Daniel

Co-founder and CEO of Acolite (YC X25)

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@jayyeh It’s called OMG shawarma haha

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@ankurnagpal The NYC tech scene is at least mid 20s-mid30s kinda thing. SF parties get real real weird with 50year old VCs partying with 18 year olds.

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@SolSt1ne Pretty sure it was citadel securities that made most of the money, no?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@arlanr If you started the day at #5 you’ll likely stay there till the end

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

I’m jealous I’m not there, but are women not allowed to attend? It’s literally just men.. I thought YC was bad

[Bill Ackman @BillAckman]

With the besties as I am always All-In

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@keithcrowwd One is in color and one is black and white.. how are they the same?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

Everyone is just talking their book. There is no true objectivity left.

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@rohanpaul_ai Gotta talk your book

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@jackkuveke lmao dude i actually died laughing here

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@ryanbrewer I mean hes there to either fundraise or recruit. Why else would you go on a podcast like this?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@Dgingsz Architecture morphed from elevating the human soul to crushing it

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

I don’t know why people are criticizing Nico. I got the sense that he’s a student of history and truly makes the sacrifice to join his idols. People are jealous that he’s living in a way they wish they lived.

[Harry Stebbings @HarryStebbings]

"If you are not working 7 days per week, you are going to lose".

Corgi Insurance is the most intense workplace culture in startups.

- The company works 7 days per week.

- Founder (@nico_laqua) lives and sleeps in the office.

- He built a cafe in the office because there was no local cafe that was open 24/7.

- 2/3 of the first 30 team members have the Corgi logo as a tattoo.

Today I went behind the scenes with Nico, who has used this culture to scale the company to a $2.6BN valuation in just two years.

My condensed notes below:

1. If You Are Not Working 7 Days Per Week, You Are Going to Lose:

Whatever you can get done in 5 days, you'll get more done in 6 and 7. If you are trying to solve the world’s hardest problems, a standard 5-day workweek will not cut it.

2. Work Trials Repel the Mediocre:

Corgi forces candidates into mock work trials over the weekend. If seeing a full office on a Saturday scares them, they don't belong. True intensity acts as a natural filter to attract killers and repel clock-watchers.

3. Lead from the Front Lines

You can’t demand 7-day weeks while sitting on a yacht. Nico sleeps 3–4 hours a night on a mattress inside the office. If you want your troops to bleed, you have to be in the trenches with them.

4. Culture Only Means One Thing: Winning

Forget superficial jargon like "hackers" or "ex-founders." Strip away the corporate fluff. A great startup culture is aggressively optimized around one single word: Winning.

5. Lifespan vs. Victories

Building something world-historic requires radical sacrifice. When asked if he'd rather build a trillion-dollar company and die at 50, or fail and live to 80, the answer was easy. "I would rather measure my lifespan in victories."

6. Reject the Comfort of "Quiet Quitting."

If you are operating in a hyper-growth environment and your days off happen to be Saturday and Sunday every single week, you are quiet quitting. To win, you must deliberately bypass the off-ramps of personal comfort and low volatility.

Corgi isn't for everyone—and that’s exactly the point.

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@splitbycomma You don’t have sex while in YC

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

What’s the worst BS response you ever got from a VC?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@angelll_4 Ok what should I know?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

Everyone on X is rehashing the same braindead takes. Who is worth following in tech / vc?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@aarons_takes Who?

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@jai_deshpande Bro there’s a company called atoms

[Daniel @danielzohan1]

@angelll_4 I like it too, but do you?