in an event

That is when you write

And then when others tell you

‘Wow -man, you have arrived!’

You ask yourself:

“Is this what they mean by ‘arriving’?’

And then something deep inside tells you

‘I know it was not me’

It was something bigger and invisible that made it work

‘Yes, I was only the face of it, but something else was driving it’


So Why Should It Take So Long To Write A Book?


If you are a software architect, hardware designer, marketer, author, singer, creator, tech innovator, musician, dancer, or artist of any kind, do not think of writing the book till you have put in at least 10 years in the craft.

If you have a dedicated effort to put together whatever is required in the craft of actually building it.

Your first 10 full-time years in any craft are for you to soak into it, headfirst.

Work with the best in the business, learn from them, and do not count on cash or rewards. Soak it in …go solo, work for free. learn



The first 10 years or more should be about learning and not earning.

By then, you would have matured in your craft, developed a style or fingerprint of your own - a unique one. When you have learned from the Masters, your shoulders would have chipped off the ego. You would have cut your teeth in the grind of the daily sun. The craft would have become uniquely you.

Then you will write that book.


With AI?



AI is a sterile, soulless machine fabric desperately adding speed and efficiency to your craft. Use its strengths when you need them. But remember that you are the artist, the coder, the marketer, or the designer. AI will at most become an efficient assistant.

This efficiency and speed may bring your timeline from 10 years to 8 years, but not anything else.

Now, when you have crossed these milestones, you can write the book. And it will be a best seller!

5 months ago | [YT] | 2

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Note #13


How AI Is Blurring the Line Between Solo Creators and Startup Founders”The Solopreneur OS – Part 2


There’s no longer a clear difference between a solo creator and a startup founder. With AI as co-pilot, both now deploy the same startup energy:


Asset creation and Systems

Distribution strategies and Audience-led products

AI collapses the need for teams, capital, and delays.


It is even forcing VCs to rethink -” What are we going to do next?”.
\
The Old Divide: Solopreneur ≠ Startup Founder

Solopreneurs used to be seen as “lite” versions of real founders

Startup founders had teams, funding, and scale

Solopreneurs had freedom, craft, and control

Until now, that is


The AI Revolution Changed That

AI is now your team


You can write, design, automate, distribute, and build without a cofounder

Solopreneurs are now running startups in spirit and execution.

The cost of leverage is near zero


Solopreneur OS Is a Startup OS

Identify the market problem

Build digital assets (products, content, workflows)

Set up systems for scale (funnels, automation, distribution)

Monetize with clarity (PDFs, courses, advisory, micro-services)

Run it all like a lean startup with one operator (you)


Why am I so confident?

Because I am doing exactly this. Ask me how.
\
What This Means for You

You can start today. You don’t need validation or cofounders. You just need to ship, learn, and iterate. The AI era rewards clarity, not complexity


If this is you

If you're a mid-career professional, consultant, or creator sitting on decades of know-how, it’s time to build your startup, powered by AI, owned by you.


I’ll be teaching this in my upcoming course for Solopreneurs — stay tuned.

In the meantime, grab my free download next week: “7 Digital Assets Every Solopreneur Must Build.”


The Final Line

The line is gone. There are no solo creators or startup founders anymore. There are just people who build — and those who don’t.

I know which side you want to be :)

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Dear Reader,

If you've been building your side hustle, dreaming of a digital income, or even stuck between idea and action, these 4 Substack Notes might change how you look at the game.


For the full story, go to sridharpaitonse.substack.com and subscribe

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Note #12


Rewriting the Rules of Solopreneurship in the Age of AI


Base44

Cursor

Seedstrapping


Heard those in the last few weeks?


The New Age of Builders Has Arrived


In April 2025, Maor Shlomo sold his AI startup Base44 to Wix for $80 million. Just 6 people. No outside funding. Barely 6 months old.

We are officially in the Age of the AI-powered solopreneur.

No investors. No 50-person teams. Just clarity, speed, and the right tools.

This isn’t an outlier. It’s a blueprint for what's coming next.

By the way, Naval Ravikant [Naval's Archive ]had said this 3 years ago. Atomic Corporation had said something like this would happen even earlier. There you have it. The future is here,


Why This Matters (and How It Affects You)

Whether you're a:

Coach or consultant

Ex-corporate leader

Startup founder

Or just someone with deep expertise and zero time


AI now lets you:

Turn one idea into 10 digital assets

Run micro-campaigns without an agency

Build a personal brand without being online 24x7

Monetize a niche without writing a line of code

This is not fantasy. This is already happening.


Key Concept: Seedstrapping

Old model: Raise $1M → Burn it on hiring, marketing, tools. Chase growth at all costs

New model: Build with AI → Earn early revenue. Raise a small round (or none). Scale what works, fast

Seedstrapping = Seed once, then bootstrap with revenue and velocity.


The New Solopreneur Stack

Function Tools (2025-ready:)

For Writing / Content: ChatGPT, Notion, Substack

For Design: Canva, Figma, Dalle Video Veed, Descript, CapCut

For Automation: Zapier,Tally, Make

For Landing Pages: Carrd, ConvertKit, TagMango

For Payments: Razorpay, Gumroad, Stripe

For Email + CRM: ConvertKit, Beehiiv

No teams. No delays. You can build an entire business with just this stack.


Final Takeaways


The creator economy is becoming a solopreneur economy.

AI is the biggest multiplier in the game—treat it like a cofounder.

You don’t need more funding. You need sharper execution.

Reframe your digital journey: Learn fast. Launch fast. Monetize wisely.

This is the best time in history to build 'the startup of you'

To get these posts daily, go to sridharpaitonse.substack.com and hit subscribe.

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Have you ever gone back to your alma mater along with your classmates and taken the trip down the memory lane?
Please do!
We just did
After 33 years with our spouses to our engineering College
It will give you a brilliant new perspective to go back to where it all began
There is magic in the roots
Stay grounded!
So you can soar higher
This link for full video
https://youtu.be/-Nj4-B89308

5 months ago | [YT] | 1

Sridhar Pai Tonse

Note #9:


The Real Currency of the Solopreneur Era Isn’t Money. It’s Leverage.

When a young sales person with a consumer goods firm recently asked me “How can I earn more?” his real question was, “How can I stop trading time for money?”.


This is the first mindset shift every solopreneur must make. Because in the old world — the corporate treadmill — your income was directly tied to your input.


But in the new world — the Solopreneur Era — your value is tied to your leverage.


How does leverage look?


1. Digital Assets

The core idea: Make once, earn forever. Courses, newsletters, communities, templates — these don’t sleep. A well-crafted 30-minute video can do 100x more work than a 30-minute Zoom call.

2. Distribution Systems

Great products don’t win. Discovered products do. Which is why solopreneurs need distribution leverage — via YouTube, Insta Reels, Substack, or a community funnel. Your goal? Become discoverable even while you're asleep.

3. AI Automation

This is the X-factor. Today, AI gives you copywriting, video editing, scripting, design, and planning — at near-zero cost. Your output can now scale without needing to hire 5 people.


If you're still doing all the work yourself, you're not a solopreneur.


You're a freelancer with no leverage.

But the moment you build one system that works while you're away, you shift into Solopreneur Mode.

That's when things start to compound. That's when your income grows while your hours shrink.


To receive these posts daily in your inbox, simply go to sridharpai.substack.com and subscribe.

6 months ago | [YT] | 1