Calum Forsyth

Building, advising, and writing @ Tanis Labs |
Prev: VC Investor, founder @thisisseedhaus, & STEM PhD

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

A few months ago I set off to experiment. I've set up Tanis Labs as a small home for this, somewhere to hold the building, the advisory work, the writing, etc.

Here's what that looks like so far:

Building - I've been deep in Claude Code. The way I work has completely changed, a big part of my day is in the terminal now. I've built tools for problem framing, hypothesis development, go-to-market research, narrative development, and fundraise workflows. A lot of it comes from what I've seen across hundreds of early-stage companies, and feeds into the hands-on work I do with founders.

A couple of things are public too. Tools I built around Lenny Rachitsky's and Every/Dan Shipper's podcasts. It's been cool to see people using them, and they've led to some really interesting conversations.

Advisory - Part of the experiment has been working with founders and research teams. Breaking down what needs to happen for this to be big, designing experiments to test it, and refining the narrative as they learn.

Writing, thinking, talking about

- Antimemetic ideas: insights that resist spreading.
- What's actually happening to knowledge work.
- Why the way companies get built is changing faster than the advice around it.

Link to Tanis Labs in the bio.

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

I've been thinking about this quite a bit - specifically, the fact that the 'floor' of AI production is getting closer to the ceiling of what 'great' is.
In other words (as you suggest), the band that humans can compete/differentiate in is getting smaller.
To compound this even further - many industries will be quite content with the 'floor' version of the product.

I explored this topic recently here: https://t.co/o3gPf5FcNE

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@bendell I’ll allow it 😉

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@brianmwang Congrats, Brian and family!

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@axeliaklein “What has surprised you about user behaviour?” is a favourite of mine.

Grants insight in to: quality of hypotheses, analytical skills, open-mindedness etc.

Great way to give founders a foothold from which to lay out their journey (important at pre-seed/seed).

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@bvajresh Interesting topics for sure, look forward to reading along, @bvajresh

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@MacConwell @danielreilly @TD_Lowe @DerekjAndersen @StartupGrind Hah - @MacConwell and I go way back. Pleased to say I knew him before he was internet famous 😉
Always happy to help - can pick up in DMs, not far to pop up to Edinburgh?

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

Having said this, I'm always happy to help founders, based in Scotland, navigate the funding landscape. So please do feel free to reach out if this is you - if enough people have similar questions/challenges I might organise a couple of dinners or something. Thanks!

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

It's been a while but I've blocked out some time over the next few weeks to restart our Office Hours sessions. I'm super excited to be doing this again - more info and apply 👇

https://t.co/hB3gOrHecG

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

These sessions are, primarily, for founders that are thinking of raising a round in the coming months. We've actually met several portfolio companies via our Office Hours sessions!

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@brianc13 @jamiesunde @turingfest @christophmccann 💯 - bit of a self-perpetuating cycle with support programmes focussing on ‘pitches’. Which, as you say, is often how syndicates will interact with founders.

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@brianc13 @jamiesunde @turingfest @christophmccann The reason pitching/elevator pitches are so ubiquitous is a result of an over-supply of ‘support programmes’ - easy to make a spectator sport out of pitching.

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@brianc13 @jamiesunde @turingfest @christophmccann As an investor based in 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 - I have never asked a company to ‘pitch me’ nor do most VC investors ask for this. It’s a two-way process where folks have a conversation - some firms will ask for a presentation as part of IC but you’re pretty deep in if this is the case.

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@thattallguy gm

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

@chrismccann @mobyinsights @solanalysis @cryptowazza thanks, @chrismccann!

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

Thrilled to announce we @TechstartVC co-led a £313k pre-seed investment in @reath_id

Reath is building digital infrastructure that empowers organisations to switch from linear production & delivery methods to more sustainable circular methodologies♻️

👉https://t.co/AqalUr51G0

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

Excited to announce that @TechstartVC has invested £300,000 in @rufflyhq's pre-seed round.

Ruffly helps teams estimate, plan, and communicate a project’s scope as it changes 🛠

Read more in the @UKTNofficial piece 👇

https://t.co/yESia74AFo

[(((Robert Gelb))) @thisisgelb]

This was a year of challenges and heartbreak, but also one of optimism and innovation. Creators from all over the world used @HeySummit to build businesses, share knowledge and create amazing experiences. Here are some stats to paint a picture https://t.co/ARGStZd7dF

[(((Robert Gelb))) @thisisgelb]

Incredibly proud of the team. 2 million attendees served, from every country on earth. This is what impact looks like.

[Calum Forsyth @cdforsyth]

Delighted to be backing @HeySummit as they power the next generation of Virtual Events for the Passion Economy.

🌍 4,500+ Summits, 1.9M attendees!

The $1M round included ourselves here at @TechstartVC, @activecapitalvc, & @ankurnagpal

Learn more 👉 https://t.co/U5XpqQdGWw