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Hike To Strike: A failed Startup journey of " Hike Messenger" Hike: India's messaging app that went from "We'll beat WhatsApp!" to "What's up?" in no time. Born in 2012, raised $261M, valued at $1.4B by 2016 by investors like SoftBank and Tencent. Had 100M+ users who appeared to left their phones in 2021, lol. Reasons for failure: 1. Competitors like WhatsApp And Messenger 2. Frequent pivots 3. Inability to monetize effectively 4. Nothing Unique, just a rip off. 5. Their major USP was that it can have 1000 people in a group ( which is not so unique , lol ) 6. Lack of networking effect like how WhatsApp had before Lessons: 1. Lots of users doesn't mean money in the bank 2. Don't change your mind more than you change your aim 3. Figure out how to make money, or you'll be broke with your friends 4. To beat the big guys, be special , not just another fish in the sea. Best Example is ChatGPT This story demonstrates that not all well funded startups are successful.